Product Description

Michael Caine, John Lithgow, Bob Hoskins and Ed Begley Jr. star in this award-winning mini-series shot in hi-def. At the Tehran and Yalta Conferences, the strong personalities of three of the world’s most powerful leaders threaten their fragile alliance. This riveting historical drama portrays the precarious relationship between Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin at the pivotal moments when the final strategies of the war hung in the balance.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #45287 in DVD
• Brand: E1
• Released on: 2007-02-13
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .35 pounds
• Running time: 194 minutes

Amazon.com
It's hard to imagine more compelling material than the backroom machinations between FDR, Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin that led to the precarious alliance of these three leaders against Hitler. World War II--When Lions Roared is an unusual mixture of scenes dramatized from speeches and diplomatic correspondence and archival newsreel footage. The three main actors--John Lithgow (3rd Rock from the Sun, Kinsey) as Roosevelt, Bob Hoskins (Mrs. Henderson Presents, Mona Lisa) as Churchill, and Michael Caine (Alfie, The Quiet American) as Stalin--all deliver strong performances. Hoskins, even under heavy make-up, doesn't look much like Churchill, but he's got the man's gruff, stern cadences nailed. Caine's make-up is more effective, but the key to Caine's performance is in his mysterious, gimlet eyes. The script is oddly cobbled together from speeches and diplomatic correspondence and so thick with high-flown rhetoric and pontification, which certainly fits the mini-series' romantic view of WWII but can be a bit much to stomach after an hour or two of stirring declamation. When Lions Roared, as you might guess from the title, suffers from unapologetic hero worship of FDR and Churchill, presenting them as wise and resolute throughout, wily codgers the likes of which we shall not see again, etc.. Also strange are split-screen scenes of the leaders in their various lairs, from which they speak to each other as if in mid-conversation--obviously intended to depict the decision-making process economically, but the effect is uncomfortably chummy and glib. Nonetheless, history buffs will enjoy the wary regard in which these world leaders held each other as they negotiated the fate of the world. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

Wonderful. History comes alive! Great entertainment.
This is great entertainment and great historical drama. It is based upon actual cables between Washington, London, and Moscow during the Second World War, and deals almost exclusively with the relationship between the leaders of these countries throughout the war. Franklin Roosevelt (played by John Lithgow), Winston Churchill (Bob Hoskins) and Josef Stalin (Michael Caine) spring to life as real but imperfect people who nevertheless are great leaders fighting a great war. Incidentally, the film focuses almost solely on the European war--the war against Japan is largely in the background, which has the effect of causing the film to somewhat diminish America's contribution to the war. This is a minor quibble, however. This is a wonderful film.

The miniseries does a wonderful job of juxtaposing dialog between the great war leaders with actual footage of combat scenes from the war. It tells a great story in a highly entertaining fashion, and does a splendid job of showing the viewer some of the problems, controversies, and arguments between the allied powers while the three leaders struggled to hold together the greatest coalition of nations in history.

The striking thing about this film is that it never deviates from its theme--to tell the story of the allied war leaders and the problems they faced. No bogus "love interest" material--this is historical drama with emphasis on the "historical." In fact, only a few actors in this film even have speaking parts--Roosevelt, Churchill, Stalin, Molotov, and Henry Hopkins are the only ones I can recall.

The acting is very fine. I thought Lithgow did a great job as Roosevelt--although he looks and speaks differently than FDR did, he nevertheless pulled it off very well in my opinion. Bob Hoskins was quite literally perfect as Churchill, and as far as I am concerned is virtually indistinguishable from him. Michael Caine was taller and better-looking than Stalin ever was, but nevertheless did a great job in the role. Ed Begley Jr. did well playing Henry Hopkins, although since I have never even seen a photo of the real Hopkins I have no idea if he were true-to-life. Ditto Jan Triska as Molotov.

Wonderful historical drama that will draw and retain the interest of viewers interested in World War 2.

Words Cannot Describe How Incredible This Movie Is
This movie is quite literally my all time favorite movie. I saw it originally air on NBC way back when I was in 10th grade and I was awestruck by it. The acting alone blows me away and since I have become an actor and director in my own life, I look to this movie quite frequently for inspiration. The fact that a three hour movie where only five people even speak and every line of dialogue is historical accuracy can so captively hold an audience's attention alone speaks for its greatness. That being said, I can understand that this movie wouldn't be for everyone. In this age of dumbed-down, attention-deprived American culture, I doubt most people would be interested in this movie for more than 5 minutes. But, those who enjoy history or just fine acting, this movie speaks volumes. I actually intend to adapt this as a stage-play in the future. I can only hope that someday it get's released on DVD.

when lions roared
This was a very good movie. It gave us a chance to see behind the scenes of policy making in World War II even if there was a little dramatic license taken. I recommend this movie highly to anyone interested in this time period in history