Buttons Movie Reviews

Unfortunately - MGM did this WideScreen Technicolor 147 minute classic movie a disservice when transferring it to a digital format!! First of all the true WideScreen is reduced to 4:3 Letterbox format. (this is a inferior True letter box picture -horizontal black bars on 4:3 tvs & horizontal & vertical black bars on WideScreen 16:9 HDTV's (postage stanp size)). Also by not being digitally enhanced for real WideScreen HDTV your Technicolor Pallet of vivid color is reduced to washed out presentation. A real shame because the Japanese ornate costumes, lavish Landscapes & exotic botanical gardens colors are lost. Also the only extra feature is a trailer.

Again, "Sayonara" is an outstanding 5 star movie with an allstar cast starring Marlon Brando, James Garner & Red Buttons. At the very least rent this Hollywood Classic it is worth the viewing. I hope MGM re-releases this film at a later date with all the extras to justify this films cinematic value & beauty. Enjoy.

Academy awards were won by Red Buttons and Myoshi Umeki for their supporting roles. The movie was adapted from a novel by James Michener who had broad knowledge of postwar Japan.

The DVD in widescreen (on my 31" TV) is not quite like that summer night at the drive-in, but almost as good. My speakers are a lot better than the drive-in was... It's an excellent transfer to DVD.

This movie is pure fun. It's a keeper.

There's some good humor here as well as realism, even if you don't see much blood and gore. But though Saving Pvt. Ryan had more gore, it had much less substance and aside from the 25 minute beginning was less realistic than this. This one really sets the whole day of June 6th, 1944 in a way that you really feel the importance of it. The license they took with some of the facts doesn't detract from it's realization of one of the most important days in history. And this of course was one of the few wars where the US fought on the right side (though pre-war US corporate-Nazis ties are a whole other discussion).

The 3 hour film has a few scenes with Rommel (Werner Hinz)as well as the beautiful Irina Demick as a French resistance fighter. Fabian is given a long scene which was a big mistake for this film as he's a poor actor, and when he has a scene with Richard Burton it's like Davy and Goliath in terms of acting. Watch for a bit part with Richard Dawson.

This film remains a great tribute to those who risked and gave their lives to save Europe.

"The Longest Day" is unquestionably an historically accurate film about the events leading up to and including D-day. It includes vignette depictions of the Allied soldiers waiting to be deployed, after having been put on standby several times. It illustrates the day-to-day lives of the occupying Germans who did not expect the invasion. In fact, the landing of such a large force was considered unlikely and even impossible considering the weather at the time. The stories of the Glider Troops, Paratroop drops, the beach landings, and the actual land invasion itself all come together to weave this immense tale.

Something of great value about this film, essentially a macro view of that fateful day in 1942, is the film-maker's decision to present the plot from multiple perspectives. Wisely, these points of view include the Allies (mostly Americans, British, and the Free French), the Germans, and even a bit of the French Resistance. It effectively portrays the attitudes of the soldiers, commanders, and large groups like divisions and armies through the dialog and actions. The audience even gets to see some of the personal moments of that day. The story deftly follows several individual's exploits whose historical significance may or may not be great, but who are nevertheless part of the fabric of that momentous date. There is little character development, and rightly so, because it focuses on The Day and its events, which are, in essence, the main characters more so than the actors. However, the characters are still very intriguing, and deep due to the magnificent performances by an ensemble cast including, to name a few, John Wayne, Sean Connery, and Richard Burton.

This remarkable movie has amazingly large, almost panoramic, scenes. Shot with an eye and fell for the enormity of the moment, the director of photography created several scenes where the camera pans back to show an immense battlefield filled with thousands of extras. Given an bird's eye view of the struggle, the audience cannot help but be awed by the size of the engagements depicted. The sets are also notable because of the high quality and sheer volume of period artifacts, vehicles, uniforms and equipment. In all fairness, where Steven Spielberg expertly used computer generated graphics (CGI) and matte painting to stage the enormity of D-Day, "The Longest Day" employs literally employs a cast of thousands, and what appear to be thousands of acres of movie set. Simply put, some scenes are awesome and worthy or rewinding.

It is interesting to explore a social context of this film, and place it in perspective with its release date. Unlike modern war films, "The Longest Day" lacks gore and death. Some modern day critics have denounced this, and it may be wholly unjustified. If one considers that the film was made in 1962, a time when the typical audience was filled with people who not only knew what World War II was like, but may have been personally involved in it (the war had been over for only 15 years), the significance of this takes on a different meaning. If average World War II veterans were, let us say, approximately fifty years of age, their memories were still clear and most likely still impinged somehow by those memories. "The Longest Day" did not, nor did it really need to include the horrors of war to help sell it. On the contrary, if "The Longest Day" had the sort of gore associated with "Saving Private Ryan," the movie might not have sold, because the public would have thought it to be unnecessarily graphic. It is notable to recall that many modern audiences believed "Saving Private Ryan" to be overly graphic. In fact, it became a selling point for that film. If today's public, desensitized by not only the passage of time since the war's end, as well as the accustomed violence of modern films thought "Ryan" was too violent, "The Longest Day" would have been considered utterly distasteful in 1962 had it been filmed with the same sort of graphic depictions of carnage. While "The Longest Day" was not intended for children, there is no content that would be deemed objectionable for them to see, minus perhaps the situation to which the movie pertains.

It is noticeable that the Allies' story is favored. More of it is portrayed that that of the German side. This could be because there was more information available about the Allied operation, and because the film was meant for an American audience. It was gratifying to see people from both sides of the story being depicted as human, even when it is discovered that Hitler had just taken an untimely sedative, was resting, and was not to be disturbed, even as the invasion began!

