Operation Justice To Hollywood!

17poundr

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I have heard that Tom Cruise is making a film on the battle of Britain (Yes, it's coming out in 97 I believe).
My problem is amongst other things this article:

Hollywood re-writes Battle of Britain history


12:45 15 September 2003 - James Salter
General News

Tom Cruise is to star in a new movie which makes out an American played a huge role in winning the Battle of Britain.

Cruise will play Billy Fiske, a US airman which the script claims lead the Allies in their fight to crush the Luftwaffe.

However, the real Fiske only ever flew 3 combat missions, never downed a Nazi plane and was killed when his aircraft crash landed.

Hollywood has already been hit with massive amounts of criticism for films such as U-571 which suggested it was the US Navy rather than the Royal Navy which was responsible for capturing the Enigma codebook from the U-boat.

The new film, with the provisional title of The Few, is no less likely to attract just criticism for its willingness to alter history to turn the hero into an American.

What next? A film about the suffering of American cities during the Blitz? Coventry changed to San Diego?


I now commence operation Justice to Hollywood, anybody interested in getting some justice not only for the Brits or even a particular battle, but justice to the Brave men who gave the ultimate sacrifice for Democracy, Freedom and last but not least against the awful vision of a nazi world with slavery and the Holocaust!
Please If anybody can find either an e-mail link to Tom Cruise, or the Director of the film (I actually found it a month ago, but googled away today, and couldnt find it), we could bombard these people with messages pleading them to do justice to all the men who fought in this mammoth battle, the German's too!

so, phase one, locate the e-mails or fan return mail adresses to Cruise and the Director.

Phase two, start to send e-mails, pleading for justice.

Phase three, invite either or both to come and debate these issues here on ACG forums, and offer help in any details of the B of B, if they would be so open minded.

I may sound naive, but hell, it's time we did something about Hollywood messing around with our beloved history, and giving a new generation a totally perverce idea of the past.
 

Stage

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I support your idea completely, but I'm afraid it's doomed from the start. Hollywood insn't interested in getting history right (with a few exceptions of course). They realize that most of the people who will go see a Tom Cruise movie won't know the real history behind the film, therefore they'll swallow the whole made up senario. It's sad, really. The Brits won that battle. It's their victory, not America's.
 

tsar

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Stage said:
I support your idea completely, but I'm afraid it's doomed from the start. Hollywood insn't interested in getting history right (with a few exceptions of course). They realize that most of the people who will go see a Tom Cruise movie won't know the real history behind the film, therefore they'll swallow the whole made up senario. It's sad, really. The Brits won that battle. It's their victory, not America's.
Maybe Tommy boy will do it with an English accent. :cheeky:
 

17poundr

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It gets better

Here is another article about the coming film, first the critique:
Winston Churchill said it was our "finest hour", but yesterday it was revealed the Battle of Britain was won single-handedly by Tom Cruise. Amid outrage from the West's war veterans and military historians, a new Hollywood film will claim that one American, Billy Fiske - played by Cruise - was responsible for the 1940 victory. But he didn't shoot down a single plane.

Fiske was one of a handful of Americans who volunteered to fight in the battle, as the US was yet to enter the war. He was killed by German Stuka bombers in August 1940.

His story is to be retold in the film The Few directed by Michael Mann and filming is due to start soon.

"I've heard it is almost like he won the war all on his own," said war veteran Ben Clinch, who loaded the guns fired by the real Billy Fiske. "I can't see how they can make a film of Fiske's life. He was unremarkable, in the context of the squadron. He was just another pilot as far as we were concerned."

Jack Younie, 84, of Radstock in Somerset, joined the RAF just before the battle began. He said: "It will make it look as though the Americans were everywhere, but they were hardly there at all.

"There were pilots from India, Canada, Australia, South Africa and a few from America.
Migh I add, that the film impies that Churchill pleads for more pilots (according to rumours about the plot)...!


