Time was when Ken Burns documented something, it pretty much closed the subject. Yet two years after Burns took on World War II in his seven-part "The War," two ambitious if not equally soundtracked series are marking Veterans Day. The Smithsonian Channel's six-part "Apocalypse" premiered Wednesday night, and "WWII in HD" begins Sunday night on the History Channel.
Both tout new, never-seen-before footage that has been digitally refurbished, often colorized and, in the case of "WWII in HD," presented in high-definition. I know film purists are supposed to eschew such tinkerings, but for the most part the various refurbs are almost disturbingly effective. Hitler never looked so human, Allied and Axis soldiers alike appear woefully young and grubby, and you've never seen a battleship blown up until you've seen it in HD.
Though they cover the same topic, the two series are different in tone, format and imagery (it was a very big war, after all). "Apocalypse," narrated by Martin Sheen, is a straight-up chronology of events, an impressive if galloping attempt to tie up multiple threads, beginning in the early 1930s when Berlin was still a shining beacon of culture and tolerance.
Complete article at
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-history-hd13-2009nov13,0,3202213.story
Both tout new, never-seen-before footage that has been digitally refurbished, often colorized and, in the case of "WWII in HD," presented in high-definition. I know film purists are supposed to eschew such tinkerings, but for the most part the various refurbs are almost disturbingly effective. Hitler never looked so human, Allied and Axis soldiers alike appear woefully young and grubby, and you've never seen a battleship blown up until you've seen it in HD.
Though they cover the same topic, the two series are different in tone, format and imagery (it was a very big war, after all). "Apocalypse," narrated by Martin Sheen, is a straight-up chronology of events, an impressive if galloping attempt to tie up multiple threads, beginning in the early 1930s when Berlin was still a shining beacon of culture and tolerance.
Complete article at
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-history-hd13-2009nov13,0,3202213.story
