Band of Brothers - We were like brothers

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Television series
German title Band of Brothers - We were like brothers
Original title Band of Brothers
Band of Brothers - We were like brothers.svg
Country of production United States
United Kingdom
original language English
year 2001
length 50-72 minutes per episode;
total: 603 minutes
Episodes 10 ( list )
genre War film , drama
production Mary Richards
music Michael Kamen
First broadcast September 9, 2001 on HBO
German-language
first broadcast		 April 3, 2003 on premiere film
occupation
synchronization

Band of Brothers is a ten-part television production by the US pay-TV channel HBO from 2001. The miniseries is based on the book of the same name by historian Stephen Ambrose and describes the events of World War II between 1942 and 1945 As seen from the soldiers of the Easy Company , 2nd Battalion, 506th Paratrooper Regiment, 101st Airborne Division of the US Armed Forces .

The title is derived from a line from Henry V's St. Crispins Day speech in William Shakespeare's play of the same name before the Battle of Azincourt : We few, we happy few, we band of brothers (German: “We few, we few Happy, we bunch of brothers "). The name Easy Company is derived from the American radio alphabet , where easy stands for the letter E (fifth letter in the alphabet). Easy was the fifth company in the regiment.

As a counterpart to Band of Brothers , the miniseries The Pacific started in 2010 , with Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg as executive producers . This describes the events of the Pacific War .

action

In the ten episodes, the series describes the course of the Easy Company's war during the Second World War.

The series begins with the basic training of the Easy Company at Camp Toccoa in the US state of Georgia and describes, among other things, the airborne operation in Normandy ( Operation Overlord ), Operation Market Garden in the Netherlands , the Battle of the Ardennes with the siege of Bastognes and the Discovery of a concentration camp , the occupation of Hitler's Berghof in Berchtesgaden , the invasion of Zell am See, Austria, and staying there until the end of the war .

The central figure is Richard Winters (1918–2011), who is committed to fulfilling the company's missions and keeping his men together and in safety. While the series has a large cast, each episode generally focuses on a single character.

Because the series is based on historical events, the fates of the characters mirror those of the people on whom they are based. Many of them die or suffer severe wounds that result in their no longer being seen in subsequent episodes. Other soldiers recover from their wounds and return from the hospitals to the front. Their experiences and the moral, psychological, and physical hurdles they must overcome are central to the narrative.

The series shows the war scenes as drastically as, for example, the film Saving Private Ryan , but tries to paint a psychologically more complex picture of the soldiers and their situation and tries to provide a differentiated representation of the actions of the war opponents. Among other things, the revenge of the Dutch on collaborators , the murder of German prisoners of war by French and American soldiers, their theft of valuables and the shooting of a suspected concentration camp commanders without a trial are shown.

Each episode but the last is preceded by pre- recorded comments from Easy Company veterans ; the tenth and final episode closes the series with such comments.

