The Battle of Britain

The Battle of Britain was the fourth of Frank Capra's Why We Fight series of seven propaganda films, which made the case for fighting and winning the Second World War. It was released in 1943 and concentrated on the German bombardment of the United Kingdom in anticipation of Operation Sea Lion, the planned Nazi invasion of Great Britain.

For the 1969 film, see Battle of Britain (film). For the World War II battle, see Battle of Britain.
Why We Fight: The Battle of Britain
Film
Directed by
Produced byOffice of War Information
Written by
Narrated byWalter Huston
Music byHoward Jackson
CinematographyRobert Flaherty
Edited byWilliam Hornbeck
Distributed byWar Activities Committee of the Motion Pictures Industry
Release date
  • 1943 (1943)
Running time
54 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

The narrator describes the fall of France, leaving Britain almost defenceless. British forces are vastly outnumbered, but the British people are calm. The narrator explains that this is because in a democracy the people as a whole are involved in the decision to fight. Hitler's masterplan to subjugate Britain is described. Hitler begins by attacking convoys and ports, but fails to destroy them. The RAF are outnumbered "6 - 8 - 10 to one", but knock out far more planes than the Germans do. Bailed out British pilots are also able to return to the air, but German pilots are lost. Unlike the Dutch and Polish air forces Britain does not "make the mistake of bunching its planes on the runways".

Losses force Hitler to "take time out". He tells Goering to change tactics, so the Luftwaffe attack factories. Britain deploys "improved listening posts" to identify coming attacks. In August and September German losses are far more severe. However the "German mind" cannot understand why "free people fight on against overwhelming odds". The Nazis now aim to "crush the British spirit" by attacking London, destroying homes, hospitals and churches. But the people adapt and survive. Enraged, Goering takes personal command, sending a massive attack on September 15, to which the British respond with "everything they had". In the battle the Germans suffer severe losses.

Despite many losses, and destruction of historic buildings, the Germans cannot break Britain. They switch to night attacks, hoping to terrorise the people and make them "cry for mercy", then die of begging. But the people show great resilience. The British also counter-attack, bombing key German factories. Hitler takes revenge by destroying Coventry. After a brief respite at Christmas Hitler sends fire bombs to London, creating "the greatest fire in recorded history". More bombings and firestorms are created, but Britain's defences hold up, giving a year of precious time to other countries threatened by the Nazis. The film ends with Winston Churchill's statement that "never in the field of human conflict has so much been owed by so many to so few".

Criticism of the depiction of Poland

The film has been criticized by Polish American historian Mieczysław B. Biskupski for its portrayal of Poland and her contribution to the Second World War.[1] Biskupski specifically focuses on specific instances in the film such as when a map of Europe is displayed and the eastern half of Poland is shown to be "free" from Nazi domination, while ignoring that it had been occupied by the Soviet Union during their partition of Poland with Nazi Germany in 1939.[1] Biskupski also criticizes the films claim that the Polish Air Force was destroyed on the ground during the invasion of Poland (contrasting this claim with the correct one made about the RAF not being destroyed), which he states was an invention of Nazi propaganda. He contrasts this with the widespread publicization of the exploits of Polish pilots such as those of the No. 303 Squadron in Britain.[1] Biskupski connects this portrayal with his larger theory of Hollywood's intentional poor portrayal of Poland in order to justify the alliance with the Soviets, as the Soviet Union was annexing and encroaching upon Polish territory during and after the war.[2]

See also

References
  1. Biskupski 2010, pp. 151-152.
  2. Biskupski 2010, pp. 148-152.

Bibliography
  • Biskupski, Mieczysław (2010). Hollywood's War with Poland, 1939-1945. University Press of Kentucky; Illustrated Edition. ISBN 978-0813125596.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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