clive's - Rented List

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Drawing on much rare and never before seen footage from diverse film archives, Royal Navy historian Roland R Smith creates a powerful film portrait of the Royal Navy in the early years of the Second World War, reviewing the fleet and recounting some of the earliest action.

Royal navy at War in Colour
A Sailor's View Rare archive footage shot by serving officers from the HMS Nelson, HMS Kent, HMS Ivanhoe and HMS Laforey.
British Convoys
Royal Navy Historian Roland R. Smith vividly capture two very different types of British convoys during the Second World War.
British Pacific and East Indies Fleets
Disparagingly referred to as the 'forgotten fleets', this is the ultimate film record of these two fleets, their fighting ships and men.
Operation Torch and Neptune
Two of the largest, most spectacular and successful operations conducted by the Royal Navy during the Second World War.
King George V Battleships 1941-1942
One of the last battleships to be commissioned by the Royal Navy, it played a major role in the Second World War.
Britannia Goes to War
A look at how the Royal Navy responded to war through training of new recruits, new tactics to protect convoys in the Channel and mine sweeping of the waters.
War in the Frozen North
The story of the carrier Glorious from 1935 to her sinking during the ill-fated Norwegian Campaign of 1940.

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History has overlooked the unimaginable hardships Russian aircraft designers faced under the paranoid rule of Josef Stalin during World War II. In spite of being arrested and made to work in special prison camps, Soviet aircraft designers independently discovered jet and rocket technology.

The innovative aircraft profiled in this programme include A.S. Moskalyov's plan for a supersonic delta-wing aircraft in the 1930s and Andrei Tupolev's long distance bomber that flew non-stop across the North Pole to California in 1937, and there are weirder Soviet planes including a flying tank prototype and a submarine-bomber that could land on water and then submerge to attack its prey. We also show rare footage of the MiG 1-270 rocket fighter and the MiG-8, a prototype that secretly tested swept-wings despite Stalin's order to concentrate on conventional aviation technology. Using specially commissioned computer graphics, never seen archive footage and interviews with aviation experts, we bring back to life the Secret Russian Planes of the Second World War.

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From the ashes of World War I, Adolf Hitler attempted to build a sinister new world order, led by a so-called race of Aryan supermen, spreading a reign of terror unlike any the world had ever known.

Nazism was no mere political movement as is commonly believed; rather, it was an occult religion in which Adolf Hitler was the messiah, Heinrich Himmler the high priest and the SS Death Head Formation, the clergy. This film documents the Third Reich's use of the occult in an effort to help them win World War II. The Reich used the mystical arts to make important battle decisions, train SS officers, and indoctrinate the German public and to try and influence the Allies. Through montage, Nazi symbols are compared with carvings of the magical Nordic Runic alphabet, and archival footage of Nazis dressed as medieval knights, demonstrates the Nazis' perversion of mystical traditions for their own dark purposes. Indeed documents prove that their beliefs were based on a corruption of ancient pagan lore, a twisting of mythic battles between forces of light and darkness, and a terrifying journey into a world ruled by mystics, madmen and murderers. It is believed that once the religion was in place, the Nazis attempted to breed a "purified" race of Aryan god-men and annihilated the "impure" to fulfil their horrifying ideology.

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This video features rare and unseen UN archive footage of Churchill as he made history. Wherever he went UN followed, allowing a fascinating insight into his amazing life and leadership. The Second World War was the most turbulent and eventful period in the history of the 20th century.

It affected the lives of millions of people all over the world. When war broke out in 1939, Churchill joined the War Cabinet as First Lord of the Admiralty. In May 1940, Neville Chamberlain resigned as Prime Minister and Churchill took his place. His refusal to surrender to Nazi Germany inspired the country. He worked tirelessly throughout the war. building strong relations with US President Roosevelt whilst maintaining a sometimes difficult alliance with the Soviet Union. Churchill's 'bulldog' spirit seemed to echo the mood of the British people, despite the formidable opponents they were up against. Featuring archive footage, much of it previously unseen, 'Churchill's War' brings together the story of our greatest leader and accounts of our inspirational victories.

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In 1940 soldiers newly drafted into the military lacked enthusiasm for the war. Morale was at an all-time low and the American war effort was at risk of falling to indifference. Fortunately, in 1942, Major Frank Capra answered the call.

He created a series of documentary style, informative films with the aim of explaining to the troops why they were putting their lives on the line and for what principles they were fighting. These popular propaganda films were viewed in many arenas in order to bolster the war effort and raise public opinion. They were screened in war plants, factories, hometowns and foreign movie theaters. Most importantly, they helped shape the public's awareness of the dangerous fascist movement that was threatening freedom and liberty the world over, giving everyone a boost of patriotism and the commitment to fight.

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Originally made in 1945 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why We Fight', 'Know Your Enemy - Japan' was designed to fully inform the American soldier of the characteristics of his foe, the Japanese soldier.

To do this, Capra gave a history of the Japanese people and their customs and the importance of Emperor Hirohito to their everyday lives.

Originally made in 1943 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why We Fight', 'Divide and Conquer' looks at the Germany war machine and its Blitzkrieg tactics that managed to subjugate almost the whole of Europe.

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Originally made in 1945 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why We Fight, War Comes To America' is a historical and sociological look at the events unfurling in Europe and the reaction in America.

The German invasion of Poland, which drew Britain and France into the conflict, along with the later Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour marked a turning point in American attitude.

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Originally made in 1942 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why We Fight', 'Prelude To War' examines the changing world situation between 1931 and 1939, plotting the rise of dictatorships in Italy, Germany and Japan whilst America pursued an isolationist and anti-militaristic stance.

With the subsequent Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour, the American soldier needed to be taught 'why we fight'.

Originally made in 1945 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why We Fight', 'Nazi Strike' examines the rise of the Nazis in Germany in the 1930s and their subsequent expansionist plans that led to the outbreak of the Second World War.

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"Swastika" is the most controversial documentary about Hitler and the Nazi's ever made. Using propaganda footage and colour home movies made by Hitler's fiancee Eva Braun, 'Swastika' portrays the human side of Adolf Hitler.

That a man can orchestrate the Holocaust and yet still enjoy passing the time on a sun lounger makes Hitler more real, and more chilling. Told exclusively through archive footage 'Swastika' leaves you to draw your own conclusions.

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To coincide with the 100th anniversary of the Russian Revoltion in October 1917, this programme, made for Russian TV, examines the life of Vladimir Lenin - founding father of the Russian Revolution and Communism, philosopher and revolutionary and the best known figure in Russian history.

Yet most of what we know about Lenin is shrouded in mystery and intrigue. This full length documentary begins to uncover the personal history of Lenin and the critical role he played in the Russian revolution.

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Originally made in 1945 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why We Fight', 'Battle Of China' focuses on one of the forgotten theatres of the second World War, China. The Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 gave the world a first hand taste of modern warfare.

The Japanese atrocities in every territory they overran firmed the resolve of the 'free world' to fight back.

Originally made in 1945 as part of the acclaimed Frank Capra series 'Why we Fight', The Battle Of Russia examines the various invasions suffered the Russians over the centuries, culminating in the 1941 invasion by 2 million Germans. Here the German blitzkrieg tactics finally met their match.

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Dating from 1927 Esfir Shub's 'The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty' documentary uses archive footage from the Romanov tercentenary in 1913 to the Bolshevik takeover four years on. Here truth really is fashioned into myth.

The musical score consists of a medley of Russian favourites, pounded out on an electric piano, making for a rather limited, though not inappropriate, soundtrack.