User reviews

This series, produced at probably the most propitious time following the events of the second World War, is on a scale of value that stands far above any individual's presumption to criticize.

The timing of World at War's production in 1974, amounting to some three decades after the events of the war, permits an accurate relating of events in a manner uncoloured by residual propaganda and slant. The passage of thirty years allows the telling to be backed up by an impressive and fascinating panoply of the very individuals involved, ranging from some of the highest military and political figures down to the field soldiers, civilians, and such survivors of the death camps as have remained to bear witness to the unimaginable inhumanities of which civilized humans are capable. Most approaching or well into their senior years, the interviewed subjects have had enough time to reflect on their experiences and in most instances have had enough time for whatever propaganda and fervor may have affected them in the past to have receded away, leaving only the memories of what they saw and what they did.

The information that these survivors give, strikingly reinforced by the postures and expressions they display while telling their part, give their stories all the more impact. Such names as Ira Eaker, Adolph Galland, Louis Mountbatten, Albert Speer, Gertrude Junge (Hitler's personal secretary)... the list is far too long to relate.

Today, within the lifetime of the survivors of this enormous lesson in the hideous price of political ambition, are young people who chant the same sort of militaristic and nationalistic war promotion as led to WW2. The DVD series we discuss here ought to comprise the core of a mandatory history subject in schools, that the lessons bought at such a horrible cost in those days should not have been wasted but should be taken to heart by those who did not see firsthand the terrible price.

I am almost done watching the 11 disk set, having seen most of the series when a local TV channel aired it more than 10 years ago. It has lost none of its poignancy to me, indeed has become even more of a magnificent chronicle of some of the very darkest days of human times.

The highest possible rating seems unworthy of being applied to this presentation. I think the value of this series is beyond counting.

Utterly brilliant. Powerful and evocative. The most compelling documentary series ever made concerning war. It's tone offers a stark contrast to the often gung-ho attitude towards World War 2 that the media exhibits. Rather than opting for screaming about the horror of war, it allows Sir Laurence Olivier's quiet voice to take a back seat to the true images of war: corpses everywhere, explosions, terrified citizens and soldiers, broken men, indifferent politicians, mistakes that cost thousands of lives, the suffering of the innocents. Most of all it truly brings home that mankind is capable of when all normal rules of "civility" are removed. There is something distinctly Hobbesian about man in a true state of nature, he will return to a more beastly form capable of crimes that will still shock and fascinate 60 years on. Perhaps there could be a follow up series called "The century at war" for the twentieth century was truly the century of horrors. I feel it is an irony of immense magnitude that it took an event which caused the death of 50 million people to produce such a compelling and excellent series such as this.

i watched this series when it first came out in the 70s.i was 14 years old and i watched it at my best friends house as my dad didn't want to watch it.it became a weekly ritual every Sunday, and as anyone will tell you for two fourteen year olds to watch a documentary in almost reverential silence must mean that this was something special.

the broad sweep of the events of world war 2 makes for a difficult subject to document.so the makers broke it down into what they considered to be the most significant key happenings and devoted one episode to each.some episodes covered long periods such as 'wolf pack' which covered nearly all six years of the battle of the Atlantic.while the battle of Stalingrad had one episode to itself.

this documentary could not be made today quite simply because most of those interviewed are dead.the list of significant players appearing gives an amazing insight into the thinking at the time.Anthony eden the foreign secretary,Carl donnitz,head of the u-boats,Albert speer,pet architect confident and later armament minister for Hitler.in one of the later episodes we see traudl junge, Hitler's secretary,who was with him in the bunker and it was to her that he dictated his last will and testament-she left the bunker after Hitler's suicide and escaped through the Russian lines.these and many others play a major role in the realism of the events portrayed.

if i have any criticism of the series it is that the code-breakers of bletchly park are not included but the revelations of their part in the war only emerged after the series had been made so i cannot blame the programme makers.

the opening titles and music are magnificent,and Lawrence Olivier's narration lends a natural gravity to the script.

the best documentary series ever made? without doubt.unmissable

Theo Robertson has commented that WAW didn't adequately cover the conditions after WWI which lead to Hitler's rise and WWII.

