Tanks of Fury (1 Viewer)

[BLReed]

----------------------------------------------------------------Tanks of Fury--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------Smithsonian Channel --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ONE-HOUR SPECIAL
TO EXPLORE THE HARSH REALITIES OF WWII TANK WARFARE
PREMIERING SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9 AT 8 PM ET/PT

New York, October 29, 2014 – Smithsonian Channel goes behind-the-scenes of the current blockbuster film Fury, starring Academy Award® winner Brad Pitt, to explore the real struggles of World War II tank crews. The new one-hour special, TANKS OF FURY, premieres Sunday, November 9 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

TANKS OF FURY looks at what World War II crews were up against, what skills and technology were needed to survive an armored duel, and what it was like to wage a war in what many veterans still call the “steel coffin.” In addition, the special goes behind-the-scenes of the movie to explore the actors’ boot camp military training, reveal how special-effects crews created a replica Sherman tank, and witness a historic moment, as the last remaining Nazi Tiger tank roars to life again to become part of the movie.

TANKS OF FURY features extensive interviews with David Ayer, best known as the writer of the blockbuster film Training Day. WWII vets Don Evans, Peter Burland and Paul Andert describe the harsh realities of tank warfare that they experienced as they rolled across Germany in a real Sherman in 1945. TANKS OF FURY also looks at what happens when a tank rolls over a landmine and how the blast of the German anti-tank rocket, the Panzerfaust, incinerates everything in its path.

“One German dropped a Panzerfaust at one of my tracks and killed seven of my men,” Andert recalls. “I was so upset about what he did...that I was gonna kill him. We decided at that point that we were savages when we were fighting and we were humans when it quieted down.”


Schedule
9:00pm Sunday 11/09
12:00am Monday 11/10
7:00pm Tuesday 11/11

http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/sc/web/show/3415077/tanks-of-fury

 

[larso]

Thanks for that, this sounds really interesting. I've read Andert's memoir of his time in the Armd Infantry. What he had to say there really connected with some of the scenes in Fury. For some reason only a dozen tank guys wrote memoirs and half of those are closer to booklets than books. I'd recommend Andert's ahead of almost all of them. Here's my review of it -

Andert enlisted at seventeen in 1940. He went through the usual training difficulties but emerged a strong and independent man. By the time the US was ready to fight in WW2, Andert was a Sgt in B Co of the 41st Armored Infantry Regt, 2nd Armored Division. He fights in North Africa, Sicily, Normandy, the Bulge and in the drive through Germany. He has a hard war but with many medals to show for it.

Andert's experiences in Tunisia and Sicily are quite varied. From using his trench knife on his first patrol, to being shelled and bombed, he is very much in the front line. While his role was to operate from half-tracks in support of tanks, most of his fighting is done the same as any other infantryman. There are some very interesting passages indeed about his time in the Mediterranean theatre. For instance it was commonplace to list those who died accidentially (Andert witnesses several examples) as `Killed in Action'.

Normandy is also a time of high intensity. Andert writes quite a bit about operating in the hedgerows and the unpredictable combat that occurs there. He is wounded too but in the process contributes to a significant success in combat. Interestingly, he twice returns to combat from hospital early and essentially desserts to rejoin his own unit and avoid being posted elsewhere. Andert has some biting things to say about the US replacement system and the officials who ran it. He also has quite a few criticisms of US officership in general and his experiences at the front substantiate these. Worst of all, failures by command caused needless deaths.

To my mind the most compelling section of Andert's account is the drive through Germany. There are several powerful stories of fanatical resistance, war-crimes and war-weariness. There were stories here that I have not come across the like before. It is also astonishing that so few men had so much asked of them. The information given here offsets the skimming over of Andert's involvement at the tip of the Bulge, where his division destroys the 2nd Panzer. This said, it would have been fascinating to read more on the realities of two powerful armoured forces clashing head on.

The author is a remarkable man and leader of men. He is forthright in writing of war horror and killing the enemy. It is a raw account, told as if the man was speaking. Some things are glossed over but his delivery, while featuring a few typos and repetition is suited to his subject. Yes, some other memoirs are more eloquent but Andert's has a powerful direct punch. Having read five accounts by US armoured infantry men, I can say that Paul Andert's is the most far ranging and revealing of what it was like to be a combat soldier. Recommended 3 3/4 stars.