Then a word of defence from one of Fisk's relatives:

Billy Fiske was my great uncle on my dad's side. My family is extremely proud of him, and I for one am disgusted with all of this controversy. His name does not deserve all this defamation. True, I wish Hollywood would not make up stories about him. I am sure he would be the first to tell you that he did not single-handedly save England. My family has told me stories about him since I was a child, and in my opinion, his life need not be dressed up to be more glamorous that it already was. He, and other pilots like him, deserve honor and respect, and I appreciate that this director wishes to honor him. I certainly hope that when it does come out, it does not contain all of this fluff that the critics seem to imply that it has.
I cannot help but comment on these critics however. How dare they belittle the man that sacrificed his life, in effort to preserve freedom. He hated Nazism so much, that he flew, illegally, to defeat it. He refused to compete in the Berlin Olymic games because he did not want to salute to Hitler. In an age, where anti-Semitism was rampant, he befriended and financially helped a impoverished Jewish man. And they say he wasn't all that great because he crashed his plane and ended his career (and life might I add) without a single confirmed kill. Is a man's life weighed by how many men he kills? If so, critics are cannibals.
 

Deltapooh

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I also back you 17poundr. However, as Stage pointed out, Hollywood is more interested in making a blockbuster that generates billions of dollars and a few oscars. Sacrificing historical accuracy is acceptable, at least to those who lack the creativity to reproduce the drama of history.
 

17poundr

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The director is Michael Mann!

Deltapooh said:
I also back you 17poundr. However, as Stage pointed out, Hollywood is more interested in making a blockbuster that generates billions of dollars and a few oscars. Sacrificing historical accuracy is acceptable, at least to those who lack the creativity to reproduce the drama of history.
Yes, I know that the realpolitik of Hollywood is what it is, yet, if we could get mr, Mann's fan e-mail (wich I tried to google without joy, although I found one about a month ago)!

Then everybody conserned, could send a message of their own liking mr Mann suggesting/pleading/demandign/joking ect, for him to at least try and get some of the history righ, besides the more realistic it is, the better critics he gets, hell, if he would get it right (or a Hollywood close), he could be in for Oscars!
Remember that Saving Private Ryan got four, and that wasnt so hard, just read a couple of books, and get a couple of vets, to see its not a total cockup.
So, if anybody can locate mr Mann's or even Tom Cruise's Fan mail (I believe mr cruise cares about the projects he is involved in) we can send our little reminders, in our own time.
And even give the adress to these pages, if they would be struck by a sudden thurst of historcal knowledge... :p
 

Wodin

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I read about this awhile ago.

Fiske has a memorial in ST Pauls I believe. He was an All American from a wealthy family and as he had everything going for him to sacrifice his life illegally made him get more recognition than he would have got if he was from a poorer family etc etc.

Also he was like many well off young men in those days a thrill seeker. Flying a plane was the No1 thing you could do. For prestige and glamour nothing from today could compare. Im sure he didnt like Nazis but more than likely he wanted adventure. Most pilots did at the time.

Hollywood is a joke. However it shows what kind of state the world is if kids education relies on Hollywood which Im sure it does.Hollywood and fashion are the supreme rulers over youth and its sad. Also I hope that one day if real lives and stories are told by Hollywood a law should be made that they should stay truthfull to actual events.
 

CPangracs

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17poundr said:
I have heard that Tom Cruise is making a film on the battle of Britain (Yes, it's coming out in 97 I believe).
My problem is amongst other things this article:

Hollywood re-writes Battle of Britain history


12:45 15 September 2003 - James Salter
General News

Tom Cruise is to star in a new movie which makes out an American played a huge role in winning the Battle of Britain.

Cruise will play Billy Fiske, a US airman which the script claims lead the Allies in their fight to crush the Luftwaffe.

However, the real Fiske only ever flew 3 combat missions, never downed a Nazi plane and was killed when his aircraft crash landed.

Hollywood has already been hit with massive amounts of criticism for films such as U-571 which suggested it was the US Navy rather than the Royal Navy which was responsible for capturing the Enigma codebook from the U-boat.

The new film, with the provisional title of The Few, is no less likely to attract just criticism for its willingness to alter history to turn the hero into an American.

What next? A film about the suffering of American cities during the Blitz? Coventry changed to San Diego?


I now commence operation Justice to Hollywood, anybody interested in getting some justice not only for the Brits or even a particular battle, but justice to the Brave men who gave the ultimate sacrifice for Democracy, Freedom and last but not least against the awful vision of a nazi world with slavery and the Holocaust!
Please If anybody can find either an e-mail link to Tom Cruise, or the Director of the film (I actually found it a month ago, but googled away today, and couldnt find it), we could bombard these people with messages pleading them to do justice to all the men who fought in this mammoth battle, the German's too!

so, phase one, locate the e-mails or fan return mail adresses to Cruise and the Director.