Perhaps he missed the first ONE and a quarter HOURS of volume 8? Covers this period, and together with the earlier volumes in the series, shows clearly the existing conditions, I feel. A friend of mine grew up in Germany during this period, joined the Hitler Youth even, and his experiences were very similar to that mentioned in WAW.

This documentary is SO far above the History Channel's documentaries I also own, that there is no comparison.

The ONLY fault, and it is a small one, that I have with WAW is this: the numbers are not included, many times. For instance, if you're talking about lend-lease, then how much war material was lent/leased? How much to Russia, how much to Britian? How many merchant ships did the U-Boats sink, and when? How many ships did the German or Japanese Navy have, total, in 1941? What type were they? How many troops? How many troops did the allies have, in total, and by country? Lots of numbers could have made a lot of viewers nod off, but I would have preferred MORE! And naturally, I always want to see more military analysis. Like WHY didn't Patton & Clark trap the German army that was at Cassini, after they had it surrounded, instead of racing Monty to Rome, and letting it escape? I don't think you can begin to understand war until you've seen some of these video segments on "total war", like the fire bombing of Dresden. It's like trying to understand Auschwitz, etc., before you see the clips of the death camps: you just can't wrap your head around it - it's too unbelievable.

Unknown at that time, and of course, unfilmed, were the most egregious cruelties and inhumanities of the Japanese, including cannibalism, (read "Flyboys"), and some LIVE vivisection of medical "experimentation" prisoners, w/o any anesthetic!

Dave

Even thirty years later this documentary has lost none of its power. Quite the opposite. It serves as a superb introduction, for those born after WWII, to an enormous conflict that radically re-shaped the world around us and subjected our grandparents/parents to dreadful hardship.

The series begins slowly, with an episode on Hitler's and the Nazi party's rise to power. It does skip a great deal of material on the origins and growth of National Socialism... but I suppose that is only to be expected. Despite being an epic thirty-two hours in length there is only so much time, and much material not directly about the war had to be skipped.

It is a fine antidote to the drivel put out by film studios... which, for the most part, show the war being almost entirely fought by the U.S.A, with the British involved in a few skirmishes here and there. Little do they realise the scale of British fighting and loss. Perhaps even more importantly it gives coverage of one of the most undervalued (particularly by Commie-bashing Hollywood) that Russia suffered more losses than any other country in WWII. Without their sacrifice it would have been a different outcome.

I can't stress enough how good this series is. From the title sequence with its stirring Carl Davis music and arresting images to the well-written and perfectly judged narration, it has the lot. If you get the chance to see it -- whether on DVD, or just a TV repeat -- do not miss it.

Certainly any others I have seen pale in comparison. The series gives balanced coverage to all theatres of operation. No one country is given undue credit for the Allied victory. Laurence Olivier brings great weight and dignity to his role as narrator.

My wife and I have watched this whole series at least three times. I can't imagine how it could be better. This isn't the "complete" history of WWII—no library could hold such a history—but it is the best summary of that history. Lots of detail, lots of personal stories, and still keeps the overall picture in view.

Olivier's narration is excellently written and, of course, superbly given. The interviews are from all sides, except the Russian, because the producers were not allowed to talk to many Russians. It is very much worth owning this complete program on DVD. We treasure our copy.

The producer's do an excellent job of providing pictures and action where there was almost none extant in any archive: There are almost no films of convoys and submarine battles, for instance, but still, the episode on this subject is very well done.

Although too young to remember the first showing of the series (being just a baby) I later caught repeats of it on television in the late 80's, just when I was getting interested in the war and all of its aspects. It was my grandfather who first showed me the series and also gave me my first interests, relating tales of his time in the Royal Navy at Malta and later in the Pacific. Since then I have devoured many books and seen many television series about the World War Two era, with mixed opinions. The British television stations are generally very good at producing these, as The World At War can easily attest, with many gems made by both the BBC and independent companies. I strongly recommend such titles as "The Nazis - A warning From History", "Blitz" and the BBC series about Dunkirk. "Britain At War In Colour", with its companion series "Japan", "Germany" and "America" are of a very high standard. The World At War is by far the best and, despite its age, never fails to deliver. There will always be new revelations about the war that will keep cropping up that obviously aren't included in the series and of course World War Two took place over such a large canvas that to produce a series with EVERY detail would take more time and money then any other, even if such an undertaking was even possible. What I feel I must say to those who decry that it does not include everything is that The World At War can't physically do that as a series but it sure as heck can prompt you to do further research - and make it enjoyable. That certainly worked for me: I now have a very comprehensive library of books, videos, DVDs and tapes and CDs. Recommend to anyone with even a passing interest. The series was so well made that they'd find it hard not to agree that it is quality programming and highly informative.

