Paschendal: The Last Battle ( Passchendaele ) is a Canadian war film released by Alliance Films , written and directed by Paul Gross . The picture tells about the fate of the director's grandfather - Michael Dunn - a soldier of the 10th battalion of the Canadian expeditionary force during the First World War , who fought in the Battle of Paschendale (Pashendal), also known as the third battle of Ypres . The film opened the program of the Toronto International Film Festival on September 4, 2008, and was released in Canada on October 17, 2008 .
| Pashendal: Last fight | |
|---|---|
| Passchendaele | |
 | |
| Genre | drama , war film |
| Producer | Paul Gross |
| Producer | Paul Gross Neve Fitchman Frank Syracuse Francis Damberger |
| Author script | Paul Gross |
| In the main cast | Paul Gross Carolyn Daverna , Joe Dinicall et al. |
| Operator | Gregory Middleton |
| Composer | Jan Kachmarek |
| Film company | Alliance films |
| Duration | 114 minutes |
| Budget | $ 20 million |
| A country |  Canada |
| Tongue | |
| Year | 2008 |
| IMDb | ID 1092082 |
Content
Production
In accordance with agreements between Alliance Films , Astral Media , and other involved companies, filming began on August 20, 2007 .
The shooting took place in Calgary ( Alberta ), Fort MacLaude , at the Suffield military base in Alberta , as well as in Belgium . The main filming began in Calgary and lasted forty-five days. More than 200 actors were involved, among whom were soldiers of the Canadian army with combat experience acquired in Afghanistan. The battle scenes were filmed in October 2007 on the Tsuu-Tyin Indian Reservation on the outskirts of Calgary.
Motivation
The plot of the tape was inspired by the memories of Grandfather Paul Gross. Like many other veterans, he was laconic, not wanting to share his experiences with his family members. In a nutshell, briefly, during an accidental fishing trip, Dunn mentioned the story of how he killed a young German soldier during a fight by piercing his face with a bayonet. Years later, before his death, lying in a hospital bed, in delirium, Dunn continuously asked for forgiveness from someone. The rest of the family could not understand who the old man had in mind, but Gross knew that his grandfather was addressing that murdered young German [1] .
| In the end, he completely lost his mind. He began to tell me about the terrible events that happened to him during the battle in a small town that turned the First World into ruins. He killed someone there in an unworthy, monstrous manner, and this haunted him for the rest of his life. My grandfather was dying, and in his thoughts he was returning to that city, still trying to find this German boy whom he had killed with a bayonet. And he lived with this memory all his life, keeping it away from the rest. When he finally told me this story, I was really amazed at what I heard, and could not get it out of my head [2] . |
The film reflects a scene in which Sergeant Michael Dunn kills a young German machine gunner in this way.
Financing
In November 2005, the state government of Alberta, in the framework of the celebrations of the centenary of the province, allocated a 5.5 million dollar grant for the production of the film. The total announced budget ranged between 16 and 20 million Canadian dollars, which made the picture the most expensive in the history of Canadian cinema. This project was presented to the public at a press conference at the Armed Forces Museum in Calgary on November 13, 2005 .
Story
The main character of the film is SergeantMichael McCray Dunn - appears on the screen in the spring of 1917, immediately after the battle of Wimy Ridge . In the final stage of the battle, he is injured and sent home, to his homeland, on the mend. In Calgary, in the hospital he meets a nurse Sarah Mann caring for him.
Mann is demoted from military service because her father, a German, left Canada to join the German imperial army in 1915 . He dies at the Battle of Wimi Ridge. And his daughter, wishing to heal his spiritual wounds, finds solace in morphine .
Another character David . Brother Sarah. He is unsuitable for military service because of his asthma , but desperately wants to earn the respect of his girlfriend’s father, because all young men, his peers, are subject to appeal. As a result, after a series of events he finds himself in the trenches of Belgium. Michael Dunn returns there to look after David, and then Sarah, as a field sister of mercy. The whole trinity arrives in Europe at the height of the battle of Paschendale.
Historical Background
Initially , the 10th battalion was equipped with conscripts from the provinces of Alberta , Saskatchewan and Manitoba , but later on, during the course of the war, it was only defined as Alberta. "Combat Ten" was part of the 1st Canadian Division and participated in all the main battles of the war, where Canadian troops were present. The battalion was marked by the largest number of military awards received in one battle. According to the results of the battle for the height of 70 - sixty people received the Military Medal , in addition to the Victoria Cross , three were awarded the Order of Outstanding Merit , seven were awarded the Military Cross and nine were awarded the Medal for Valiant Conduct .
