The War Is Over (1945 film)

The War Is Over is a 1945 five-minute Canadian short newsreel produced by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB).[1] The War Is Over documents the end of the Second World War. The French version of the film is titled La guerre est finie.[2]

The War Is Over
Title frame
Narrated byLorne Greene
Production
company
Distributed byNational Film Board of Canada
Release date
  • September 1, 1945 (1945-09-01)
Running time
5 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

Synopsis

On August 14, 1945, the United Nations at war with the Axis powers celebrated VJ Day, the day on which Japan surrendered in the Second World War. While Canadians celebrated in the streets, troops ships begin bringing back Canadian military forces, ready to come back to a peaceful and prosperous Canada.

Great mobilization of the Canadian domestic workforce in mining, agriculture and industrial sectors had led to a significant war effort. Building on its industrial prowess, and harnessing the nation's rich natural resources, Canada was about to embark on a new, brighter future of unlimited horizons.

Production

The War Is Over was part of the NFB's series of short newsreel films that dealt with war news as well as contemporary issues in Canada.[3] The film used the format of a compilation documentary film edited to provide a coherent story, that relied heavily on newsreel material in order to provide the background to the dialogue.[4] Principal photography took place in less than 72 hours.[5]

The deep baritone voice of stage actor Lorne Greene was featured in the narration of The War Is Over. Greene was known for his work on both radio broadcasts as a news announcer at CBC, as well as narrating many of the Canada Carries On series.[6] His sonorous recitation led to his nickname, "The Voice of Canada", and to some observers, the "voice-of-God".[7] When reading grim battle statistics, he was known as "The Voice of Doom".[8]

Reception

The War Is Over was primarily a newsreel intended for theatrical showings and was shown on "all the screens of the country on the eve of the day of the armistice with Japan".[Note 1][5]

References

Notes
  1. The formal signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender took place on board the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, and at that time, U.S. President Harry S. Truman declared September 2 to be the official V-J Day.[9]

Citations
  1. Ohayon, Albert. "Propaganda cinema at the NFB". National Film Board of Canada, July 13, 2009. Retrieved: February 28, 2016.
  2. Morris, Peter. "Film Reference Library: Canada Carries On." Canadian Film Encyclopedia. Retrieved: February 28, 2016.
  3. Lerner 1997, p. 196.
  4. Gittings 2001, p. 80.
  5. "The 1940s." NFB.ca. Retrieved: February 28, 2016.
  6. Bennett 2004, p. 254.
  7. Rist 2001, p. 84.
  8. "Bonanza's Canadian Lorne Greene." Bite Size Canada. Retrieved: February 29, 2016.
  9. "Public Papers." Truman Library, September 1, 1945. Retrieved: February 28, 2016.

Bibliography
  • Bennett, Linda Greene. My Father's Voice: The Biography of Lorne Greene. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse, Inc., 2004. ISBN 978-0-595-33283-0.
  • Gittings, Chris. Canadian National Cinema: Ideology, Difference and Representation. London: Routledge, 2001. ISBN 978-0-4151-4282-3.
  • Lerner, Loren. Canadian Film and Video: A Bibliography and Guide to the Literature. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1997. ISBN 978-0-8020-2988-1.
  • Rist, Peter. Guide to the Cinema(s) of Canada. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001. ISBN 978-0-3132-9931-5.
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