After all these years I still consider this series the finest example of World War II documentary film making. The interviews with the many participants from all countries set this apart from any other project. It would be great to see a contemporary documentarian(Ken Burns ?) take on this topic and try to gather information from veterans before they are all gone. With modern technology to improve old archival footage and lots of information that has been unearthed since 1974 when The World At War was produced, an updated version of this series would be welcome. The History Channel has made some fine shows dealing with many aspects of WWII but an expansive series such as the World At War has not been successfully attempted since the original. If you are interested in this era don't miss this series. It is required viewing.

If you want just about everything you want to know about WWII from multiple perspectives, this DVD delivers, you WILL learn new things guaranteed, so much so that you won't need any other documentary's on the subject. Get this, watch it, learn from it. Good for school use as well. As a bonus, watch this with Tora tora tora, saving private ryan, patton, band of brothers, a bridge too far, the longest day and other WWII epics along with this to make your knowledge of WWII even more complete. Sir Laurence Oliver's voice adds to the overall atmosphere of each episode in this 26 part series. Seriously you won't find a better WWII documentary set on the subject. PERFECT 10!!!

The music and Laurence Olivier's sombre delivery set the tone perfectly for this outstanding documentary. This is still a must see for WW II buffs, descendants of the participants of that conflict, politicians who think things always go their way when they extend their foreign policy via the deck of an aircraft carrier (did you hear that George Bush?) and anyone else curious or needing to know the whys whos and hows of some aspect of that conflict. The 26 episodes are roughly in chronological order but can be seen out of sequence since they are more or less self contained. There is bound to be new insight for the new viewer because of the sheer volume presented. Actual footage of the battles is interspersed with interviews of those involved in the stories. Many of the interviews are with second line authorities, that is, support personnel to the main characters, privates, captains, secretaries, eyewitnesses and the like. You get a real upfront taste of what war is all about.

I am presently watching the DVD version of the original television documentary. I strongly recommend this over the worn out, gaptoothed, overpriced VHS offerings available on eBay. I paid $120 Cdn for five 2-sided DVD discs. This new release includes bonus material and is in full screen mode. The menus are easy to follow, there is first a choice of which episode you want to view and then after selecting that you are given the option of various chapters in the episode or to play the whole episode. It is understandable with such a comprehensive presentation there is a tiny amount more of navigation in the menu but the impact of what you will see is not diminished after 30 years, nay, after 60 years since the war finished.

I remember watching the first broadcast on the Buffalo PBS station just before moving from London in 1975 and wishing right from that time that I could have a copy. Now my wish has finally come true.

See this documentary. Tell your friends. Buy a copy for your library. Remember and honour the sacrifices and challenges overcome by those from America, Russia, Britain, Canada and all the other nations and peoples involved in the final victory. What an eye opener.

I remember watching this in the 1970s - then I have just recently borrowed a couple of episodes from our public library.

With a nearly 30 year hiatus, I have come to another conclusion. Most of the principals interviewed in this series - some at the center of power like Traudl Junge (Hitler's Secretary),Karl Doenitz (head of Germany's navy) Anthony Eden (UK) - are long gone but their first hand accounts will live on.From Generals and Admirals to Sergeants, Russian civilians, concentration camp survivors, all are on record here.

I can remember the Lord Mountbatten interview (killed in the 1970s)

This is truly a gem and I believe the producer of this series was knighted by Queen Elizabeth for this work - well deserved.

Seeing these few episodes from the library makes me want to buy the set.

This is the only "10" I have given any review but I have discovered like a fine bottle of wine, it is more appreciated with a little time...

