Very nice job on this old War Movie, super wide cinema scope also. HD-DVD once again hits the sock off the ball.

Great movie, and the HD DVD really looks crisp. The did, indeed, do a great job w/this.

They did go a great job but lets bring on the critics. :)

If you're a kid who loves Tanks (Panzer/Tigers) you'll love this movie. Claissic INTERMISSION, Prologs - Movies of the good old days.

They did go a great job but lets bring on the critics. :)

If you're a kid who loves Tanks (Panzer/Tigers) you'll love this movie. Claissic INTERMISSION, Prologs - Movies of the good old days.
There are no Panthers or Tigers in the movie (nit pick), not even an attemp to make some mock ups, they just use US M47's (irony is that the M47 was known as the Patton) to represent panzers. At least in Kelly's Heros they mock up T-34's to look like Tigers and did very good looking replicas. :D

There are no Panthers or Tigers in the movie (nit pick), not even an attemp to make some mock ups, they just use US M47's (irony is that the M47 was known as the Patton) to represent panzers. At least in Kelly's Heros they mock up T-34's to look like Tigers and did very good looking replicas. :D


I haven't seen either movie in awhile, but didn't BotB use M24 Chaffee light tanks as Shermans and M47 Pattons as German panzers (Tiger, Panther, etc.). I think that was pretty standard in war movies of the 60's and on, including the film Patton.

But, I think the Tiger in the town at the end of Kelly's Heroes is a real Tiger. Have to watch it again to be sure, though. And, I think Oddball's Sherman was in fact a real Sherman, too.

I haven't seen either movie in awhile, but didn't BotB use M24 Chaffee light tanks as Shermans and M47 Pattons as German panzers (Tiger, Panther, etc.). I think that was pretty standard in war movies of the 60's and on, including the film Patton.

But, I think the Tiger in the town at the end of Kelly's Heroes is a real Tiger. Have to watch it again to be sure, though. And, I think Oddball's Sherman was in fact a real Sherman, too.
The Tigers in Kelly's were T-34's. Very good mocks. You can tell by the wheels. The Tigers overlap and the T-34 dont. Both the Panther and Tigers were inspired by the T-34 and were built on the Christie (y) style running chassis. In Kelly's they used Shermans. Only two main Shermans were working the rest in the convoy on road sceen were towed. At leat the M24's were available during WW2. Just love how the turret of Telly's M24 blow apart and the he's still lives :rolleyes: .There are so many wrongs in the movie (Bulge) but if you just forget about the hardware and the various stupid story lines, the movie as a popcorn flick is ok.

I know in most of the war movies of that time did the same thing, If I rem correctly the M-47's used in the movie were actaully the West German army's or was that in Patton? At least Patton was more or less based on facts and with good acting.

At least Patton was more or less based on facts and with good acting.

I've never seen Battle of the Bulge, how do you think it compares to Patton as far as a war movie?

You guys know your history on Tanks. The Kelly's Heros black tanks looked bad axx to me.

I've never seen Battle of the Bulge, how do you think it compares to Patton as far as a war movie?


Patton is a far better movie. Bulge is a fun, light-headed action war movie. Patton is more of a character study of a complex man.

The first real Tiger shown on a film was Saving Private Ryan. Courtesy of Russia.

The battle scenes in Bob are spectacular better than Patton.

How does the compare PQ & SQ to the SD DVD?
Thanks.

How does the compare PQ & SQ to the SD DVD?
Thanks.

The PQ and AQ is incredible in a lot of areas. My family was impressed. They had no intention of watching a 40 year old movie when i popped it in to demo HD-DVD, but they were hooked. The film master must have been in beautiful condition for this transfer.

Agreed when I first looked at it I was surprised. Another one like Robin Hood and even better. Wild some old movies can look as good and even better than recently filmed movies. I hope Midnight Run looks as good that's next up on my list. Great movie.

The first real Tiger shown on a film was saving private ryan. Courtesy of Russia.

