The movies in this Pix are not only set during World War Two, but also deal in a subject that I have been interested in for quite a while: Intelligence Operations regarding the OSS and SOE.
The Heavy Water War
As many of you know I am a HUGE fan of World War Two Historical foreign films, not because I am trying to be some elitist film critic snob but because over the years I have found some real gems.
The Heavy Water War is a World War Two Historical six part mini-series about the Nazi’s race to develop Atomic Weapons and the Allies (primarily the British SOE) subsequent race to stop them. For those of you familiar with the subject, it primarily revolves around the mission to blow up the Norsk Heavy Water Plant in Norway in 1943. Similar films have been made in the past about this mission, most notably “The Heroes of Telemark” with Kirk Douglas and Richard Harris from 1965.
The film is primarily in Norwegian with English subtitles, but there are large parts of it in English as well. As a World War Two historian, the film is extremely accurate in its depictions. The only bad thing about the mini-series is that for some reason the writers found it necessary to try and intertwine love stories and domestic squabbles within the story line. It does not detract from the story per se, but it is an annoyance none the less. Overall, an excellent World War Two Mini-Series and definitely worth your time.
Female Agents
Female Agents is a french film (Les Femmes De L’ombre) with English subtitles that chronicles the mission of an SOE all-woman task force sent into France to rescue a captured British agent who was sent into help prepare for the D-Day landings. For those of you that share a fascination (like me) with the OSS and SOE’s operations during WW2, you will know that Women played a huge role. Movies like Carve her Name with Pride from 1958 and Charlotte Grey from 2001 with Cate Blanchett are great examples.
Overall a Good Movie on an Awesome subject. It is important that we remember that Women played a HUGE role in Intelligence and Sabotage Operation both in the SOE and OSS during WW2.
Stay Alert, Stay Armed and Stay Dangerous!