Five Came Back

Mar 31, 2017

3h 15m

★ 7.9

They showed the war to the world.

Overview

The extraordinary story of how Hollywood changed World War II – and how World War II changed Hollywood, through the interwoven experiences of five legendary filmmakers who went to war to serve their country and bring the truth to the American people: John Ford, William Wyler, John Huston, Frank Capra, and George Stevens. Based on Mark Harris’ best-selling book, “Five Came Back: A Story of Hollywood and the Second World War.”

Genres

Documentary

War

Production Companies

Passion Pictures

Amblin Television

Rock Paper Scissors

Five Came Back Trailers

Cast

Narrator (voice)

Meryl Streep

Self

Francis Ford Coppola

Self

Steven Spielberg

Self

Paul Greengrass

Self

Guillermo del Toro

Self

Lawrence Kasdan

Self (archive footage)

John Ford

Self (archive footage)

William Wyler

Self (archive footage)

John Huston

Self (archive footage)

Frank Capra

Self (archive footage)

George Stevens

In early 20th-century Montana, Col. William Ludlow lives on a ranch in the wilderness with his sons, Alfred, Tristan, and Samuel. Eventually, the unconventional but close-knit family are bound by loyalty, tested by war, and torn apart by love, as told over the course of several decades in this epic saga.

6.1

Triple Cross

Dec 9, 1966

Safecracker Eddie Chapman is languishing in prison on the island of Jersey when the Nazis arrive. An adept manipulator of situations, Chapman convinces the Germans to use him to spy on the British. And when the would-be traitor arrives home, he convinces the English to use him as a double agent -- in exchange for a full pardon.

6.8

Decision Before Dawn

Dec 21, 1951

WWII is entering its last phase: Germany is in ruins, but does not yield. The US army lacks crucial knowledge about the German units operating on the opposite side of the Rhine, and decides to send two German prisoners to gather information. The scheme is risky: the Gestapo retains a terribly efficient network to identify and capture spies and deserters. Moreover, it is not clear that "Tiger", who does not mind any dirty work as long as the price is right, and war-weary "Happy", who might be easily betrayed by his feelings, are dependable agents. After Tiger and another American agent are successfully infiltrated, Happy is parachuted in Bavaria. His duty: find out the whereabouts of a powerful German armored unit moving towards the western front.

6.8

Seeking Sun Paths

Feb 22, 1975

Nebi Surreli lives in poverty along with his mother. Doing small jobs to earn a living, he also helps his town's communist unit.

5.5

A Documentary on the Making of 'Gore Vidal's Caligula'

Jan 1, 1981

A Documentary on the Making of 'Gore Vidal's Caligula'

6.5

Hitler's Hollywood

Feb 23, 2017

Film journalist and critic Rüdiger Suchsland examines German cinema from 1933, when the Nazis came into power, until 1945, when the Third Reich collapsed. (A sequel to From Caligari to Hitler, 2015.)

8.0

Insurgées ! Les résistantes du ghetto de Varsovie

Jun 1, 2023

No overview available.

4.2

The Last Drop

Apr 13, 2006

Different factions in WWII-era Holland race to find a stash of Nazi gold.

6.4

The Victors

Nov 22, 1963

Intercutting dramatic vignettes with newsreel footage, the story follows the characters from an infantry squad as they make their way from Sicily to Germany during the end of World War II.

0.0

The Last Scar

Sep 19, 2025

When Yvon Rioux, a teacher and singer, witnesses the brutal death of a former student, gunned down before his eyes, his world collapses. Traumatized, he develops post-traumatic stress disorder that turns his life upside down and reawakens old wounds. Haunted by the silence of his grandfather, a World War II veteran, he decides to travel across Europe to confront his fears, understand his past, and begin rebuilding his life. A Last Scar is the intimate portrait of a man in search of inner peace, between memory, transmission, and resilience.

7.6

The Train

Sep 24, 1964

As the Allied forces approach Paris in August 1944, German Colonel Von Waldheim is desperate to take all of France's greatest paintings to Germany. He manages to secure a train to transport the valuable art works even as the chaos of retreat descends upon them. The French resistance however wants to stop them from stealing their national treasures but have received orders from London that they are not to be destroyed. The station master, Labiche, is tasked with scheduling the train and making it all happen smoothly but he is also part of a dwindling group of resistance fighters tasked with preventing the theft. He and others stage an elaborate ruse to keep the train from ever leaving French territory.

6.5

U-571

Apr 20, 2000

In the midst of World War II, the battle under the sea rages and the Nazis have the upper hand as the Allies are unable to crack their war codes. However, after a wrecked U-boat sends out an SOS signal, the Allies realise this is their chance to seize the 'enigma coding machine'.

6.9

Flags of Our Fathers

Oct 19, 2006

There were five Marines and one Navy Corpsman photographed raising the U.S. flag on Mt. Suribachi by Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945. This is the story of three of the six surviving servicemen - John 'Doc' Bradley, Pvt. Rene Gagnon and Pvt. Ira Hayes - who fought in the battle to take Iwo Jima from the Japanese.

5.4

Blood Vessel

Oct 29, 2020

Near the end of World War II, the survivors of a torpedoed hospital ship cling to life aboard a crowded lifeboat. With no food, water, or shelter, all seems lost – until an eerily silent German minesweeper drifts ominously towards them, giving them one last chance at survival. As our motley crew explores the ship, it becomes all too clear that some diabolical fate has befallen its German crew. The mystery only deepens when they encounter a young Romanian girl, apparently the sole survivor, who leads them to a locked room in the bowels of the vessel.

6.6

The Cardinal

Dec 12, 1963

A young Catholic priest from Boston confronts bigotry, Nazism, and his own personal conflicts as he rises to the office of cardinal.

5.5

The Russian German War

Jan 1, 1995

This is a rare look at one of the worst horror stories in the long infamous history of warfare. This series features captured German and Russian film footage, much of which has never been seen before. For decades the Cold War prevented us from looking closely at what really happened between the Russians and the Germans on the Eastern Front during World War II. More than a struggle between nations, it pitted maniacal tyrant against maniacal tyrant, evil ideology against evil ideology. The lives of tens of millions of human beings were consumed by its raging hatreds and appalling indignities. One in every ten Russians died. One in every four Poles died. Whole divisions of Italians, Romanians, Hungarians disappeared with barely a trace. An average of 17,800 people died on every single day and this, the war on the Russian German Front, lasted for 1,400 days. This series features captured German and Russian film footage, much of which has never been seen before.

6.4

The Peaks of Zelengore

Jan 1, 1976

During the Battle of Sutjeska, partisan troops must endure 24 hours of big and heavy attacks on German units Ljubino grave, to the main Partisan units, with the wounded and the Supreme Headquarters, pulled out the ring that is tightened around them.