The battle scenes in Bob are spectacular better than patton.
Maybe from Russia but still mock's. Check the running wheels. They are mocked Tigers built on T-34 running stock same as the ones in Kelly's. :D . I built so many model tanks in the past and gamed with so many miniatures, these things stand out. Also work as a defence analyst for the Canadian Arm Forces and wrote a direct fire sim for them many years ago that dealt with things like tank warfare (modern combat tanks and such for that time like the Leopard I/II vs T-55/72 and others). It was nice that my job at that time coincided with my hobby (war gaming) :D .

http://www.alanhamby.com/tiger.html

Check the overlapping wheels of a real Tiger I in the gallery.


EDIT: Sorry OP. :o

Nice picture, what a brute of a tank. :)

Nice picture, what a brute of a tank. :)

Great 88mm gun but very poor reliability like most German tanks of that time. The Tiger II (http://www.fprado.com/armorsite/tiger2.htm) was the real monster. Better 88mm and more armor'd but less reliable then the Tiger I. The Panther (http://members.tripod.com/~dietmagic/panther.html) was prob the best overall tank the Germans had. Great long 75mm gun and good frontal armor protect and reasonably fast. The Allies with mostly Shermans and T-34 where out match single Tank vs Tank (loose three Shermans to get "maybe" one panzer) but the Allies had the numbers (and great Tac air support) and in the case of the US tanks reliability.

Note: Even in Kelly's Heros, the German tank commander remarked about the bad conditions of his Tiger.

I think Shaw's "Tigers" in BotB were suppose to be Tiger IIs.

Tank Talk:
What tanks were used on "The Rat Patrol" (TV)?
Thanks.

The PQ and AQ is incredible in a lot of areas. My family was impressed. They had no intention of watching a 40 year old movie when i popped it in to demo HD-DVD, but they were hooked. The film master must have been in beautiful condition for this transfer.
And that's in direct comparison to the SD DVD for PQ & SQ?
Thanks.

Hi,

I have built a lot of tank models in my days and am always very disappointed when I see a 35 ton T34 or a not much bigger US tank posing as a 56 or 70 ton Tiger tank.

There were some Tiger II and Panther tanks employed in the Battle of the Bulge and knowing how they really looks it hurts to not see them in any war film I have seen so far (including Saving Private Ryan btw.).

On this page (scroll down a bit) there is a comparison with a Sherman tank that shows how huge the King Tiger/Tiger II really was:

King Tiger vs. Sherman (http://www.fprado.com/armorsite/tiger2.htm)

Oliver

If it is any consolation to you the Industrial design of the Tiger 2 is alive and well at Barco, in Kuurne, in the Ardenes where the BOB took place and reportedly 13 tiger 2 were abandoned. Is there a connection?

http://cineramax.com/images/Tiger2DP1500.jpg

I personally plan on commanding one of these and make a little bulge ( more like a dent;)) in the anamorphic projection arena. As this projector relies on servo zoom memories in lieu of an anamorphic lens to change aspect ratio. I think i'll hum the panzer song while doing it. ;)

This thread has become a review on tanks.

Yep we got past the video part which is very very crisp, again super job. I find tanks interesting, when I was a kid I got a cardboard toy tank you could get inside it was quite big. Neat moving around and looking thru the peep holes. Wonder it it was a Tiger. :)

There are no Panthers or Tigers in the movie (nit pick), not even an attemp to make some mock ups, they just use US M47's (irony is that the M47 was known as the Patton) to represent panzers. At least in Kelly's Heros they mock up T-34's to look like Tigers and did very good looking replicas. :D

I would love to see Kelly's Heroes on HD-DVD! :cool:

If it is any consolation to you the Industrial design of the Tiger 2 is alive and well at Barco, in Kuurne, in the Ardenes where the BOB took place and reportedly 13 tiger 2 were abandoned. Is there a connection?

http://cineramax.com/images/Tiger2DP1500.jpg

I personally plan on commanding one of these and make a little bulge ( more like a dent;)) in the anamorphic projection arena. As this projector relies on servo zoom memories in lieu of an anamorphic lens to change aspect ratio. I think i'll hum the panzer song while doing it. ;)

LOL - that one was priceless :)

I would love to see Kelly's Heroes on HD-DVD! :cool:

Always with the negative waves moriority! It's a mother beautiful bridge and it's going to be there. ;)

What do you think you're doing? "Catching some Rays, drinking wine, eating some cheese". :) DS was a total crack up.