I just finished watching all 11 DVDs that came in "The World at War" box set. Indeed, what they covered was very accurate, and I learned things that I was unaware of before, but I was somewhat disappointed by what they didn't cover, or didn't cover well. Yes, military strategies, battles, and events were included, but too often very briefly. Instead, the series focused on the death, destruction, and suffering caused by war. I didn't time it, but I would guess that the Battle of Midway might have been given three minutes, while bombed out cities, burning villages, refugees, and dead bodies took up hours of what the series showed you and commented on. The sinking of the Bismark and many other significant military events were never mentioned. Audie Murphy never made it either. Admittedly, some battles were well covered, but too many only received footnote mention, as the episodes rushed on to show the carnage that resulted from them.

It almost seemed that the series was using military action merely as a vehicle to set the scene and lead into the horror and inhumanity of war, which was the main theme. My guess is that the producers, directors, and writers for this series were very much against war, who used their World War II documentary more to make a statement, than to tell as complete a history of the war as they could in the 26 hours the episodes ran.

As an anti-war film it is a masterpiece, but for those interested in the details of how World War II was fought, it leaves a lot to be desired.

When I purchased one episode of "The World at War" (1974), I was dismayed at finding how tendentious it really is (at least the episode in question). The chapter I bought was 13, on the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It dawned on me that "The World at War" may very well have been the origin of public opinion ever since. Regrettably, it is crammed with misrepresentations of facts.

It subtly avoids telling us that the two Japanese cities were military targets - home of a very aggressive and still active war industry (almost every single one of 230,000 inhabitants of Nagasaki worked in arms factories). However, since footage of dead and injured children is all we see, the impression created in this film is that the targets of bomber pilots Tibbetts and Sweeney were kindergartens.

The film also creates an impression of an 'already fatigued Japan that only wanted peace' (according to statements from a very distinguished Japanese official with plenty of prime time in the programme). Facts are that Japan had not surrendered in 2,600 years, and were not inclined to do so in 1945. According to more reliable sources, such as historian Richard B. Frank, the Pacific War might well have lasted a few years more (as it actually did on certain Pacific isles where Japanese forces were neither fatigued nor peaceful. In fact, the last Japanese soldier surrendered in 1974!). It is more than likely that two or three more years of war would have claimed far more than 200,000 lives. The fallen would undoubtedly have counted the American POWs, already alarmingly emaciated at the liberation in 1945: they looked like the prisoners from the German death camps. By 1946 they would have been dead. The bombs not only spared American POWs, they also ended the bloodiest war in history, at two fell swoops, both of which were justified by Japanese decisions to ignore ultimatums. When forced to admit that an ultimatum WAS in fact delivered, the film chooses to focus on Truman's "unreasonable" demand for unconditional surrender, implying that this was ungenerous. This disregards the fact that the 'fatigued nation' (words like 'humbled', 'defenseless', 'starved' and 'helpless' occur time and again in reference to Japan) tenaciously held on to occupied China and Manchuria. Can we imagine a European peace treaty that let Nazi Germany keep Scandinavia, Poland, the Netherlands and Southern France? Furthermore - there is another deliberate confusion of events in this film: Truman's ultimatum was delivered on July 26. The only Japanese reply came on July 29, when Japan was not too fatigued to sink the USS Indianapolis at the cost of 883 lives. The Indianapolis is not mentioned at all in the documentary, although this was the incident that convinced the Truman administration to proceed with the bombs.

Equally alarming in this film is the question of another Japanese gentlemen who asks himself whether the US can be regarded as a civilized nation after using such a weapon, and this statement - left blowing in the wind as a question that needs no answer - leads to the fundamental omission in the film: its resounding reticence concerning Japanese atrocities during the war (not to mention the fact that Japan actually started the whole bloody business with the invasion of Manchuria in 1931). The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki claimed 200,000 lives, whereas the Japanese assault on Nanking in 1937 cost 300,000 (not to mention other victims of Japanese aggression – such as the rest of China, Manchuria and the Philipines). The Nanking victims died under conditions as frightening as the bomb. Thousands of women were gang-raped before they were murdered or forced to serve as prostitutes for the invading army. Two Japanese commanders competed who could decapitate most victims in succession (what a civilized pursuit!), and reportedly landed on 105 and 106. On the whole, Japan was in utter contempt of the Geneva Conventions: bayoneting and beheading of POWs and massacres on hospitals - patients, staff and all. But what we get in "The World at War" is an appalled narrator telling us that the "Tokyo bombings killed 80,000 – more than died in the London Blitz". We must admire this cunning comparison between US and the Luftwaffe! A comparison with the invasion of Manchuria and China would be more appropriate. Are we to understand that Japan is excused because they butchered people in the old-fashioned way?

