They Shall Not Grow Old Film Review

7/3/2023

1. What Problems did the soldiers face fighting and living in the trenches?
2. How would you describe the food they ate?
3. How did viewing WW1 footage in HD-Color change your perception of the Great War? Explain.
Due by February 18th

9 Comments

Arthur Hsu

7/3/2023 12:52:12 pm

1. They faced snipers sniping at them, rising waters giving them frostbite, the smell of dead bodies, the rats, and the green gas that came in, which made them have to wear a mask, and if not have to cover their face with their urine, the noise from bombs, and having to switch roles on sleeping and on the lookout.
2. They ate jam, bread, bacon, inevitable stew, sometimes moldy biscuits, and tea.
3. It changed my perception as it lets us see the amount of horror there was at the war. It showed many of the things you cannot see, like the blood of the dead soldiers. Also, the footage felt like something from a fiction movie, but it happened, and it flabbergasted me. The color added a sort of empathy feeling you had for the veterans who told their side of the story.

LeAnn Chan

7/5/2023 09:37:32 am

1. They faced unsanitary conditions like not being able to bath and having lice. They also faced being bombed at any second, the sounds of bombs, smell of decaying corpses, rats, green gas, rising water in the trenches, and frostbitten feet from the water, mud that can suck you in,
2. They ate bread, jam, bacon, moldy biscuits, beef cutout with stew, vegetables from tins.
3. It showed me how horrifying war really is. The footage in color of dead bodies with blood and the bombs exploding showed me that this was real. I realized how bad the conditions for war was and that these men lived through that nightmare everyday.

Justin Ma

7/8/2023 03:30:20 pm

1. The trenches were filled with water most of the time. And when it rained it got really muddy. The soldiers had to use the restroom together. They had to pee and poo together in the holes they made for the restrooms. If a soldier didn't get their gas mask on quickly, they had to pee on a handkerchief and put it over their mouth. The ones who survived doing that were blinded forever by the gas.
2. The soldiers ate canned food and had to make their own food. For the bacon, the soldier would get sticks and make a fire. Then, they would fry the bacon over the fire and eat it. Same thing with the soup, the soldiers would get sticks and make a fire, and boil their soup over it and drink it. The English soldiers would usually eat biscuits and drink tea.
3. Viewing WW1 footage in HD-Color changed my perception of the Great War because the color makes the film look real, than if it were in black and white. Looking at black and white films makes it look like we're in the past. It is normal for us to see multiple kinds of color, then to see just only black and white. Black and white are technically not colors, they are shades, everything else is.

David Chan

7/9/2023 05:59:08 pm

1. The wet, muddy, and horrible living environment. Soldiers had to sleep and eat in these conditions. There was no privacy using the restroom and you were also under threat of a sniper, gas attack, artillery, and possibly an assault. Emergency bunkers were cramped and dead bodies rotted everywhere, leaving a horrid smell.
2. They ate very basic foods such as canned meat, bread, vegetables, and tea. There were some other ingredients and foods mixed in to make it not as bland.
3. It made it better to understand and see the horror of trench warfare. It is very hard for me personally to see footage in black and white with very low quality images, so this makes it better to take in what they were experiencing..

Sydney Nguyen

7/10/2023 09:45:29 am

1. One of the things soldiers faced while living in the trenches was the inability to have an actual place to do their business. Instead of toilets, they had to dig a large hole and do their business. They also didn't have a proper place to sleep, so some would sleep while standing or find themselves a wall to rest against. Whenever they try to sleep, they hear the shelling of bombs every minute. Soldiers in the trenches also lived with the fear of being gassed. Diseases and germs also filled the trench causing, trench foot and trench fever to infiltrate the soldiers. Rats would also live throughout the trenches and be abnormally big due to a large amount of trashy food. Finally, they lived with the fear and anxiety of being attacked at any moment and possibly losing their friends to attacks.
2. They drank a lot of tea during the war. They would get dirty water from somewhere and boil it over a small fire fueled by random sticks they could find. They thought that whatever germs that were in the water could be removed by boiling it. Sometimes they would also grill bacon over the same fires Soldiers shared loaves of bread, and they would also eat tinned rations. No matter what they had, they found it good, since they were starving.
3. Seeing the soldiers in color helped me synthesize with the soldiers more. Whenever I read about people in the past, it is hard to understand their struggle through reading, or black-and-white movies. The color helped bring their faces alive, and instead of tough soldiers in the trenches, they seemed like actual people I could've gone to school with. It also showed their struggle more accurately, showing the dirt on their faces and the questionable condition they lived in.