I also would like to see Kelly's Heroes in HD-DVD.

Patton is a far better movie. Bulge is a fun, light-headed action war movie. Patton is more of a character study of a complex man.

yea, this is true... patton really isn't a "war" movie...

that was a good one cinera... :)

as long as we've strayed off topic, is "the longest day" in hd dvd?

BOTB is a great disc. Having watched it many times over the years on TV, it was quite a visual shock to see it in HD. They did a great job on the PQ. It was nice to finally once more see the cut-for-television scenes, such as the "mock" arrest of Hessler in the bunker, Hessler walking past the tanks and the "release the boy...shoot the father" scene. The extras are pretty good too.
Yeah, the film isn't accurate, but the cast is superb. Robert Shaw is brilliant as Hessler!

BOTB is a great disc. Having watched it many times over the years on TV, it was quite a visual shock to see it in HD. They did a great job on the PQ. It was nice to finally once more see the cut-for-television scenes, such as the "mock" arrest of Hessler in the bunker, Hessler walking past the tanks and the "release the boy...shoot the father" scene. The extras are pretty good too.
Yeah, the film isn't accurate, but the cast is superb. Robert Shaw is brilliant as Hessler!

Yes this transfer is excellent.The sharpness is great for a old movie.The 2.78 I think format is neat.Making the battel scenes in the open plains look huge.Robert Shaw was great.They should have left Henry Fonda out of the movie.His part was joke.But still one of my favorite war movies.BOB

Yep, this movie look fantastic on HD DVD. Love these older movies when they've got a good master. Results are breathtaking.

bought it on BD for no other reason than it's the same as the HD version, but I have to compliment this thread, it's awesome...:)

That barco image above is priceless, I didn't read the thread before as it took me a while to get the disc, but this made me laugh more than many a thread here at AVS. The sheer nerdiness of the tank discussion is pretty awesome as well - anybody have a citation that SPR was the first to use actual Tigers on (English) film?

Off to the Sony CES show, wearing my HD DVD shirt... such a rebel...;)

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=908533

You may read more on my attempts to install the Barco DP1500 digital cinema projector for the first time in a home.

http://cineramax.com/images/BarcoNestLeft.jpg

Great tank info :)
And i like the movie.

Pretty serious (bordeing on morbid) lyrics.

1. Ob's stürmt oder schneit,
Ob die Sonne uns lacht,
Der Tag glühend heiß
Oder eiskalt die Nacht.
Bestaubt sind die Gesichter,
Doch froh ist unser Sinn,
Ist unser Sinn;
Es braust unser Panzer
Im Sturmwind dahin.

2. Mit donnernden Motoren,
Geschwind wie der Blitz,
Dem Feinde entgegen,
Im Panzer geschützt.
Voraus den Kameraden,
Im Kampf steh'n wir allein,
Steh'n wir allein,
So stoßen wir tief
In die feindlichen Reihn.

3. Wenn vor uns ein feindliches
Heer dann erscheint,
Wird Vollgas gegeben
Und ran an den Feind!
Was gilt denn unser Leben
Für unsres Reiches Heer?
Ja Reiches Heer?
Für Deutschland zu sterben
Ist uns höchste Ehr.

4. Mit Sperren und Minen
Hält der Gegner uns auf,
Wir lachen darüber
Und fahren nicht drauf.
Und droh'n vor uns Geschütze,
Versteckt im gelben Sand,
Im gelben Sand,
Wir suchen uns Wege,
Die keiner sonst fand.

5. Und läßt uns im Stich
Einst das treulose Glück,
Und kehren wir nicht mehr
Zur Heimat zurück,
Trifft uns die Todeskugel,
Ruft uns das Schicksal ab,
Ja Schicksal ab,
Dann wird uns der Panzer
Ein ehernes Grab.

