# They Shall Not Grow Old



## lowejackson (Feb 23, 2006)

They Shall Not Grow Old was commissioned by the Imperial War Museum and directed by Peter Jackson. It is not a documentary of the First World War but a rather more intimate description by some of the men who where there. The focus is on the western front

Much has been of the coloured pictures and without doubt it is very impressive, there are one or two moments where it does not look quite right but for the rest of the time is really is impressive. What is more impressive is the smoothness of the pictures, all of the jerky pictures which we have become so used to have gone. What is left are smooth black & white and coloured pictures which could have been filmed much more recently. Just a short note on the coloured film, the first part of the film is in black and white.

This film is not for everyone, it shows dead bodies and has some relatively strong language. There are moments of humour and horror and this gives us glimpse into a war which changed Europe.

My suggestion is, just watch it. All the fancy computer stuff to show the pictures at the right speed and colour do not get in the way of telling the story of ordinary men who were asked to do extraordinary things and did not come home to country fit for heroes.


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