Overall, "The Longest Day" is an inspiring film, which should be watched with the understanding of someone who might have lived through the war, even if it is imagined. Likewise, it should not be compared to modern movies, because the point trying to be made would be missed.

There's some good humor here as well as realism, even if you don't see much blood and gore. But though Saving Pvt. Ryan had more gore, it had much less substance and aside from the 25 minute beginning was less realistic than this. This one really sets the whole day of June 6th, 1944 in a way that you really feel the importance of it. The license they took with some of the facts doesn't detract from it's realization of one of the most important days in history. And this of course was one of the few wars where the US fought on the right side (though pre-war US corporate-Nazis ties are a whole other discussion).

The 3 hour film has a few scenes with Rommel (Werner Hinz)as well as the beautiful Irina Demick as a French resistance fighter. Fabian is given a long scene which was a big mistake for this film as he's a poor actor, and when he has a scene with Richard Burton it's like Davy and Goliath in terms of acting. Watch for a bit part with Richard Dawson.

This film remains a great tribute to those who risked and gave their lives to save Europe.

"The Longest Day" is unquestionably an historically accurate film about the events leading up to and including D-day. It includes vignette depictions of the Allied soldiers waiting to be deployed, after having been put on standby several times. It illustrates the day-to-day lives of the occupying Germans who did not expect the invasion. In fact, the landing of such a large force was considered unlikely and even impossible considering the weather at the time. The stories of the Glider Troops, Paratroop drops, the beach landings, and the actual land invasion itself all come together to weave this immense tale.

Something of great value about this film, essentially a macro view of that fateful day in 1942, is the film-maker's decision to present the plot from multiple perspectives. Wisely, these points of view include the Allies (mostly Americans, British, and the Free French), the Germans, and even a bit of the French Resistance. It effectively portrays the attitudes of the soldiers, commanders, and large groups like divisions and armies through the dialog and actions. The audience even gets to see some of the personal moments of that day. The story deftly follows several individual's exploits whose historical significance may or may not be great, but who are nevertheless part of the fabric of that momentous date. There is little character development, and rightly so, because it focuses on The Day and its events, which are, in essence, the main characters more so than the actors. However, the characters are still very intriguing, and deep due to the magnificent performances by an ensemble cast including, to name a few, John Wayne, Sean Connery, and Richard Burton.

This remarkable movie has amazingly large, almost panoramic, scenes. Shot with an eye and fell for the enormity of the moment, the director of photography created several scenes where the camera pans back to show an immense battlefield filled with thousands of extras. Given an bird's eye view of the struggle, the audience cannot help but be awed by the size of the engagements depicted. The sets are also notable because of the high quality and sheer volume of period artifacts, vehicles, uniforms and equipment. In all fairness, where Steven Spielberg expertly used computer generated graphics (CGI) and matte painting to stage the enormity of D-Day, "The Longest Day" employs literally employs a cast of thousands, and what appear to be thousands of acres of movie set. Simply put, some scenes are awesome and worthy or rewinding.

It is interesting to explore a social context of this film, and place it in perspective with its release date. Unlike modern war films, "The Longest Day" lacks gore and death. Some modern day critics have denounced this, and it may be wholly unjustified. If one considers that the film was made in 1962, a time when the typical audience was filled with people who not only knew what World War II was like, but may have been personally involved in it (the war had been over for only 15 years), the significance of this takes on a different meaning. If average World War II veterans were, let us say, approximately fifty years of age, their memories were still clear and most likely still impinged somehow by those memories. "The Longest Day" did not, nor did it really need to include the horrors of war to help sell it. On the contrary, if "The Longest Day" had the sort of gore associated with "Saving Private Ryan," the movie might not have sold, because the public would have thought it to be unnecessarily graphic. It is notable to recall that many modern audiences believed "Saving Private Ryan" to be overly graphic. In fact, it became a selling point for that film. If today's public, desensitized by not only the passage of time since the war's end, as well as the accustomed violence of modern films thought "Ryan" was too violent, "The Longest Day" would have been considered utterly distasteful in 1962 had it been filmed with the same sort of graphic depictions of carnage. While "The Longest Day" was not intended for children, there is no content that would be deemed objectionable for them to see, minus perhaps the situation to which the movie pertains.

It is noticeable that the Allies' story is favored. More of it is portrayed that that of the German side. This could be because there was more information available about the Allied operation, and because the film was meant for an American audience. It was gratifying to see people from both sides of the story being depicted as human, even when it is discovered that Hitler had just taken an untimely sedative, was resting, and was not to be disturbed, even as the invasion began!

Overall, "The Longest Day" is an inspiring film, which should be watched with the understanding of someone who might have lived through the war, even if it is imagined. Likewise, it should not be compared to modern movies, because the point trying to be made would be missed.

One day, Charlie is at Yvonne's coffeeshop and doesn't have enough money to pay the bill and leave a tip. He offers to come back the next day and give her half his lottery winnings (he just purchased a ticket) or double a tip. Turns out he wins ... and that is where the real story begins.

Money is not the root of all evil, it's the LOVE of all money that is. How much this money meant to Charlie, Yvonne, Muriel and the various people who start coming out of the woodwork all becomes apparent. Furthermore, money is not an end but the means to an end -- how does each individual choose to use their part of the pie? It's interesting .....

This is billed as a romance but that is really the secondary plotline that develops very slowly. It could happen to you -- and the situations presented make you examine what you would do if you won $4 million.

And now it is here on DVD. And I must admit: This is a sweet cartoon. I especially like the sequence where Suzette is painted in many different styles (impressionistic and so on).

And my wife is happy!