''Tunisian Victory'' is a 1944 Anglo-

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

propaganda film about the victories in the North Africa Campaign. The film follows both armies from the planning of

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – Run for Tunis, 16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of secu ...

and

Operation Acrobat Operation Acrobat was a proposed British attack on Tripoli in 1942. It was discussed on 9 and 13 January 1942 by the Chiefs of Staff and representatives of Middle East Command (General Sir Claude Auchinleck). The Chief of Imperial General Staff, G ...

(the latter of which was canceled), to the liberation of Tunis. Interspersed in the documentary format are the narrative voices of supposed American and British soldiers (voiced by Burgess Meredith and Bernard Miles respectively), recounting their experience in the campaign. Miles and Meredith, playing the roles of soldiers, talk separately until the end of the film when they have a dialogue, agree to co-operate after the end of the war, and with the other Allied nations create a more just and peaceful post-war order. The film was intended as a follow-up to the successful British documentary film '' Desert Victory'' (1943). Frederic Krome's article "Tunisian Victory" and Anglo-American Film Propaganda in World War II from ''The Historian'' details the acrimony between the British and US film makers on the project. Most of the actual American combat footage taken during Operation Torch was destroyed when the ship carrying it was sunk, requiring many "battle scenes" to be reshot in the U.S. by director

John Huston John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...

. Huston restaged several battles and liberations to achieve high quality footage, even going so far as to film some air battle scenes (in the

Mohave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in s ...

) and in

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

. The British recognized the dubious nature of the film, though they themselves were guilty of the same recreations in wartime propaganda films. Turner Classic Movies interview with Mark Harris, September 2, 2015, 1:45 a.m. EST The direction of the final version involved no less than five individuals:

Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-born American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s ...

Anthony Veiller Anthony Veiller (23 June 1903 – 27 June 1965) was an American screenwriter and film producer. He wrote for 41 films between 1934 and 1964. Life and career Veiller was born on 23 June 1903 in New York City to playwright and screenwriter Ba ...

, Hugh Stewart and Roy Boulting.

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External links

* * * * "''Tunisian Victory'' and Anglo-American Film Propaganda in World War II" http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-18516915.html 1944 films American World War II propaganda films British World War II propaganda films British documentary films American documentary films North African campaign films Films directed by Frank Capra Films directed by Roy Boulting Films scored by William Alwyn American black-and-white films Films directed by John Huston 1944 documentary films {{WWII-documentary-film-stub

See also

References

External links