| The name of the village, located on the tip of the Ypresian ledge, the word Pashendale became synonymous with suffering and exhaustion. Strong German defense on this site, which has been developing for more than two years, has created extremely difficult conditions for the British. The tenth battalion was called up from the reserve to support the attack to a height of 52, the place where Pashendale was actually located. The battalion was not included in the plan of attack, but the officers competently trained their soldiers, as if it were the main assault that was assigned to them. This decision immediately paid dividends when the unit was called up from the reserve. On November 10, 1917, the battalion performed its duty with the least losses [3] . |
Compliance
The episode of the film in which the 8th battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (known as the "Black Devils" ) leaves the 10th battalion in the midst of the battle, leaving it without support, it really took place and is described in the battle journal of the 10th battalion:
| At this moment, a terrible misunderstanding occurred. Major Bingham knew that his unit arrived as reinforcements on the 8th, but the Black Devils felt that we had succeeded them. Bingham tried in vain to prove his point of view, but soon gloomily watched as the survivors smeared with mud from the 8th retreated back, leaving his company with a section of the front, which was still covered by a whole battalion. Nevertheless, the major, who had not lost his spirit, evenly distributed his people on the defense line up to the positions of the 7th battalion on the right. Bingham knew perfectly well that in the event of a counterattack he could not be able to stay in his position [4] . |
Lt. Col. Ormond, the commander of the 10th battalion (his character appears in the film), also gave a written assessment of the unexpected withdrawal:
| And then I agreed to take the front line from the 7th and 8th battalions ... upon returning to headquarters, I found orders forbidding the premature withdrawal of units, but it had already happened and while the officers of the 8th battalion reported to the command the situation - no action was taken [ 5] . |
Reaction
Paschendal: The Last Fight received mixed reactions from critics. On August 24, 2009, the authoritative Rotten Tomatoes review drive site rated the movie as 5.6 out of 10 based on 6 reviews. And the rating on IMDb on August 24, 2009 was 7.0 out of 10, and totaled 2350 votes.
Box office fees
On the very first weekend, “Paschendal: The Last Battle” was shown in Canada in 202 cinemas and raised $ 847,522, showing the second result in the country after “Max Payne” [6] . By the end of January 2009, the fees amounted to $ 4.45 million, which was half of the 2008 box office revenue from all English-language films produced in Canada [7] .
Awards and nominations
In April 2009 , at the 29th Canada National Highest Film Award Ceremony, Pashendal: The Last Fight, became the most titled film, winning awards in five categories, including the title of “Best Film of the Year” [8] . In addition, the film became the owner of the Golden Reel Award , as the highest grossing Canadian film of 2008 [9] .
Rewards
| Year | Event | Nomination | Awarded |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Film Prize " Gini " | Best movie | Paul Gross Neve Fitchman Frank Syracuse Francis Damberger |
| The best work of a production designer | Carol Spier Janice Blacky Goodine | ||
| Best Costume Designer Job | Wendy Partridge | ||
| Best sound | Lou Solyakovsky, Garrell Clark Steve Foster Don white | ||
| Best sound editing | Jane Tattersall Kevin Banks Barry Gilmore, Andy Malcolm David rose | ||
| Golden Reel Award | The highest grossing film of the year | Paul Gross Neve Fitchman Frank Syracuse Francis Damberger | |
| Canadian Society of Cinematographers Award | Best Cinematography | Gregory Middleton |
Nominations
| Year | Event | Nomination | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Film Prize " Gini " | Best actor | Paul Gross |
Cast
- Paul Gross - Michael Dunn
- Carolyn Daverna - Sarah Mann
- Joe Dinicol - David Mann
- Meredith Bailey - Cassie Walker
- Jim Maison - Major Dobson Hughes
- Michael Grays - Highway
- Adam Harrington - Colonel Ormand
- Jill Bellows - Royster
- Landon Libuaron - a young German soldier
Notes
- ↑ "Passchendaele" a tribute to Paul Gross's grandfather . Date of treatment August 24, 2009.
- ↑ Interview with Now Magazine (UK) June 11, 1998 . Date of treatment August 24, 2009. Archived on April 6, 2012.
- ↑ Battle path of the 10th battalion. (eng.) . The site of the 10th battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. Date of treatment August 25, 2009. Archived on April 6, 2012.
- ↑ Daniel Dancocks. Gallant Canadians: The Story of the Tenth Canadian Infantry Battalion, 1914-1919. - Calgary, Alta: Calgary Highlanders Regimental Funds Foundation, 1990 .-- S. 150 .-- 251 p. - ISBN 0-9694616-0-7 .
- ↑ Lt Col D Ormond's Battle Narrative, dated November 28, 1917, National Archives of Canada File RG9 III C3, Vol 4052, folder 21, file 2.
- ↑ Canadian Box Office for the period October-November 2008 (English) . Date of treatment August 24, 2009. Archived on April 6, 2012.
- ↑ Playback Magazine, Volume 23 # 9, page 2, February 16, 2009 edition
- ↑ Website of the Gini Film Award (English) (inaccessible link) . Date of treatment August 24, 2009. Archived on April 6, 2012.
- ↑ Golden Reel Award website (English) (inaccessible link) . Date of treatment August 24, 2009. Archived on April 6, 2012.
Links
- Official movie website
- CBC News Film Article
- Paschendal: Last fight on the Rotten Tomatoes website