Episodes

No.
( total ) 		No.
( St. ) 		German title Original title First broadcast in the USA German language first broadcast (D) Director script US odds
1 1 Part 1: "Currahee" Currahee September 9, 2001 April 3, 2003 Phil Alden Robinson Erik Jendresen & Tom Hanks 9.90 million
Under the command of Captain Herbert Sobel, the Easy Company is trained and made ready for action. The captain proves to be a tough instructor who regularly marches or runs the troops on the nearby mountain Currahee and pronounces draconian punishments for trivialities. At the same time, however, he is unable to lead the soldiers in the field. However, this only becomes apparent when the Easy Company is shipped to Upottery, UK , where soldiers are being prepared for D-Day during field exercises . In addition, Sobel gets into an argument with Lieutenant Winters , his deputy, who prefers a trial in a court-martial to unjustified punishment by Sobel. As a result, shortly before completing their training, the company's NCOs refuse to go to war under Sobel. This prompts the regimental commander Colonel Sink, on the one hand, to demote or relocate some of the objectors and, on the other hand, to transfer Sobel to the parachutist school in Chilton Foliat, England.
2 2 Part 2: "The first day" Day of Days September 9, 2001 April 10, 2003 Richard Loncraine John Orloff 9.90 million
June 6, 1944, D-Day. The Easy Company jumps under heavy fire from the German air defense with the airborne division over Normandy , with most of the soldiers being scattered and landing outside their landing zone. First Lieutenant Meehan, the new company commander of the Easy Company, dies in the airborne operation when his DC-3 receives a direct hit. First Lieutenant Winters, now the highest-ranking officer, takes command of the company. He succeeds in advancing with a few soldiers to the central command post in the Normandy hinterland. At dawn, the Easy Company shut down an artillery position near the base at Brécourt that had fired on the landing zones on the beach.
3 3 Part 3: "Carentan - Focal Point Normandy" Carentan September 16, 2001 April 17, 2003 Mikael Salomon E. Max Frye 7.27 million
The Easy Company takes the strategically important city of Carentan with great losses . When fighting several German artillery positions, the soldier Albert Blithe fell into lethargy due to his fears. When the Germans attack with tanks, Blithe is roused to fight by Lieutenant Winters. Only when American Sherman tanks intervene can the Germans be repulsed. Lieutenant Speirs shoots a group of German prisoners of war without orders, which makes the rounds among the soldiers. At the end of the episode, Blithe is wounded by a German sniper after volunteering as the foremost scout on a patrol. In the credits you can read that Blithe did not recover from his injuries and died two years after the end of the war. In fact, there is no evidence that he died until 1967.

This episode was approved by the FSK for ages 18+, while the others were rated for ages 16+.

4th 4th Part 4: "The new ones" Replacements September 23, 2001 April 24, 2003 David Nutter Graham Yost & Bruce C. McKenna 6.29 million
To compensate for the losses of the war, the Easy is being supplemented with new soldiers, some of whom have just finished basic training and who were not involved in the Normandy landings. Therefore they are initially not accepted by the experienced soldiers and are subject to ridicule.

The Easy Company is parachuted to the Dutch city of Eindhoven as part of Operation Market Garden . Eindhoven is successfully taken and its citizens celebrate the liberation with a festival. The American soldiers witness how the population treats collaborators. Women who have had sexual contact with Germans are shorn and branded. A Dutch freedom fighter says that male collaborators were shot. He offers the Americans support and shows them German positions near a bridge.

The attempt to take Nuenen was unsuccessful despite armored vehicles and armored vehicles of the M4 Sherman type , and the 506th Paratrooper Regiment withdrew from Nuenen with heavy losses. The new ones are integrated more and more into the community of the company in this battle. Sergeant Denver "Bull" Randleman is hit by shrapnel, separated from his company and has to hide in a barn from the advancing Wehrmacht , together with a Dutch father and his daughter. When a German soldier inspects the barn, he overpowers and kills him and thus enables the two Dutchmen to escape. Hidden in a sewer he waits for the Germans to leave. An unauthorized search party of his comrades starts that night and can collect Randleman in the morning.

