War and Remembrance: Deluxe Collection

Robert Mitchum is a great actor who carries the series. But Jan Michael Vincent did a great job also. And Polly Bergen did a stellar role.

If you sat through Winds of War, then you must sit through this production. Several of the leads have been replaced, for the better. True, Mitchum shows his age, but for me, he IS Pug, no matter what. The Henry family struggles on through the early days of WW2, in almost constant upheaval. This doesn't paint war as a glorious battlefield, nor does it wallow in angst. The story is being told and carries you along, because you have learned to care for the Henrys'. The almost maddening situation regarding Natalie and her uncle will frustrate the viewer, but in its' final conclsusion, the horror is told unflinchingly and true to historical fact. It's well worth the time and the money.

One of my favorite books turned into one of my favorite mini-series. Followed the book closely and remained true to the author.

"The beginning of the end of war lies in remembrance- Herman Wouk" I loved this series when I was a teenager and remember watching this epic mini-series with my family. It has been years and I was happy to discover that the entire War and Remembrance was available in a complete DVD boxed set. For those new to this series, I would advise watching the prequel "Winds of War" which is also available on DVD. "War and Remembrance" begins about a week after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and once again viewers get to see the various members of the Henry family. Victor "Pug" Henry (Robert Mitchum) assumes command of the U.S.S. Northampton, while his eldest son Warren (Michael Woods) is a fighter pilot on board the U.S.S. Enterprise. Byron (Hart Bochner), Pug's other son is a torpedo officer on a submarine. Byron misses his Jewish-American wife, Natalie (Jane Seymour) who together with their infant son and famous uncle Dr. Aaron Jastrow (Sir John Gielgud) are trying to evade the deadly Nazi web, though events will soon enough conspire against them. Meanwhile, Berel (Chaim Topol), Aaron's cousin is a Soviet POW who ends up in the Auschwitz concentration camp. In Parts VIII-XII, we see the conclusion of this epic mini-series as the lives of the Henrys and the Jastrows play out against the backdrop of the war. The implementation of the Final Solution sees the destruction of European Jewry made all the more harrowing through the credible portrayal of Natalie, her young son and uncle Aaron and their collective suffering. The depiction of the Final Solution - mass shootings, gassings, etc is one of the most realistic and horrifying depictions of the Holocaust ever portrayed on screen (the other shows that come close are Holocaust, Amen, and Schindler's List, amongst others). The depictions of Nazi brutality are quite gruesome and I would advise caution against showing this to children under 12. Viewers get to see the leaders of both sides (the Allies and the Axis powers) - FDR, Churchill, Hitler, etc. make historic choices , and the eventual conclusion of the war. This is an epic mini-series that is memorable and will forever remain a classic of its genre. Highly recommended and a must-watch for history buffs and those interested in WW II history and Holocaust history.

I'm a huge fan of Wouk's work, and watched the two miniseries when they ran in primetime. I eagerly awaited this release, and bought it the day it came out. I am disappointed with my purchase. The video looks as though it was digitized with a PC and run through a cheap DVD creation program. The interface is ordinary and out-of-place given the DVD content. One other reviewer has pointed out that this series ends rather abruptly with episode 7. Only by carefully reading the small print on the packaging is it possible to determine that the entire series is not contained within! The 'extra' DVD, which features the story of the making of the film, is counted as one of the six DVDs in the set. The producers might just as well have made it into another couple of episodes...at least the ending would not be so untoward, and I'd feel as though I'd gotten some semblence of my money's worth. The really bad thing, for me, is that I enjoy this series so much that I'll probably buy part 2 when it appears next spring. Maybe the music score CD it is slated to contain will be something of a redeeming factor.

I haven't seen this since it was originally aired as a network miniseries. I'm very happy to see that they have finally released it on DVD & have just ordered a copy. I can't wait to watch it!! I'm very surprised that they released this series, but not "Winds of War", which is the first set in the series. It's like having them release empire strikes back, but not star wars. Anyway, this fictional epic is both historically accurate & interesting to watch. It has both drama & action. The combination of those 4 qualities in the same movie is very rare indeed. "The Winds of War" & "War and Rememberance" were the best mini-series of all time, and were good enough to have been released theatrically. Only problem with them is the time committment. They are each approximately 15 hours long, so don't expect to sit down and watch this in one night. If you commit the time (I recommend popping in a disk/night), you will surely not be disappointed. Keep in mind, the series is 15 hours long. There WILL be some slow portions as you watch. Even the slow portions are interesting though, and increase your emotional attachment to the characters involved.

Talk about being ripped off, WINDS OF WAR at 860 minutes was reasonably priced at around $60. This product at 810 minutes is priced at $106, and it's only part 1. There has to be a point where a person draws the line, no matter how much they like to have the product. At this price for this product-the line has been drawn.

I am an avid ww2 fan. For those of you who want to know exactly what happened during WW2 then this is the movie for you. It also has drama and suspense, great move I say.