This film is part of Rentals
Forgotten Men: The War As It Was
Norman Lee’s 1934 documentary takes audiences through the harsh horrors and realities of war, showing everyone what soldiers truly go through within the armed forces.
Director: Norman Lee
Overview
Filmmaker Norman Lee’s searing 1934 documentary is a true testament to what soldiers endure during their time with the armed forces. Understanding that the public’s knowledge of wartime experience was limited to newsreels and photographs, Lee complements such footage with first-hand accounts and footage to help audiences better understand and sympathize with the brutal realities of war. From leaving families and loved ones to fighting on the battlefield and risking lives, nearly each personal facet is explored and discussed in Lee’s powerful testament.
Lee continued to have a varied career in both fiction and documentary after this piece, but Forgotten Men: The War As it Was remains one of his most vital and illuminating pictures. It was appropriately produced and released right near the dawn of the Second World War so that the public could fully comprehend the realities soldiers face during such tumultuous, dangerous times.
archive footage of war violence and real dead bodiesRelated
South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic
Documentary 1919 81 mins Silent Director: Frank Hurley
An extraordinary story of survival in the wastes of Antarctica.
The Ballymurphy Precedent The Ballymurphy Precedent
Documentary 2018 108 mins Director: Callum Macrae
John Pilger's film on the conflict in Northern Ireland is a skilful mix of investigative journalism, documentary storytelling and reflections on contemporary history.
Utopia Utopia
Documentary 2013 111 mins Director: John Pilger and Alan Lowery
John Pilger's portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture is also an investigation into a suppressed colonial past, and rapacious present.
The Coming War on China The Coming War on China
Documentary 2016 113 mins Director: John Pilger
John Pilger’s prescient 60th film for ITV is both a warning and an inspiring story of resistance.
Supersonic Supersonic
Documentary 2016 117 mins Director: Mat Whitecross
Relive the stratospheric rise of the kings of Britpop in this rousing nostalgic trip from the producers of Amy.
Gascoigne Gascoigne
Documentary 2015 87 mins Director: Jane Preston
Documentary portrait of the mercurial football genius who inspired the game’s modern renaissance while battling personal demons.
Mons Mons
Documentary 1926 110 mins Silent Director: Walter Summers
Arrival of the British Army in France
Poppies of Flanders Poppies of Flanders
War 1928 122 mins Silent Director: Arthur Maude
Powerful wartime drama that sees rivals in love becoming comrades-in-arms in the trenches of the Western Front.
Ypres Ypres
Documentary 1925 79 mins Silent Director: Walter Summers
Battle film made as a memorial to the dead of WWI, documenting events at Ypres using reconstructed and genuine footage.
Sons of the Sea Sons of the Sea
Crime 1926 76 mins Silent Director: H. Bruce Woolfe
Two boys answer the call of the sea as Royal Navy recruits in this adventure of the seven seas.
Blighty Blighty
War 1927 106 mins Silent Director: Adrian Brunel
Life on the Home Front during WWI, through the eyes of one family.
All Quiet on the Western Front All Quiet on the Western Front
War 1930 133 mins Director: Lewis Milestone
Lewis Milestone's pioneering, Oscar®-winning film is one of the most powerful films about the consequences of war
Money Talks Money Talks
Comedy 1933 74 mins Director: Norman Lee
Norman Lee's charming comedy Money Talks tells the story of old Abe Pilstein (Julian Rose) who is in line to inherit a large sum of money from a distant relative - but needs to prove he needs it first.
Strip! Strip! Hooray!!! Or (Fun with the Sunbathers) Strip! Strip! Hooray!!! Or (Fun with the Sunbathers)
Comedy 1932 35 mins Director: Norman Lee
Stuffed-shirt party pooper Sir Hector infiltrates a sunbathing camp full of scantily clad jazz-swingers in this 1930s comedy
Spring Meeting Spring Meeting
Comedy 1941 94 mins Director: Walter C. Mycroft and Norman Lee
A penniless woman’s attempts at matchmaking her way to riches go awry when her son falls for the wrong daughter of a nobleman.
Timestalker Timestalker
Comedy 2024 89 mins Director: Alice Lowe
Alice Lowe's time-jumping fantasy rom-com is a colourful, darkly funny treat.
South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic
Documentary 1919 81 mins Silent Director: Frank Hurley
An extraordinary story of survival in the wastes of Antarctica.
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
Utopia Utopia
Documentary 2013 111 mins Director: John Pilger and Alan Lowery
John Pilger's portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture is also an investigation into a suppressed colonial past, and rapacious present.
The Ballymurphy Precedent The Ballymurphy Precedent
Documentary 2018 108 mins Director: Callum Macrae
John Pilger's film on the conflict in Northern Ireland is a skilful mix of investigative journalism, documentary storytelling and reflections on contemporary history.
The Coming War on China The Coming War on China
Documentary 2016 113 mins Director: John Pilger
John Pilger’s prescient 60th film for ITV is both a warning and an inspiring story of resistance.