The Longest Day — A Film
By: Steve Newman Writer
Tags: Movies, The Longest Day, Culture, History, Film

Robert Mitchum as Captain Cota

Hollywood doesn’t always get history right, in fact it often gets it wrong. But when it does get it right it can often outshine the rest of the world’s film industry, as was the case with producer Darryl F.Zanuck’s masterpiece, The Longest Day.

The film was released in 1962, only 18 years after the actual Allied landings on France’s Normandy beaches on June 6th, 1944; consequently the realities of that day were still clear in many peoples minds, especially the veterans, most of whom, in 1962, were only in their late 30s and early 40s. The film had to try and get it right for their sakes if no one else’s. And the film, on the whole, does get it right, due in no small way to the chief screenwriter, military historian Cornelius Ryan, being allowed to adapt his own book pretty much unhindered, although his finished script was beefed-up here and there by experienced script writers, Roman Gary, Jack Seddon, and ex-GI novelist, James Jones

Zanuck then employed three world-renowned directors to tackle the various national areas of concern, as well as directing some smaller scenes himself.

Veteran British director Ken Annakin (who died early in 2009) concentrated on the British and French sequences, with his re-telling of the British Airborne landings in the early hours of June 6th, and the French commando attack on the casino at Ouistreham, two of the best scenes in the film, due in no small part to the performance of Richard Todd (as Major John Howard), who had actually taken part in those glider landings.

The American sequences were shot by Andrew Marton (who had been the 2nd unit director on Ben Hur), who, with hand-held cameras, was able to create a strong documentary feel to the Omaha Beach landing scenes, at the same time coaxing a truly stunning performance out of Robert Mitchum, as the legendary Captain Cota, who, after super-human efforts, manages to get those US troops in his sector off the beach

Austrian director Bernhard Wicki looked after the German sequences, and again, like Marton, created a strong documentary feel in places, but also, by having the German characters speak in their own language, also created a very strong verisimilitude that made those scenes extraordinarily compelling, helped hugely by Curt Jurgens’ powerful performance of General der Infanterie, Gunther Blumentritt, who, as Generalfeldmarschall Gerd von Rundstedt’s second-in-command, creates a genuine sense of exasperation and despair when von Rundstedt (played with a seething honesty by veteran German actor, Paul Hartman) will not even consider talking personally to “…that corporal” (the Fuhrer), and demand he release the Panzer Division based in Calais. It is a turning point in the film: a point where — with Rommel (played by Werner Hinz) away celebrating his wife’s birthday — we know the German’s will lose the day.

The only weak points in the film are the ‘comedy’ duo, privates Flanagan and Clough — played by Sean Connery and Norman Rossington — who turn the whole thing into a nonsense, and show the British soldier up as something of an idiot. Their parts should have ended-up on the cutting room floor.

On the other hand, Patrick Burr’s portrayal of RAF meteorologist, Group Captain Stagg, is a mighty performance, and when coupled with Henry Grace’s Eisenhower, is a joy to watch. Amazingly Grace and Burr were never even credited in the finished film.

The film also had one of the longest celebrity cast lists ever assembled, including John Wayne, Kenneth More, Richard Burton, Robert Wagner and Henry Fonda — plus many more — which gave the production a huge international audience.

There have been other films and TV series about D-Day, most notably the TV series Band of Brothers, but if you want to find out what happened, and the sequence of events, on June 6th, 1944, watch The Longest Day.