5 5 Part 5: "Crossings" Crossroads September 30, 2001 May 1, 2003 Tom Hanks Erik Jendresen 6.13 million
Colonel Sink asks Winters, who has since been promoted to captain , to report on the Easy Company's recent operations. In preparing this report, numerous retrospectives and overlaps show Winters' reflective picture of the war experienced. Winters is later promoted to the battalion headquarters behind a desk, which makes him visibly uncomfortable. The Easy Company, now under the leadership of Lt. Moose Heyliger, rescues around 140 British paratroopers in a mission called "Operation Pegasus" who were cut off after "Operation Market Garden" and lay on the eastern bank of the Rhine . When Winters and Heyliger go for a walk away from the camp in the evening, a guard thinks they are both Germans and shoots Heyliger, who is seriously injured and taken to the hospital. Finally, the Easy Company is relocated to the strategically important Belgian town of Bastogne , which is attacked by the German Wehrmacht as part of the Ardennes offensive .
6th 6th Part 6: "Bastogne" Bastogne October 7, 2001 May 8, 2003 David Leland Bruce C. McKenna 6.42 million
During the siege of Bastogne around Christmas 1944, still against the backdrop of the Battle of the Bulge, the medic Eugene "Doc" Roe tried desperately to equip himself with sufficient medical equipment to ensure the medical care of the soldiers. Due to the siege, the company is cut off from supplies - there is a lack of ammunition and other equipment and, in winter conditions, warm clothing. In the hospital in Bastogne, Roe made the acquaintance of a Belgian nurse, but later, after a bomb attack, he only found her headscarf. The time of the siege turns into a losing battle for the Easy Company and a bitter struggle against the cold, lack of material, dulling and repeated artillery fire.
7th 7th Part 7: "Breakthrough" The breaking point October 14, 2001 May 15, 2003 David Frankel Graham Yost 6.43 million
This time First Sergeant Carwood Lipton is accompanied. Commander Dike, who was mostly absent from the immediate front, turned out to be an “empty uniform” and the command of the company was effectively taken over by Lipton. The original occupation of the Easy Company is increasingly being disbanded, as the shelling by German artillery in particular causes numerous serious injuries and deaths. Dike is replaced during the attack on Foy by Lieutenant Speirs, whose first assignment as commanding officer ensures the success of the attack. Lipton is offered a promotion to lieutenant at the end of the episode in recognition of his services.
8th 8th Part 8: "The special order" The Last Patrol October 21, 2001 May 22, 2003 Tony To Erik Bork & Bruce C. McKenna 5.95 million
While maintaining the personal narrator's perspective, the path of the soldier Webster is now illuminated, who is returning to the company after a stay of several months in the hospital . Because he was not there in Bastogne, his comrades treated him like a newcomer, even though he had previously taken part in the operations on D-Day and "Market Garden". The Easy Company is ordered to cross the river (the Moder ) flowing through Hagenau in order to take German prisoners in a nightly operation who are later to be interrogated. The mission succeeds; A second, identical deployment is ordered by Colonel Sink but ultimately prevented by Major Winters, as the end of the war is obviously near and he does not want the morale of the Easy Company through a risky undertaking.
9 9 Part 9: "Why We Fight" Why We Fight October 28, 2001 May 29, 2003 David Frankel John Orloff 6.08 million
Lewis Nixon is increasingly addicted to alcohol and is subsequently degraded in absentia. Arrived near the German town of Landsberg , the Easy Company discovered the nearby concentration camp Kaufering IV on a patrol . The episode outlines the overwhelming horror that grips the soldiers and refers to the knowledge of the German population about those concentration camps.
10 10 Part 10: "End of the war" Points November 4, 2001 June 5, 2003 Mikael Salomon Erik Jendresen & Erik Bork 5.05 million
The Easy Company is transferred to Berchtesgaden in Bavaria , where the last Waffen SS crews are waging a guerrilla war against the advancing Allies on Hitler's orders . However, there are no more fighting between German soldiers and the Easy Company. Mostly vacant domiciles of high-ranking Nazi officials are occupied, such as B. the emblematic Eagle's Nest (Eng. 'Adlerhorst', not to be confused with the Führer headquarters Adlerhorst ) or the Villa Hermann Göring . Soldiers who have collected enough points will later be given permission to return home. The rest of the Easy Company stayed in Zell am See, Austria until the end of the Pacific War . Furthermore, the off- screen reports on the further careers of the remaining main characters.

production

The series was mainly developed by Tom Hanks and Erik Jendresen. For months they worked out the detailed plot of the individual episodes. Steven Spielberg served as "the last eye" and used Saving Private Ryan , the film he and Hanks had previously worked on, to promote the series. Reports from Easy Company veterans such as B. Donald Malarkey were brought into production to add historical details.

Budget and promotion

Band of Brothers was the most expensive TV miniseries ever produced by a broadcaster until it was replaced by sister series The Pacific in 2010. The budget was approximately 125 million US dollars and thus an average of 12.5 million US dollars per episode.

An additional US $ 15 million was allocated to an advertising campaign that included demonstrations for WWII veterans. One of these took place on the beach at Utah Beach in Normandy, where US troops landed on June 6, 1944 (D-Day). On June 7, 2001, 47 Easy Company veterans were flown to Paris and traveled from there by chartered train to the location of the premiere.

