The Forgotten Battle

Based on true events in Belgium/Netherlands of Allies recapturing the Port Of Antwerp, and the battle to expel the Germans forces still holding onto the critical North Sea seaport channel (the Scheldt) near the end of WWII in Europe.

The film takes it to the ground and personal level, focused on three young protagonists, a British glider pilot, a Dutch-born German solder, and a Dutch civilian girl.

The film is excellent in every regard, winning multiple Dutch film festival awards including Best Film of 2020.

An intimate portrayal of characters based on true events, this film holds back nothing in telling its story.

I'll leave the synopsis at that so as not to give away too much detail, but worth the view for certain.

Photography, direction, sound editing, casting, acting, battle scenes, and even the thankfully subtle soundtrack fill are all spot on excellent.

*Approximately two-thirds of the dialogue is in English, appropriately interspersed with German and Dutch and clear subtitles, making it an easy watch even for those who avoid subtitle films.

One of the best foreign (Dutch) WWII films you will find, and I highly recommend seeing it.

Having seen a number of Dutch Second World War films, If have to say, I was positively surprised as to how close this film aimed to come to actual situations on the ground. Most of the island of Walcheren had been flooded by the Germans and by Allied bombing of the dikes. One of my uncles survived the battle for Vlissingen in a flooded cellar, floating with a tobacco barrel under each arm. Ironically, he died of lung cancer fifty years later.

As war films go this one is actually pretty good.

The Forgotten Battle may not be the most memorable war movie ever made, but it is a solid Dutch war drama worth checking out. The aim of this film is to tell the true story of the lessor known Battle of the Scheldt. Visually, this movie is quite impressive. The cinematography beautifully displays an interesting landscape for us. The battle sequences are especially impressive and realistic. They are violent, graphic and expertly shot. It is very much like Saving Private Ryan in that aspect. But there is a lot more going on in this movie than just battle action.

Early on, we're introduced to 3 different characters who's stories we follow. Eventually, they all cross paths, but perhaps not as satisfyingly as one might have hoped. The acting is stellar, although the weakness of this movie is that all the characters feel like supporting acts as the central focus of the movie is the mission of liberating Zeeland in the Netherlands. But it truly is an interesting historical event and story to witness in this format. This battle, as well as this movie, should not be overlooked.

De slag om de Schelde (2020) is a Dutch movie co-written and directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr. It was shown in the U. S. with the title "The Forgotten Battle." The actual title translates as "The Battle of the Scheldt." We in the U. S. may never have heard of it. That's because Canadian troops bore the brunt of the battle against the Germans. I'm sure it's not a forgotten battle in Canada or Holland.

Gijs Blom portrays Marinus van Staveren, a Dutch citizen who is fighting on the side of the Germans. He hates Jews--and probably Communists--so he volunteered to fight in the German army. When the movie opens, he's fighting on the Russian front, but he gets transferred to Holland.

Jamie Flatters plays William Sinclair. He's a British glider pilot, but his glider is shot down and he lands in Holland.

Susan Radder plays Teuntje Visser, a Dutch woman who works in the mayor's office. Jan Bijvoet portrays her father--Doctor Visser--who treats Germans and Dutch equally well.

The complexity of the movie is the interaction among these people, as the Canadian forces try to overcome the German forces in the area called The Scheldt. (I checked, and it really was important for the allies to possess the region, and equally important for the Germans to prevent this.)

Of course, in a war movie, there's going to be blood and carnage. However, what keeps this film from being just another WWII movie is the complicated plot, that goes in directions you may not expect.

De slag om de Schelde has a pretty weak IMDb rating of 7.1. I thought it was better than that, and rated it 8.

Wow. I was very surprised by this movie. This is the best movie I have seen about WW2 in a very long time. It really might rank up there with some of the best war movies.

The odd thing is there are so many characters so they really had to crunch for time to develop the characters in the space of two hours. With the various battle sequences along the way.

I just finished watching it and I'm still a bit shocked at how it got to me. Very Good Movie. 8/10.