''Break-through'' is an 11-minute 1944 Canadian

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

, made by the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

(NFB) as part of the wartime ''

Canada Carries On ''Canada Carries On'' (French: ''En avant Canada'') was a series of short films by the National Film Board of Canada which ran from 1940 to 1959. The series was initially created as morale-boosting propaganda films during the Second World War. Wit ...

'' series. The film documents the attack on

Fortress Europe Fortress Europe (german: Festung Europa) was a military propaganda term used by both sides of the Second World War which referred to the areas of Continental Europe occupied by Nazi Germany, as opposed to the United Kingdom across the Channel. ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and the advance of

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

forces to the borders of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. ''Break-through'' was produced by

James Beveridge James Beveridge (1917–1993) was a Canadian filmmaking, filmmaker, author and educator. Beveridge was a pioneering filmmaker at the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) and became Head of Production at the NFB in the post-war years. Early years ...

. The film's

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

version title is ''L'assaut''.

Synopsis

On June 6, 1944, supported by an immense naval armada, Allied troops, including the

First Canadian Army The First Canadian Army (french: 1reArmée canadienne) was a field army and a formation of the Canadian Army in World War II in which most Canadian elements serving in North-West Europe were assigned. It served on the Western Front from July 1944 ...

, led by

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

Harry Crerar, launch an

amphibious invasion Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted ...

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

, France. Facing a fierce resistance by

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

forces, the Allied armies

establish Establishment may refer to: * The Establishment, a dominant group or elite that controls a polity or an organization * The Establishment (club), a 1960s club in London, England * The Establishment (Pakistan), political terminology for the milita ...

beachhead A beachhead is a temporary line created when a military unit reaches a landing beach by sea and begins to defend the area as other reinforcements arrive. Once a large enough unit is assembled, the invading force can begin advancing inland. The ...

on the Normandy coast. Seeking redemption after their earlier rout at the

Dieppe raid Operation Jubilee or the Dieppe Raid (19 August 1942) was an Allied amphibious attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in northern France, during the Second World War. Over 6,050 infantry, predominantly Canadian, supported by a regiment o ...

in 1942, the Canadians are able to gain control of

Juno Beach Juno or Juno Beach was one of five beaches of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944 during the Second World War. The beach spanned from Courseulles, a village just east of the British beach Gold ...

. Before regrouping for an advance into France, Allied troops are replenished by transport of war materiél and reinforcements. The Canadian contingent is tasked with an attack on

Caen Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,fighter-bomber A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, wh ...

s, begins to wreak havoc on the enemy defences. Fleets of

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Grif ...

s and Hawker Typhoons, likewise, sweep the skies in front of them. The extremely close cooperation and coordination between the Canadian air and ground forces enable the First Canadian Army to steadily advance on Caen. By the end of June, bitter street fighting in Caen gives way to attacks in the hedgerows beyond the city, with the Canadians continually forcing the Nazi defenders back. In liberating Caen, the Canadian troops enter a devastated city, yet are warmly greeted by its remaining French citizens. Simultaneous Allied attacks throughout France lead to the liberation of

Marseilles Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...

Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...

Bourdeaux Bourdeaux (; oc, Bordèus) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Drôme department The following is a list of the 363 communes of the Drôme department of France. The communes ...

and even Paris. Joining with other Allied forces, the Canadians encircle the remaining enemy forces in the Falaise Pocket, resulting in the collapse of the German defence lines and the capture of the trapped Nazi 7th Army. As the Canadian troops continue their relentless advance eastward to the borders of Nazi Germany, a stark comparison between Canada's "citizen army" and the ruthless and desperate conscripted Nazi soldiers, is clearly evident.

Cast

Harry Crerar as Himself (archival footage) * Correspondent Ross Munro as Himself (archival footage) * General

Bernard Montgomery Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, (; 17 November 1887 – 24 March 1976), nicknamed "Monty", was a senior British Army officer who served in the First World War, the Irish War of Independence and t ...

as Himself (archival footage) * General

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

as Himself (archival footage) *

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

Arthur Tedder Marshal of the Royal Air Force Arthur William Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder, (11 July 1890 – 3 June 1967) was a senior Royal Air Force commander. He was a pilot and squadron commander in the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War and he went o ...

as Himself (archival footage)

Production

Typical of the NFB's Second World War documentary

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

s in the ''Canada Carries On'' series, ''Break-through'' was created as a morale boosting propaganda film. The film was a compilation documentary that relied heavily on combat footage shot by the Canadian armed forces, and the film units of the U.S. Army Signal Corps and the British Army, edited by producer James Beveridge to provide a coherent message.Morris, Peter
"Film Reference Library: Canada Carries On."
''Canadian Film Encyclopedia''. Retrieved: March 6, 2016. The deep baritone voice of stage actor Lorne Greene was featured in the narration of ''Break-through''. Greene was known for his work on radio broadcasts as a news announcer at '' CBC'', as well as narrating many of the ''Canada Carries On'' series. His sonorous recitation led to his nickname, "The Voice of Canada", and to some observers, the "voice-of-God".Rist 2001, p. 84. When reading grim battle statistics or narrating a particularly serious topic, he was known as "The Voice of Doom"."Bonanza's Canadian Lorne Greene."
''Bite Size Canada''. Retrieved: March 6, 2016.

Reception

''Break-through'' was produced in 35 mm for the theatrical market. Each film was shown over a six-month period as part of the shorts or newsreel segments in approximately 800 theatres across Canada. The NFB had an arrangement with

Famous Players theatres Famous Players Limited Partnership, DBA Famous Players, is a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous ...

to ensure that Canadians from coast-to-coast could see them, with further distribution by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

.Ellis and McLane 2005, p. 122. After the six-month theatrical tour ended, individual films were made available on 16 mm to schools, libraries, churches and factories, extending the life of these films for another year or two. They were also made available to film libraries operated by university and provincial authorities. A total of 199 films were produced before the series was canceled in 1959.Ohayon, Albert
"Propaganda cinema at the NFB".
''National Film Board of Canada'', July 13, 2009. Retrieved: March 6, 2016.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Bennett, Linda Greene. ''My Father's Voice: The Biography of Lorne Greene''. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse, Inc., 2004. . * Ellis, Jack C. and Betsy A. McLane. ''New History of Documentary Film''. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2005. . * Lerner, Loren. ''Canadian Film and Video: A Bibliography and Guide to the Literature''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1997. . * Rist, Peter. ''Guide to the Cinema(s) of Canada''. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001. .

External links

*
''Break-through'' at the NFB Collections page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Break-through 1944 films 1944 short films Canadian black-and-white films Canadian short documentary films Canadian World War II propaganda films National Film Board of Canada documentaries 1944 documentary films Black-and-white documentary films Canada Carries On Quebec films Columbia Pictures short films 1940s English-language films 1940s Canadian films 1940s short documentary films Allies of World War II