How Filmmakers Shape the Debate on Remembrance Day

The Eleventh hour on the eleventh day in the eleventh month. Another Remembrance Day. It’s observed in many countries. November 11 sparks a range of conflicting opinions. Let’s look at the day’s role in commemorating military sacrifice and its broader implications. Some people view it as an essential day to honour those who served and sacrificed in wars, reinforcing a sense of national pride, unity, and respect. However, others argue that it risks glorifying war, nationalism, or military power, feeling that it doesn’t sufficiently emphasize the tragic loss of life and the importance of peace.

How filmmakers approach Remembrance Day

In response, filmmakers have approached Remembrance Day and the themes of war and sacrifice in varied ways.

Soldiers’ courage and resilience

Some create films that honour soldiers’ courage and resilience, portraying them as heroes within a patriotic frame, like Dunkirk (2017), which emphasises survival and unity.

The cost of war

Other filmmakers adopt a more critical or reflective approach, questioning the costs of war and exploring the psychological toll on soldiers and societies, as in All Quiet on the Western Front (1930, 2022), which emphasizes the brutality and futility of war from a soldier’s perspective.

The moral ambiguity of war

Films like Paths of Glory (1957) and Platoon (1986) delve into the moral ambiguities and horrors of warfare, often challenging narratives that frame war in heroic terms.

Fade Out

Where do you stand on Remembrance Day? My stance is clear. I was broiught up pacifist by my Amish/Mennonite family. My forebears refused to carry weapons. When forced into combat as stretcher bearers, they were often shot in the back, labelled as cowards.

And looking at the swathes of destruction in Ukraine and Gaza, can there be any justification for the cost and deplorable destruction? Where one guided missile could fund an education programme for a thousand children, or feed a large city for a month? Is there any sense in that? And do we really want to0 see the owners of the private industrial military complex become wealthier and wealthier with our tax dollars?

Those are my 2 cents. Leave yours in the comment box below.

By navigating these perspectives, filmmakers contribute to Remembrance Day discourse, either by upholding its traditional values or pushing for a more nuanced understanding of war and remembrance. Make your voice count.

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