WWII in HD: Edge of the Abyss (2009)
**** (out of 4)
Ninth and next to last entry in the wonderful series from The History Channel spends most of its time focused on Okinawa as well as the Battle of the Bulge. We learn that the Okinawa battle was considered by many to be the biggest in the war as it featured over 180,000 troops and more than 1,000 ships. We also learn how the Japanese soldiers went full force in their suicide beliefs by crashing their planes into the American ships. Some of the color footage of this happening is quite remarkable and that's especially true for one of the first shots where the plane flies above the camera by what appears to be a couple dozen yards. The scenes of them crashing into the ocean with certainly have your jaw on the floor as will the scenes with the ships on fire from the massive attacks. The stories at Ardens are equally remarkable as one of the soldiers talks about how he fell asleep and when he woke up he was frozen solid to the ground. There are even more interesting stories about the civilians of Okinawa who were tortured and mutilated by the Japanese and how they gladly turned themselves over to American troops. The final segments deal with the passing of F.D.R. as the battles appear to be nearing their end.