The series was supported by the automobile company Chrysler , as its Jeeps were used in the series. Chrysler spent $ 5 to 15 million on its advertising campaign using material from Band of Brothers. Each of the commercials has been reviewed and approved by co-producers Hanks and Spielberg.

The BBC paid £ 7 million ($ 10.1 million) as a co-production partner. This is the highest sum ever paid for a purchased program. BBC showed Band of Brothers on BBC Two . The series was originally scheduled to air on BBC One , but has been postponed to allow "uninterrupted ten weeks of broadcast". However, the BBC denied this and justified the decision by stating that the series was not mainstream. The negotiations were overseen by then British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who spoke to Spielberg personally.

Locations

The majority of the series was shot within eight months on the site of an old airfield in Hatfield . Scenes from Saving Private Ryan were also shot there. The English village featured in the first episode is Hambleden in Buckinghamshire . A total of eleven different city backdrops were erected on the site, including Carentan , Eindhoven and Bastogne , which were supposed to show the closest possible replica of the respective original. The take-off sequences of the C-47 in the first episode were filmed at an airfield in Essex . In addition, a copy of a five-meter-high dike was built for the episodes “Die Neuen” (Replacements) and “Kreuzungen” (Crossroads) .

The civil association in Landsberg in the 20th century gained international fame through the collaboration between Anton Posset and the film team. Based on the film and image material that was made available to the film team from Posset's archive, a true-to-original replica of the Kaufering IV concentration camp command in the film, Part 9 “Why We Fight”, was created and the liberation was reproduced true to the original. The only requirement at the time was that the concentration camp Kaufering, and not Dachau or Auschwitz , as was usual up to now , be liberated in the film.

The winter episodes (parts 5 and 6) in the woods around Foy and Bastogne were filmed in a hangar in which pyrotechnically prepared "tree trunks" were planted next to real trees , which - without endangering the actors - explode at a height of a few meters and so the Simulate impacts of German shell fire.

The scenes in the Austrian Zell am See from the tenth episode were filmed in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland . The shooting locations included Unterseen near Interlaken , Hofstetten near Brienz and the Grand Hotel Giessbach . The scenes for the handover of the Kehlsteinhaus without a fight were filmed on the Grimsel Pass .

Historical accuracy

The correctness of the historical processes was very important to the creators, which is why extensive research was carried out in advance. I.a. Private First Class David Kenyon Webster's notes , also cited in Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers , were used as the source.

Surviving veterans such as Richard Winters , William Guarnere , Frank Perconte, Edward Heffron and Amos Taylor were involved as production consultants . In addition, Dale Dye , who had served with the rank of captain in the United States Marine Corps before his retirement , was called in as a production consultant. He had already held this position with Saving Private Ryan . Dye, who plays Colonel Robert Sink, prepared the actors for their roles in a ten-day boot camp .

Additional emphasis was placed on the accuracy of the weapons and uniforms used. This was also done in close coordination with the veterans. In addition, many actors were in contact with the people they were supposed to play before filming. Some of the veterans visited the productions on location.

However, Hanks admitted that the series needed changes: “We had to pull together a huge number of characters, put other people's experiences down to ten or 15 people, get people to say and do things that others said or did to have. We had people take their helmets off so they could be identified, even though they would never have done so in combat. But I still think the series is three or four times more accurate than most films like this. ”As a final check of accuracy, the veterans previewed the series and approved the episodes before they aired.

When asked what Richard Winters thought of Band of Brothers , Hanks replied that he wished it had been more authentic, that he was hoping for an 80 percent solution. To which Hanks replied, “Look, Major, this is Hollywood. Ultimately, if we get that twelve percent right, we will be celebrated as geniuses. We'll shoot for 17 percent. "

Deviations

Strayer was promoted from major to lieutenant colonel in January or February 1943 and mentioned by Winters in episode 1 ("Currahee") in the "latrine incident" with Sobel with the correct rank. In episode 2 (“The First Day”), shortly before the attack on the German artillery, Strayer is again called “Major Strayer” by Winters and another officer. A slip of the tongue is out of the question here, as Strayer had already served 16 or 17 months in the new rank at this point.