Translation

In blizzard or storm,
Or in sun warm and bright,
The day hot as hell
Or bone-chilling be the night,
Our faces may with dust be laid,
But spirits never fade,
No, never fade;
Relentless, our tank
Thunders out on a raid.

With engines a-howling,
Fast as is the wind,
We head for the foe,
Safe, as we're in armor skinned.
Our comrades still behind us roam;
We fight the foe alone,
Yes, fight alone.
We stab through the line
To break the foes backbone.

Whenever the foe
May appear in our sight,
We'll ram throttle full,
Then we'll humble all his might!
Of what use is our life if we
Our country serve freely?
Yes, serve freely!
To die for our country,
Our honour shall be.

With tank traps and mines,
Our foe tries to impede.
We laugh at his ruses;
We know he'll not suceed.
And when, in threat, his cannons stand,
Half hidden in the sand,
Yes, in the sand,
We can find our way
Over much safer land.

And should at long last,
Fickle Lady Luck leave,
And we remain here,
Leaving family to grieve,
A bullet with our name on it,
Find us and seal our fate,
Yes, seal our fate,
Our tank will our grave be
On that final date.

Still waiting for ANY format to offer a 2.35 OAR presentation of TOBRUCK:(

B of Britain and a Movie Too Long will soon be out in BR.

Cineramax thanks for that post. I've always wondered what they were singing about. I knew it had to be very gungho for the father land but geez..Those guys were true fanatics.

The movie looks and sounds great! Until SPR was released, this was my favorite war movie.

I've never seen Battle of the Bulge, how do you think it compares to Patton as far as a war movie?
There is little comparison. "Patton" is the superior film by miles!! "Bulge" has some good moments and is interesting but simply cannot hold a candle to the multi-Oscar-winnng "Patton"'s superior script, score, cinematography acting (George C. Scott, Karl Malden and all concerned!) and direction (Franklin J. Schaffner.)
"Patton" is a true classic that should be seen by all. Scott's performance is simply definitive. When Robert Mitchum was offered the film he not only turned it down but suggested strongly that Scott be offered the role. It was the best advice a producer and director ever took.
"Patton" is the one to own--- whether or not one can obtain it on HD media!

"Patton" is the one to own--- whether or not one can obtain it on HD media!

Not so sure about that. Most large format movies look less than hot on DVD.
Patton has a pretty good chance to be released on HD media soon so I am waiting to watch it in HD.

Just stumbled across this thread and....oh, if only all threads on AVS could be this entertaining and informative. Got a kick out of the Tiger authenticity discussion as this is one of the perennial war movie grognard discussions. Appreciated Tinker's insight on this.

Suprised no one has commented on BotB's score. I only have the DVD version and purchased it based on my love of this film as a young lad and Ben Frankel's soaring symphonic score.

Well, I confess I'd like to see "Bulge" as well on the HD-DVD disc in discussion! And "The Longest Day" as well--- and "Tora! Tora! Tora!" These are all interesting movies with much to offer!

As long as I'm never subjected to that incredible piece of crap called "Pearl Harbor" again!

Cineramax thanks for that post. I've always wondered what they were singing about. I knew it had to be very gungho for the father land but geez..Those guys were true fanatics.

The movie looks and sounds great! Until SPR was released, this was my favorite war movie.

It is called the Panzerlied. I just saw the movie again myself about three weeks ago and went searching for a transalation of it after watching it.

Does Battle of the Bulge have a next generation audio format on the HD-DVD version?

I finally got around to watching this title last night.

Holy crap! It looks better than I imagined. I was expecting quality similar to The Dirty Dozen, since I didn't read any reviews.

This is going to be my new demo disc for "pre-2000" films.

I finally got around to watching this title last night.

Holy crap! It looks better than I imagined. I was expecting quality similar to The Dirty Dozen, since I didn't read any reviews.

This is going to be my new demo disc for "pre-2000" films.

I thought the same thing. This is truly an amazing disc.