Phase two, start to send e-mails, pleading for justice.

Phase three, invite either or both to come and debate these issues here on ACG forums, and offer help in any details of the B of B, if they would be so open minded.

I may sound naive, but hell, it's time we did something about Hollywood messing around with our beloved history, and giving a new generation a totally perverce idea of the past.

After Faernhype 9/11, are you really surprised?

Unless this movie is touted as based on the true story of this guy, or based on facts, they can do whatever they want.

What's more exciting - watching Tome Cruise make 3 routine flights then crashing to his death, or Tom Cruise rallying British aviators and downing Nazi bastards? You do the math.
 

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At the moment this film isn't scheduled for release until 2006. Given Hollywood's penchant with playing fast and loose with history (right across the board) I don't have much hope of an accurate portrayal of the BoB, especially Fiske's involvement. However, until more details are released it's difficult to make a meaningful comment.
 

GeorgiaDixie

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I've given up arguing about Hollywood's "history" movies. Only a few filmmakers are actually interested in the real history, others just want to make a buck off of it.
 

Leatherneck

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17poundr

I believe that Billy Fiske Hurricane Mark I was hit by Ju 87 Stuka gunner and was on fire which he was terribly burned about the face, hands, and one leg, but they pulled him clear of his damage Hurricane Mark I and got him to the hospital......later he died the next day.

The aircraft was not on fire but there is awful alot of fire damage in the cockpit.
 

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You are all far too late, including Tom Cruise.

Apparently nobody noticed during the opening moments of Pearl Harbor when Ben Affleck won the BoB. :laugh:

Besides, no one is ever going to top either the cast, the aircraft or the production of the original picture done by the Brits themselves. Great movie, and a favorite of my collection.

Problem is, once you manage to convince people that Cruise can be a Samurai, Hollywood figures anything else is dead easy.

:horse: :horse: :horse: :horse:
 

Leatherneck

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Air War (BOB and Pearl Harbor) from Pearl Harbor was good, but still it is one of the worst military movie i probably ever know.
 

Dr Zaius

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What do you expect from Hollywood? After all, these are the same people who get misty when they speak about Karl Marx.
 

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Hey they are going to name it " Top Gun 2" Battle for Britain.


You know him and Speilburg are making "Ghost Soldiers"?
 

JSMoss

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The scary thing about the total inaccuracy of most Hollywood movies is that it is the only version of history most Americans remember.
 

17poundr

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Dano said:
Hey they are going to name it " Top Gun 2" Battle for Britain.


You know him and Speilburg are making "Ghost Soldiers"?
No, it's going to be Top Gun, 'The prequel' With the unknown scene when the American pilot shoots down 30 heinkels attacking scotland from norway, flies down south, and shoots down jagdwer 1, doing a fighter sweep over dover, then flies over the channel, and strafes goerings car, destroying his morphine supply, which makes hermann surrender the day, then he comes back, beds kate winslet, and goes, all ready to shoot down all the 36 japanese planes shot down in peal harbour, after that he learns how to dive bomb, and sinks three carriers at midway, being bored he shoots down 400 japanese planes in the Marianas great tom shoot (his favourite shot of the film), and ends up, talking deep with oppenheimer, before piloting enola gay to end the war,and over Hirosima and saying 'I'll be back', as he looks over the mushroom cloud at Nagasaki...
 

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CPangracs said:
Unless this movie is touted as based on the true story of this guy, or based on facts, they can do whatever they want.
Seems quite an injustice to the Brits, though.

What's more exciting - watching Tome Cruise make 3 routine flights then crashing to his death, or Tom Cruise rallying British aviators and downing Nazi bastards? You do the math.
Doing neither is a better solution. It's ill conceived from the start. And why is Hollywood so fixated on portraying war heroes as American, in any given theater? It's absurd. And we have enough American heroes to portray that we don't need to jump into another country's sandbox and say that 'We were there...'.

I think that Hollywood could do well with a war picture if they would jump off the nationalistic soapbox for a bit. As an audience, we are quite capable of rooting for a foreign hero as well. It just takes good production values to draw the masses. As well, there are a wonderful collection of very talented foreign actors that are well known in the states that could step in for the likes of Tom Cruise, Bruce Willis, etc.
 
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