At the briefing before D-Day, Carentan is already listed as one of the destinations on Meehan's map (episode 1 “Currahee”). However, this location was not prioritized in the planning of the 101st Airborne Division, but was only included in the targets after D-Day. Therefore, before D-Day , General Taylor was able to write the famous sentence Give me three days and nights of hard fighting and you'll be relieved and sent back to England (“ Give me three days and nights of hard fighting and you'll be relieved and brought back to England "), Which is satirized by Luz in episode 3 (" Carentan - Focal Point Normandy ").

Also in episode 3, the slogan “Lightning Thunder” (in the original Flash Thunder ) are used permanently . However, the entire 1st US Army changed the slogans to Thirsty-Victory (D + 1 to D + 3) and then every three days after D-Day (D + 1) . The scenes with Blithe and Speirs as well as during the march, during which connection to the Fox Company was lost, which took place well after D-Day, are therefore displayed with incorrect codes.

When the 101st US Airborne Division was sent to Bastogne or the Battle of the Ardennes, the soldiers were ordered to remove the Screaming Eagle badges from their uniforms in order to conceal from the Germans that they were facing an elite division. Only after this battle, when they marched into Haguenau , could the patches be worn again. In all episodes that take place during this period (end of episode 5 “Kreuzungen”, episode 6 “Bastogne” and episode 7 “Breakthrough”), the patches can still be seen.

At the end of episode 8 (“The Special Mission”) Winters is promoted to major. In fact, the promotion took place even before the return from the return of Private First Class Webster discussed in the episode and the invasion of Haguenau.

The discovery and liberation of the Kaufering IV concentration camp command was presented in episode 9 (“Why we fight”). However, the 101st Airborne Division did not arrive until the day after it was discovered by the 134th Ordonnance Maintenance Battalion of the 12th Armored Division on April 27, 1945. The German historian and Holocaust researcher Anton Posset worked as a consultant with Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks, providing photos of the liberators as well as documentation of reports from survivors that he had collected over the years. Also in this episode at the beginning of April 11, 1945 and the place "Thalem" are mentioned. After the flashback of almost the entire episode, Nixon announces Hitler's suicide , although Hitler did not commit suicide until April 30, 1945. Furthermore, the place "Thalem" does not exist, it is Thalham near Munich , where the 2nd Battalion was only stationed on May 3, 1945.

It is uncertain which Allied unit was the first to reach the Kehlsteinhaus near Berchtesgaden . It is possible that the liberation of the city of Berchtesgaden, which was captured on May 4, 1945 by a vanguard of the 7th Infantry Regiment of the 3rd US Infantry Division , caused some confusion. Members of the 7th Infantry Regiment claim they were the first to arrive at the Kehlsteinhaus by elevator. The 101st Airborne Division replied that they were the first in Berchtesgaden and on the Kehlsteinhaus. Parts of the French 2nd Panzer Division were also there on the night of May 4th and 5th, 1945 and took several photos before they withdrew on May 10th, 1945 at the request of the US command. This is supported by testimony from Spanish soldiers accompanying the French. Winters, who commanded the 2nd battalion of the 506th Paratrooper Regiment in May 1945, stated that his battalion marched into Berchtesgaden shortly after noon on May 5th. He challenged competing claims, stating, “If the 7th Infantry Regiment of 3rd Division was in Berchtesgaden first, where did they go? Berchtesgaden is a relatively small community. I went to the Berchtesgadener Hof with Lieutenant Welsh and saw no one except a few servants. Goering's officers' club and the wine cellar would certainly have attracted the attention of a French soldier from Leclerc's 2nd Panzer Division or a rifleman from the American 3rd. I can hardly imagine, when the 3rd Division was there first, why they left these beautiful Mercedes cars untouched for our men. "

In the last episode ("End of the War"), Winters allows a capitulating German colonel to keep his weapon - a Luger . In the bonus material in the DVD box, however, Winters describes that he has accepted the weapon and presents the original weapon ( Walther PP ). In addition, this officer was not a colonel, as depicted in the series, but a major.

occupation

actor role German dubbing voice
Damian Lewis Major Richard D. Winters (1918-2011) Hans-Jürgen Wolf
Ron Livingston Captain Lewis Nixon (1918-1995) Tobias Master
David Schwimmer Captain Herbert Sobel (1912–1987) Thomas Wolff
Matthew Settle Captain Ronald Speirs (1920-2007) Andreas Hosang
Neal McDonough First Lieutenant Lynn "Buck" Compton (1921–2012) Johannes Berenz
Jason O'Mara First Lieutenant Thomas Meehan (1921-1944) Martin Keßler
Rick warden First Lieutenant Harry Welsh (1918–1995)
Colin Hanks First Lieutenant Henry Jones (1924-1947) Roland Frey
Peter O'Meara First Lieutenant Norman Dike (1918–1985) Bernd Vollbrecht
Jamie Bamber First Lieutenant Jack E. Foley (1922-2009)
Donnie Wahlberg Second Lieutenant C. Carwood Lipton (1920-2001) Roman Kretschmer
Matthew Leitch First Sergeant Floyd "Tab" Talbert (1923–1982) Frank Schröder
Scott Grimes Technical Sergeant Donald Malarkey (1921-2017) Timmo Niesner
Michael Fassbender Technical Sergeant Burton P. "Pat" Christenson (1922–1999) Detlef Bierstedt
Frank John Hughes Staff Sergeant William "Wild Bill" Guarnere (1923-2014) Viktor Neumann
Kirk Acevedo Staff Sergeant Joseph Toye (1919-1995) Tobias Kluckert
Dexter Fletcher Staff Sergeant John Martin (1922-2005) Frank Schaff
Peter Youngblood Hills Staff Sergeant Darrel "Shifty" Powers (1923-2009)
Nolan Hemmings Staff Sergeant Charles E. "Chuck" Grant (1915–1985)
Michael Cudlitz Sergeant Denver "Bull" Randleman (1920–2003) Michael Iwannek
Richard Speight Jr. Sergeant Warren "Skip" Muck (1922-1945) Boris Tessmann
George Calil Sergeant James H. "Mo" Alley (1922-2008)
James Madio Technician Fourth Grade Frank Perconte (1917-2013)
Rick Gomez Technician 4th Grade George Luz (1921-1998) Gerald Schaale
Peter McCabe Corporal Donald Hoobler (1923-1945) Bernhard Völger
Shane Taylor Technician Fifth Grade Eugene "Doc" Roe (1921–1998) Uwe Büschken
Ross McCall Technician Fifth Grade Joseph Liebgott (1915–1992) Dietmar miracle
Tim Matthews Technician Fifth Grade Alex Penkala (1924-1945) Julien Haggège
Eion Bailey Private First Class David Kenyon Webster (1922-1961) Gerrit Schmidt-Foss
Nicholas Aaron Private First Class Robert "Popeye" Wynn (1921–2000) Dennis Schmidt-Foss
Robin Laing Private First Class Edward "Babe" Heffron (1923–2013) Vanya Gerick
Marc Warren Private Albert Blithe (1923-1967) Udo Schenk
Mark Huberman Private Lester "Leo" Hashey (1925–2002)
Philip Barrantini Private Wayne A. "Skinny" Sisk (1922-1999)
Doug Allen Private Alton Moore (1920–1958)
Rocky Marshall Private Earl "One Lung" McClung (1923-2013)
Matt Hickey Private Patrick O'Keefe (1926-2003) Sven Plate
Dale dye Colonel Robert F. Sink (1905-1965) Joachim Kerzel
Craig Heaney Private Roy W. Cobb (1914–1990)
Simon Pegg First Sergeant William Evans (1910-1944) Florian Schmidt-Foss
Stephen Graham Sergeant Myron Mike Ranney (1922–1988) Matthias Hinze
James McAvoy Private James W. Miller (1923-1944) Sebastian Schulz
Tom Hardy Private First Class John Janovec (1913-1945) Nicola Devico Mamone
Jimmy Fallon 2nd Lieutenant George C. Rice Matthias Klages
Dominic Cooper Allington
Andrew Scott Private John 'Cowboy' Hall (1922-1944) Sven Plate
Tom Hanks French officer ( cameo )

synchronization

Due to the fact that the original English version of the series also speaks partly German, there are some differences in the German version, as the German comments are understandable for the viewer anyway.

