Talk:Passchendaele (film)

Plot synopsis

Someone replaced the existing plot synopsis with this one:

Set during the height of the First World War, Passchendaele tells the story of Sergeant Michael Dunne (Paul Gross), a soldier who is brutally wounded in France and returns to Calgary emotionally and physically scarred. While in the military hospital in Calgary, he meets Sarah (Caroline Dhavernas), a mysterious and attractive nurse with whom he develops a passionate love. When Sarah's younger asthmatic brother David (Joe Dinicol) signs up to fight in Europe, Michael feels compelled to return to Europe to protect him. Michael and David, like thousands of Canadians, are sent to fight in the third battle of Ypres, a battle against impossible odds, commonly known as "Passchendaele". It is a story of passion, courage and dedication, showing the heroism of those that fought in battle, and of the ones that loved them.

Umm...why?

Several problems with this. In order:

• Set during the height of the First World War,: what does this mean? Arguably the spring offensives of 1918 were the high water mark of the war.

• Passchendaele tells the story of Sergeant Michael Dunne (Paul Gross), a soldier who is brutally wounded in France: aside from the fact he was wounded in Belgium (Flanders), is there a way to be wounded in war that isn't "brutal"?

• a mysterious and attractive nurse with whom he develops a passionate love.: as opposed to a resentful love? How do you "develop" passion? I thought passionate love was the kind that you fall into immediately - as indeed happens to Dunne.

• Michael and David, like thousands of Canadians,: obviously

• are sent to fight in the third battle of Ypres, a battle against impossible odds, commonly known as "Passchendaele": "impossible odds"? According to whom? The casualty rates for the battle of Passchendaele were roughly at parity (from Battle of Passchendaele: in terms of killed, wounded and missing, the Germans lost approximately 260,000 men, while the British Empire forces lost about 300,000), though if one considers the tactical battle only as presented in the movie - the odds are never really discussed. We know a company of men replace a battalion in the line, but the strength of the Germans is never explicitly discussed. Can't have been "impossible" since the Canadians hold the line. And in the real deal, a day after the fumble with the relief of the 8th Battalion, the 10th Battalion took Hill 52, the final objective of the Passchendaele battle for the 10th, as discussed in the movie, "with light casualties" according to the Calgary Highlanders' website. What was the impossible part, again?

• It is a story of passion, courage and dedication, showing the heroism of those that fought in battle, and of the ones that loved them. Gag. And inaccurate. Only Michael and David, apparently, had loved ones in Canada or anywhere else; no one else in the movie is depicted as having a wife or sweetheart. This is inappropriate for an encyclopedia in any event, unsourced, and reads like ad copy.139.48.25.60 (talk) 17:36, 22 October 2008 (UTC)

Tweaked plot synopsis. It read like a particularly bad essay written for a high school English project. Also changed "Pvt." to "Pte.", as was and still is the standard Canadian and Commonwealth spelling. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 77.103.63.213 (talk) 16:26, 7 April 2012 (UTC)

release

will this movie be released only in canada or will it also be released to the rest of the world —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.111.121.11 (talk) 17:34, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

Criticisms

I am sure there is more that can be added to this article in regards to "Accuracy" and "Reception" or "Criticisms". My own POV is that this film was terribly done; full of inaccuracies and lack of historical references. Perhaps the writer, director or producer should have read the Wiki article on Passchendaele, then they would have at least some insight on the history of this battle and a better timeline for their movie. Jason Gaudet (talk) 02:33, 2 March 2009 (UTC)

Grave marker?

What is with the reference in the end that Dunne is buried and the camera "pans to show the grave marker with the '1915 changed to 1917'" (or whatever it says)? There is no explanation anywhere else as to what this refers to. Did they make him a grave when he first came home wounded, expecting him to die in 1915, only he recovers instead? And then he is eventually buried there two years later, in 1917? It would be nice if it explained this part..45Colt 03:26, 18 August 2014 (UTC)

It is in reference to the character being falsely reported as missing in action/dead in 1915, and then actually dying in 1917. The wooden grave marker is first shown 32 minutes in to the film at a family farm. 24.236.53.22 (talk) 18:30, 11 October 2015 (UTC)

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