Decisive factors such as Japanese atrocities and the ill-advised trust in Soviet aid which prompted Japan to disregard fair warnings from the allies are left out of the programme. While claiming to be a documentary,"The World at War, episode 13: the Bomb", actually borders on fiction about a proud nation that should be pitied as victims of American aggression. We are informed – with undue emphasis - that "the emperor cried" when he announced the capitulation. We get an American president who dropped the bombs, not to end the war or to save American lives, or because so urged by Japanese insolence, but primarily because he wanted to impress Stalin! This film is spin doctoring, well-made and profusely coated in the slightly indignant voice of narrator Laurence Olivier who forgets to mention that his countryman Churchill doggedly pushed for the use of the bombs. Well, the Brits do not share the American taste for guilt complexes, and "The World at War" being British, it prefers to leave all the blame to the Yanks, since they are so eager to have it. The series is from 1974, and probably exploiting public opinion on Vietnam so close at hand back then. To be honest, I cannot recall whether Japan is equally beautified in earlier episodes, but since, on the strength of this episode, I have decided forgo the rest, I shall find out only if they re-air the series on TV. I prefer better-documented documentaries for my money.

It's been a quarter-century since this series made its debut, and I wanted to briefly comment on Carl Davis' towering soundtrack score. The theme and opening titles are unexpected and make a terrific impact upon the viewer, coming as they do after a low-keyed prologue narrated by Laurence Olivier. With their work, and with the superb scripts (and their author(s) have not received the accreditation due), I can't imagine how the telling could ever be improved upon in any subsequent productions. No, I think this will remain the definitive World War II anthology. Highly recommended - though a cautionary is called for throughout the Holocaust sequences. (There was much trepidation at its debut over televising that episode.)

This is without doubt the best documentary ever produced giving an accurate and epic depiction of World War 2 from the invasion of Poland in 1939 to the end of the war in 1945.

Honest and to the point, this documentary presents views from both sides of the conflict giving a very human face to the war. At the same time tactics and the importance of Battles are not overlooked, much work has been put into the giving a detailed picture of the war and in particularly the high, low and turning points in the allies fortunes. Being a British produced documentary this 26 part series focus is mainly on Britain, but Russia and America's contribution are not skimmed over this is but one such advantage of a series of such length.

Another worthy mention is the score, the music and the whole feel of the documentary is one of turmoil, struggle and perseverance. Like a film this series leaves the viewer in no doubt of the hardship faced by the allies and the Germans during the war, its build to a climax at the end of every episode, which serves to layer the coarse of the second world war. After watching all 26 the viewer is left with an extensive knowledge about the war and astonished at just how much we owe to the members of the previous generation.

There's no way I can do world at war justice by writing about how amazing it is. You simply need to experience it for yourself to see the incredible footage, intriguing interviews, unforgettable music and atmosphere, and Olivier's narrating (arguably the best part). Your eyes and ears are glued to the screen as events, both horrific and jovial, are recounted by him in a calm but authoritative voice. The solemn narrating combined with seeing the atrocities of the second world war unfold on the screen are nothing short of magical. World at war is often gruesome, macabre, and shockingly violent, but that doesn't mean it's bad. The show lets you draw your own conclusions about what you just saw. It is very uncommon, especially with regards to ww2 documentaries, to see the producers and writers take a completely unbiased look at what exactly took place, and world at war executed this flawlessly. The series was also made at a time when many of the officers and high ranking leaders of the war effort for various nations were still alive, which helps add more depth to the series and is greatly appreciated. The interviews with Hitler's personal secretary Traudl Junge, Admiral Doenitz of the german navy, and Arthur "Bomber" Harris of the royal air force were all riveting, and that's to say nothing of all the others made to speak in front of the cameras. It simply makes you care more about what's going on when there are different viewpoints. The series does a good job of providing comic relief in between the usual sections filled to the brim with the savage brutality we've come to associate world war 2 with. Only the very best pieces of television can make an audience sad, laugh, scared, worried, or excited within only 1 episode. The chilling opening music by Carl Davis along with Laurence Olivier's voice is what essentially sets the tone for what you're about to see, and the narration is without a doubt one of the best parts of the show. The interviews are fascinating, but when Laurence is talking, you want him to keep talking. When he's not, you can't wait till he comes back. World at War is also a rare series that does not have a single bad episode. They're all amazing in all respects. Each episode focuses on a different time period and place of world war 2, such as "On Our Way" which is all about the USA before and shortly after pearl harbor, or "Red Star" which is all about the horrors people had to live through in the Soviet Union as Hitler's war machine tore into it. Probably my favorite episode of the entire show is "Wolf Pack" since the entire thing is about german submarines. The episode begins with the calm, rolling waves of the ocean, and there is just silence for about 5 seconds. Laurence then says "The Atlantic. Britain's lifeline. Treacherous enough in peacetime. In war, black with menace." The bottom line is World at War is the premiere documentary on the second world war and there has never been another show like it, and there probably never will be.

At this writing, just over 65 years have passed since Nazi Germany surrendered to the Allies, and yet the cataclysmic events seem from another time, another era, another epoch; a dark fantasy which seems illusory, almost fabricated. And yet this is not fiction but historic reality. The large hosts of military armies chanting "Sieg Heil" amid the plethora of swastika banners and German crosses appear like scenes from a surrealistic film, almost imaginary in its strangeness. A central figure elevated to the status of messiah by his people, almost a god, fueled by the undying devotion of millions. An horrific ideology overtakes an entire nation which had been known for high culture, literature, science and music. And the crimes against humanity within its borders escalate before this messiah and his nation confront the rest of humankind through a conscious combination of political maneuvering and military might. The messiah is not one of benevolence and peace but one of wrath and war.

Is this a nightmare from which humankind would awaken eventually and say thank goodness, it was only a dream? Or a dark landscape of atrocity from which the only escape is death? And yet, no matter how unreal these times appear to us three quarters of a century later, the events of Europe in the 1930's and the 1940's have become not just a chapter of human history but a multi-volume work of epic proportions, the modern equivalent of Homer's "the Iliad" or Edward Gibbons "Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire". World War II is the great epic tragedy of the 20th century, a story written in the blood and anguished cries of millions, and rivaled only by its parent, World War I.

Jeremy Isaac's "The World at War" produced in the late 1960's and early 1970's and premiered on British television in 1973 (and later in the US) remains the most outstanding production to date in English which presents a coherent narrative of one of the strangest episodes of human history. Narrated by the incomparable Sir Laurence Olivier, "the World at War" was the first attempt, so far as I know, to piece the large puzzle of people and events, both large and small, into a presentable film. For nearly 23 hours, divided into 26 episodes, audiences are taken back to the early 20th century to witness events that literally changed the course of human experience. The film relies on Olivier's narration, archival footage from the era, interviews of scholars, and interviews of people from the time, recounting memories of what they had witnessed.

The interviews alternate between people of high standing and those of middle class as well as scholarly discourse. In the first episode, one woman remembers being enthralled to the point of silent awe when Hitler and his entourage greeted her and her colleagues. Another woman recalls that the doctor to her children had been dismissed from a hospital he had helped found, only on the grounds of his being of Jewish decent. A scholar recounts how Hitler perpetrated the burning of the Reichstag and blamed it on the communist presence in Germany to strengthen his power by marginalizing rivals. Hitler's strategy was to gain complete political solidarity in Germany at the price of human rights and freedom. But his aims did not end with Germany; Hitler sought to regain those lands around Germany which had been lost as a result of World War I.

The documentary begins with Hitler's rise to Chancelor of Germany in 1933 as head of the German Socialist Worker's Party (Nazi Party), and his eventual rise to dictator upon the death of President Hindenburg in 1934. Hitler schemes to destroy all political adversaries to promote complete centralized power of the government. In short, he completely remakes Germany's political and judiciary structure to encompass an ideology in which political dissenters and those labeled as part of inferior races (i.e. Jews, Gypsies, and other minorities) are not only marginalized and stripped of human rights but are to be persecuted and eventually exterminated. At first, the world seems only to watch in awe and anxiety but for some reason is reluctant to act.

