Week 5 (2/15-2/17)

2/15

Discussed:

-introduction to WWI and the memory of WWI

-initial thoughts on Peter Jackson’s Film, They Shall Not Grow Old 

-film follows the experience of British soldiers on the Western Front using colorized, restored footage, recreations of the soundscape, popular press, and narration from WWI veterans speaking in 1963.

2/17 

-critical perspectives on They Shall Not Grow Old

-who is left out? does this film achieve the memory it was going for? is this “good history”?

Sanatu Das

-film fails to address soldiers of empire/colonial soldiers in a meaningful way

Susan Grayzel

-women and their many roles in WWI are barely mentioned in the film, the only time women are even mentioned are as mothers or prostitutes, but their perspectives are not explored

Jessica Meyer

-One of the best parts of this film is its recreation of the soundscape of war, which is often missing in portrayals of WWI.

Catherine Robson

-The recoloration and soundscape of the film help to achieve the effect of “youthfulness”.

-However there are some flaws: lip readings may not be accurate, soundscape may not be accurate, colorization looks uncanny in some places, interviews are from far in the future from WWI, and most of all this is only one memory out of thousands that could have been explored and represented.