This is particularly evident in the last two episodes of the series when the company liberates a concentration camp (episode 9) and when a German general gives a final address to his men before the surrender (episode 10). In the original of the series, Corporal Joseph Liebgott acts as translator in both cases. In German dubbing, this function is no longer necessary, which is why Liebgott “put a different text in the mouth”. He comments on the statements of a Jewish concentration camp prisoner and the general instead of repeating them to his superiors in English (as was originally the case).

This partly leads to the scenes appearing differently in terms of their statements (for example, through Liebgott's ironic and critical remarks regarding the German general).

The synchronization was created in the Blackbird Music Studios in Berlin under the dialogue direction of Hans-Jürgen Wolf .

Some voice actors took on multiple roles throughout the series. For example, Gerrit Schmidt-Foss , heard first as a German prisoner of war talking to Malarkey (episode 2), later in the role of the soldier Webster (among other things, voiceover narrator in episode 8). Another example is Sven Plate , who can be heard as Private John "Cowboy" Hall in episode 2, but in the role of Private Patrick O'Keefe in the last two episodes. Other cases are often only minor, often nameless, supporting roles.

Reviews

Caryn James describes Band of Brothers as "an extraordinary ten-part series that has overcome great challenges: the balance between idealized heroism and the violence and terror of the fight, sometimes a reflection on the civilization but also the brutality of the fight." Schwimmer's role as Captain Herbert Sobel was weakly interpreted.

Robert Bianceo, a USA Today reviewer , stated that the series was "absolutely extraordinary - just like the men who were portrayed." He qualifies as the number of actors making it difficult to keep track.

Tom Shales of the Washington Post complained that "disorder, confused thoughts and a high level of superfluous material" should be considered. He also criticized the fact that after two hours the viewer could still not distinguish between main and secondary characters.

Awards

The series has received numerous awards. She was nominated for 19 Emmys in 2002, which was a first for a series that could only be nominated in one year. Six awards were won, including for the best miniseries. In the same category, the series received - in addition to nominations for the actors Damian Lewis and Ron Livingston - also a Golden Globe 2002. The series also received the PGA Golden Laurel Award 2002 for the best producers of the year ( Tom Hanks , Steven Spielberg and Tony To ) . The series also won the Peabody Award on the grounds that it honored those who fought for freedom.

Charisma

The series was produced by Steven Spielberg , Tom Hanks and the US pay television network HBO , where it was also first broadcast. In Switzerland the series ran on Swiss television , in Germany first on the pay-TV channel Premiere , then on RTL 2 . In the United States, ten million watched the first episode on September 9, 2001. Despite the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center two days later , ratings remained stable.

publication

The series is available on DVD in a box in two versions. The shortened version is released from the age of 16. The uncut version is released from the age of 18 and contains the complete version of part 3 ("Carentan - Brennpunkt Normandie"), which is about 57 seconds shorter in the version released from 16 years, because some scenes of violence have been removed. Part 3 and Part 4 (“The New”) are also available on a separate single DVD, which is released from the age of 18.

In November 2008, a box with six Blu-ray discs containing the full versions of the individual episodes was released. This version has no youth rating. On November 5, 2010, another box was released, which is released from the age of 16.