Sean Contreras

7/10/2023 02:36:05 pm

1. Along with the physical challenges, soldiers had to live in constant danger. The trenches offered some defense against enemy attacks, but the were constantly exposed to artillery barrages and sniper fire.Continuous shelling caused significant damage and fatalities. Soldiers endured an ongoing fear of surprise attacks because they had no idea when the next one would occur. They suffered from significant levels of exhaustion and emotional stress as a result of the stress and anxiety brought on by this ongoing threat to their mental health. Sleep and rest were luxuries that soldiers in the trenches could rarely afford. They had to be continually on guard, prepared to counter enemy advances or artillery bombardment due to the persistent threat. It was practically impossible to find silence because the air was filled with the sound of gunfire and explosions. Due to lack of adequate sleep, the troops' physical and mental health suffered, resulting in weariness.
2. The food eaten by soldiers in the trenches during World War I can be described as basic, monotonous, and often lacking in quality. The troops' meals were largely planned to give them with the required calories and nutrients to sustain their physical strength rather than focusing on taste.
3. The scenes come to life because to the increased clarity and depth offered by HD-Color technology, making the people and events portrayed seem more real and accessible. The striking colors, which range from the blood-spattered fields to the muddy trenches, elicit a stronger emotional reaction and help viewers comprehend the genuine tragedies and human cost of the fight. Viewers can have a deeper comprehension of the physical and psychological suffering faced by those on the front lines by seeing the battle in color, which develops empathy and gratitude for their sacrifices. Furthermore, the addition of HD-Color can make the people in the footage more relatable by eliminating the feeling of detachment frequently associated with black and white photography. It serves as a reminder to viewers that the troops were actual people who directly experienced the horrors of war.

Deric Tran

7/10/2023 05:23:43 pm

1) The problems that the soldiers had to face fighting and living in the trenches were lack of sleep, infested with rats, and the trenches would be filled with ice and mud. There was also no restrooms around the trenches so therefore men had to dump their waste's in the trenches.

2) They ate simple food like vegetables, bread and jam, and boiled plum puddings.

3) My viewing of WW1 in HD-change changed my perception because I can imagine a war that was a long time ago that had color. I would think a film or a photo back then would be black and white, never thought about what color would the picture or film be. Adding color would make it feel like it was happened during the present times.

Julian Sanchez

7/10/2023 09:20:21 pm

1. Along with the constant threat of gunfire and capture, soldiers also had to worry about the overpowering odor of decaying corpses, lingering gas, open latrines, wet clothing, and dirty bodies. Front-line soldiers had to construct little waste pits in their trenches because the major latrines were beyond the lines.
2. Throughout the conflict, they drank a lot of tea. They would gather some unclean water and boil it over a tiny fire made of any available materials. They believed that boiling the water would kill any germs present in it. On occasion, they'd grill bacon over the same flames. Soldiers would consume tinned rations and split loaves of bread. Since they were starving, they were content with anything they got.
3. My understanding of World War I was significantly altered as a result of this. Even though I knew their living conditions were poor, I had no idea how terrible they truly were until I watched the film. This made me understand how dumb and useless war is for those who are truly engaged in it as opposed to those who are profiting from it. I hope people would understand how detrimental it is to everyone besides the wealthy.

Sunny

7/10/2023 10:09:10 pm

1. One of the biggest problems that the soldiers faced was the horrible living environment. They barely had time to sleep and also the open free bathroom have lack of privacy which stinks, too. On the other hand, the soldiers had to worry about being boomed shoot and fire at anytime.
2.The food that the soldiers had was some canned food, dry bread with jams. They also cook simple foods for themself like bacon and soups on fire that they made with some branches.
3. viewing WW1 footage in HD-Color changed my thoughts on the WW1 because it reflects the horrible condition under the war, and the violence of soldier giving up their life for their army. I always knew that the living conditions for the soldiers were harsh, but by watching it I realized that it could be even worse than what I had in mind before watching it. On the other hand, I realized how war can make life of the citizens as hell, and it’s literally just game between the wealthy fighting for their own goods.

Discussion Board/ Blog:

Our World History class blog brings students together in an online discussion forum. Weekly topics will be posted for students to discuss. Students will receive an additional five points each week for quality responses to our blog topics. Please remember to post respectful and insightful comments and include your full name and period at the conclusion of your response. In addition, you will be required to comment on at least two other students' post to receive the full 5 points.

World History

Education Blogs: