The official World War II US Government film statement defining the various enemies of the Allies and why they must be fought.The official World War II US Government film statement defining the various enemies of the Allies and why they must be fought.The official World War II US Government film statement defining the various enemies of the Allies and why they must be fought.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 4 wins total
Photos
- Narrator
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Lord Lytton)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as General Chaing Kai-Shek)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Darré)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Dietrich)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Frank)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Doctor Goebbels)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Goring)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Hess)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Hitler)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Kurusu)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Ley)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Yosuke Matsuoka)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Reinhardt)
- Self
- (archive footage)
- (as Doctor Alfred Rosenberg)
- Directors
- Frank Capra(uncredited)
- Anatole Litvak(uncredited)
- Writers
- Julius J. Epstein(uncredited)
- Philip G. Epstein(uncredited)
- Robert Heller(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis film is in the public domain. As a work by Federal Government employees on behalf of the Federal Government, the film is by law ineligible for copyright protection and was released into the public domain at its creation.
- GoofsDuring the (silent) footage of Ethiopians shouting, the angry voices are actually shouting in Kiswahili: "Kwenda!" ("go:), etc. The principal language of Ethiopia is Amharic. Kiswahili (commonly known as "Swahili") is the main language of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
- Quotes
Narrator: [Last line] For this is what we are fighting: Freedom's oldest enemy, the passion of the few to rule the many. This isn't just a war. This is the common man's life and death struggle against those who would put him back into slavery. We lose it, and we lose everything. Our homes; the jobs we want to go back to; the books we read; the very food we eat. The hopes we have for our kids; the kids themselves. They won't be ours anymore. That's what's at stake. It's us or them! The chips are down. Two worlds stand against each other. One must die, one must live. One hundred seventy years of freedom decrees our answer.
[Legend - not spoken]
Narrator: "... victory of the democracies can only be complete with the utter defeat of the war machines of Germany and Japan." G.C. Marshall, Chief of Staff
- ConnectionsEdited into The Road to War: Japan (1989)
- SoundtracksThe Star Spangled Banner
(1814) (uncredited)
Music by John Stafford Smith (1777)
Played often in the score
It is- This film, even though from the 40's, is well made and is, without a doubt, NOT "boring" in any sense. This film moves forward and never lets up. I think what makes this film riveting moreso than other documentaries is that this one was made in the middle of the actual conflict. The outcome of world war II had not yet arrived at the time of this film...the Allies did not know if they would be able to win or not. The plan of attack of the Axis, as outlined in this film through well done animation from Disney, showed that if the U.S. didn't act quickly, soon it would be us versus the rest of the world, under the control of the Axis. Unlike other WWII documentaries, which tell the story from the perspective of history, this one is right in the middle of everything.
Especially this chapter, prelude to war, shows the terrifying history of the Nazi's rise to power, and the Imperialist Japan's rise as well. I think for all the danger the U.S. faced at that time, the most chilling, perhaps, to U.S. audiences would be the Nazi regime.
If anyone ever doubted how scary the Nazis were, just watch this film. Especially enlightening are facts that many of us likely didn't know or remember,-the fact that the Nazi's were not only anti-Semetic. Hitler's takeover of Germany soon became a decidedly anti-Christian "religion". The Nazi party actually removed crosses off of churches and replaced them with swastikas, and in speeches the Nazi's cast Hitler's words as "Germany's religion". Many Christian ministers and even priests and nuns were jailed.
The most eerie was the scene where the children in Germany were made to sing songs like "Hitler is our Lord" etc... CHILLING.
Many have called this film slanted, and U.S. propaganda, and this may be true...but I still think it's a great piece of historical film-making.
I feel more than other films I have seen, this one really makes us in 2009 realize the seriousness of World War II (The slave world of Hitler vs the free world), and how high the stakes were.
It makes me thankful to live in America, and for me also brings about a newfound respect for our senior citizens who lived through that very challenging era of history, especially those who served as soldiers.
- jcapogrossi
- Nov 18, 2009
- How long is Why We Fight?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime52 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1