The mini-series is now available from some streaming services such as Prime Video or Sky , sometimes at an additional cost.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Albert Blithe, Sergeant, United States Army. In: arlingtoncemetery.com. Retrieved August 14, 2016 .
  2. ^ Lawrie Mifflin: World War II, The Mini-Series . In: The New York Times . December 2, 1998, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  3. ↑ a b c d e Kristin Hohenadel: Learning How the Private Ryans Felt and Fought . In: The New York Times . December 17, 2000, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  4. ↑ a b Bill Carter: On Television; HBO Bets Pentagon-Style Budget on a World War II Saga . In: The New York Times . September 3, 2001, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  5. ^ Gary Levin: 'Brothers' invades fall lineup HBO's WWII miniseries battles network premieres . Ed .: USA Today. January 9, 2001.
  6. ↑ Ross Bonander: The Pacific: 5 Things You Didn't Know. Retrieved March 26, 2020 (English).
  7. ^ Gary Levin: HBO Cable network sets themselves apart with daring fare . Ed .: USA Today. April 4, 2001.
  8. ^ Alan Riding: A Normandy Landing, This One for a Film . In: The New York Times . June 7, 2001, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  9. ↑ Stuart Elliott: Jeep's manufacturer seeks to capitalize on the vehicle's featured role in 'Band of Brothers.' In: The New York Times . September 10, 2001, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  10. ↑ Spielberg epic loose prime slot . August 15, 2001 ( bbc.co.uk [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  11. ↑ Andrew Bill: The true drama of war . Ed .: New Statesman. October 8, 2001.
  12. ↑ Nicholas Hellen: BBC pays £ 15m from new Spielberg was epic . Ed .: The Sunday Times. April 8, 2001.
  13. ↑ a b Bonus material The Making of “Band of Brothers” on DVD and BluRay.
  14. ↑ a b Stephen E. Ambrose: Band of brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne: from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's nest. Touchstone, New York 1992, ISBN 0-7432-1645-8 .
  15. ↑ a b Richard Huff: Actors & Vets Bond in "Band of Brothers" . In: New York Daily News . September 9, 2001.
  16. ^ Alan Riding: A Normandy Landing, This One for a Film . In: The New York Times . June 7, 2001, ISSN  0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 26, 2020]).
  17. ^ Sandy MacDonald: Miniseries put actors through boot camp . In: Daily News . Halifax September 15, 2002.
  18. ↑ a b Cole C. Kingseed: Conversations With Major Dick Winters. Life Lessons from the Commander of the Band of Brothers . Berkley Books, New York 2014, ISBN 978-0-698-13960-2 .
  19. ↑ a b c d Jack Knight: 30 'movie' mistakes: Band of Brothers. In: WAR HISTORY ONLINE. April 12, 2015, accessed March 30, 2020 .
  20. ^ The 101st Airborne Division. Retrieved March 26, 2020 (English).
  21. ^ The 12th Armored Division. Retrieved March 26, 2020 (English).
  22. ↑ 12th Armored Division Memorial Museum: Liberation of Concentration Camps. Retrieved March 26, 2020 .
  23. ↑ Landsberg in the 20th century: The US Army discovers the Holocaust. Retrieved March 26, 2020 .
  24. ↑ a b World War II: Race to Seize Berchtesgaden. June 12, 2006, Retrieved March 26, 2020 (American English).
  25. ^ Mary H. Williams: Special Studies, Chronology 1941-1945. Retrieved March 26, 2020 .
  26. ^ Georges Buis, Jean Lacouture: Les Fanfares perdues: Entretiens aven Jean Lacouture . Editions du Seuil, Paris 1975.
  27. ↑ Evelyn Mesquida: La Nueve. Los españoles que liberaron Paris . Ediciones B., Barcelona 2015, ISBN 978-84-9872-365-6 .
  28. ↑ a b Band of Brothers - We were like brothers in the German dubbing index
  29. ^ Caryn James: TV Weekend; An Intricate Tapestry Of a Heroic Age , The New York Times . September 7, 2001. Retrieved August 14, 2016. 
  30. ↑ Robert Bianco: ' Band' masterfully depicts horror, complexity of war , USA Today . September 7, 2001. Retrieved August 24, 2008. 
  31. ↑ Tom Shales, ' Band of Brothers': Ragged WWII Saga Off to a Slow March , The Washington Post . August 7, 2001. Retrieved August 24, 2008. 
  32. ^ Emmy Awards: 2002. Internet Movie Database , accessed September 20, 2008 .
  33. ^ Band Of Brothers. Hollywood Foreign Press Association ( HFPA ), accessed August 14, 2016 .
  34. ↑ Rick Lyman: Fewer Soldiers March Onscreen; After Attacks, Filmmakers Weigh Wisdom of Military Stories , The New York Times . October 16, 2001. Retrieved August 14, 2016.