The documentary then furthers how Hitler will take his ideology outside his boundaries and force the world to reckon with this new European power. The dictator plans to absorb many of the surrounding countries of western and central Europe into the Third Reich, blatantly undermining the Versailles Treaty of 1919. His designs begin near his own borders, first absorbing Austria into the German empire, and then France to the west and Czechoslovakia and Poland to the east. He forces Britain, the Soviet Union and Italy to sign treaties, but later will bomb England and begin an eastern offensive into Russia. Finally, a western and eastern alliance is formed among those countries which had not fallen into the Reich's hands. Their mission: to arrest Germany's military campaigns, and the inspiring speech by English Prime Minister Winston Churchill to Britain's Parliament becomes the rallying cry. The bombing of Pearl Harbor in late 1941 followed by Germany's declaration of war against the United States force Americans into the conflict on the side of the allies.

Isaac's outstanding documentary is English language television at its finest and would not be rivaled until Ken Burns' "The Civil War" almost two decades later. In all likelihood, Burns was inspired by World at War in terms of its thoroughness of historical scholarship balanced with stories of everyday people along with a fine narrator; it is the war documentary by which all others are judged. "The World at War" stands as a crowning achievement dealing with a fascinating if horrific subject, the history of the human race nearly annihilating itself. But maybe the documentary is a positive model in and of itself, showing how much more wonderful it is to create than to destroy.

This should be required viewing for all young people. This is documentary at its best, from the haunting music and terrific narration by Olivier to its unflinching and penetrating analyses, The World at War is unforgettable and irreplaceable for anyone who wants to know about humanity's sorry experience at the nadir of the 20th century.

I must have seen this a dozen times over the years. I was about fifteen when I first saw it in B & W on the local PBS station.

I bought a DVD set for the children to see, and am making them watch it. They don't teach history in School, and this explains the most critical event of the 20th Century. It expands their critical thinking.

Impartially, with the participants on all sides explaining in their own words what they did and why, it details what lead up to the war and the actual war.

Buy it for your children, along with Alistair Cooke's America. Watch it with them, and make them understand. You'll be so glad you did.

The ultimate documentary on WW2.

A documentary series on World War 2, from its causes, its commencement through to its conclusion, with episodes on major theatres, campaigns and battles. Also includes episodes on things that one wouldn't normally think about when detailing a war, but which is no less important, eg the home front, innovations.

Very well researched, with rare archival footage of battles and the like. Probably the most impressive thing is the interviews. The interviewees include some very high-profile people, people with a large hand in whatever battle or event is being discussed. For example, in "Whirlwind", the episode on the Allied bombing of Germany, we see interviews with Marshall of the RAF Sir Arthur "Bomber" Harris (commander of RAF Bomber Command during WW2), Albert Speer (German munitions and industry minister), Adolf Galland (German fighter ace), Jimmy Stewart (famed actor and WW2 bomber squadron leader), General Curtis LeMay (US bomber group commander) plus aircrews on both sides and German civilians affected by the Allied bombing.

All this while narrated by Sir Laurence Olivier - you can't get much more gravitas than that!

Suitable not just for students of history, but for everyone. In fact, this should be compulsory viewing for anyone who wants to understand the history of the 20th century, and the sacrifices that were made in order that we might be free from tyranny.

The BBC used the tried & tested formula to engage a Shakespearean actor as a focal point to deliver a colorful, (hopefully) gripping narration to the same sad old story. That worked out well in 1964 with "The Great War", and not so well with Kenneth Branagh in "World War I in Colour". I'm quite disappointed with this series - it has no proper time line, there's hardly anything new for someone who has watched some decent documentaries over the years, Olivier sounds bored (and bores me, too), factual narrative is left out in favor of adding "mood" to the film - an overflow of redundancy (and artsy pretensions?) is what kills the thing for me. Each episode on DVD has a superfluous introduction by the producer about what that particular episode meant to him - which I mostly skipped. If some of this time had been properly used, it might have been fascinating. Alas...

Still, it's long, it's extensive - worth watching. War documentary buffs, please provide some recommendations to fill in the details. I'm still looking for a comprehensive WWII documentary in English - the German side has been pretty well covered, most recently by Guido Knopp.

First problem that I noticed is the "good vs evil" stuff that I dislike how is treated.

I like how they show the caos that "World War" brings to people, but I can stand the "good vs evil".