Global IV - Film Curriculum

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Topic	Film	Film Details	Worksheet(s)
World War I - Nationalism, Technology, Imperialism, Social Classes War Horse is a 2011 American war drama film directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay written by Lee Hall and Richard Curtis, based on English author Michael Morpurgo's 1982 novel of the same name and its 2007 play adaptation. The film's ensemble cast includes Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, David Thewlis, and Tom Hiddleston. Set before and during World War I, it tells of the journey of Joey, a bay Thoroughbred horse raised by British teenager Albert (Irvine), as he is bought by the British Army, leading him to encounter numerous individuals and owners throughout Europe, all the while experiencing the tragedies of the war happening around him.		War Horse (2011) Rated "PG-13" 146 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/6/68/Warhorsequestions.pdf War Horse Film Worksheet]
World War I - Technology, Nationalism, Human Rights Flyboys is a 2006 war drama film set during World War I, starring James Franco, Martin Henderson, Jean Reno, Jennifer Decker, David Ellison, Abdul Salis, Philip Winchester, and Tyler Labine. It was directed by Tony Bill, a pilot and aviation enthusiast. The screenplay about men in aerial combat was written by Phil Sears, Blake T. Evans and David S. Ward with the story by Blake T. Evans. Themes of friendship, racial prejudice, technology in WWI, Nationalism, revenge and love are also explored in the film. The film follows the enlistment, training, and combat experiences of a group of young Americans who volunteer to become fighter pilots in the Lafayette Escadrille, the 124th air squadron formed by the French in 1916. The squadron consisted of five French officers and 38 American volunteers who wanted to fly and fight in World War I before the United States' entry into the war in 1917.[5] The film ends with an epilogue that relates the fate of each American pilot to the real-life Lafayette Escadrille pilot upon whom each character was based.		Flyboys (2006) Rated "PG-13" 138 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/7/72/Flyboysquestions.pdf Flyboys Film Worksheet]
Pre-World War II - Resistance Movements, Nationalism, Fascism, Totalitarianism, Human Rights Swing Kids is a 1993 American musical drama film directed by Thomas Carter, and stars Christian Bale, Robert Sean Leonard and Frank Whaley. In pre-World War II Germany, two high school students, Peter Müller and Thomas Berger, attempt to be swing kids by night and Hitler Youth by day, a decision that acutely impacts their friends and families.		Swing Kids (1993) Rated "PG-13" 112 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/9/99/Swingkidsquestions.pdf Swing Kids Film Worksheet]
World War II - Start of War/Japanese Attack Tora! Tora! Tora! (Japanese: トラ・トラ・トラ) is a 1970 Japanese-American biographical war drama film that dramatizes the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The film was directed by Richard Fleischer, Toshio Masuda and Kinji Fukasaku and stars an ensemble cast, including Martin Balsam, Joseph Cotten, Sō Yamamura, E. G. Marshall, James Whitmore, and Jason Robards. The "tora" of the title is the two-syllable Japanese codeword used to indicate that complete surprise had been achieved: "to" is the initial syllable of "totsugeki (突撃)", meaning "assault", while "ra" stands for "raigeki (雷撃)" ("torpedo attack"). Being Japanese, a language with many homophones, it is a coincidence that "tora" also means "tiger (虎)".		Tora, Tora, Tora (1970) Rated "G" 144 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/e/e1/Toratoratoraquestions.pdf Tora, Tora, Tora Film Worksheet]
World War II - Turning Point of WWII in the Pacific In this dramatization of the Battle of Midway during World War II, U.S. Navy Adm. Chester Nimitz (Henry Fonda) leads an outnumbered unit in the Pacific to break Japanese encryption codes. They soon discover that Adm. Yamamoto (Toshirô Mifune) plans an ambush of the U.S. base on the island of Midway. Capt. Matt Garth (Charlton Heston) helps devise the Navy's strategy, while his pilot son, Tom (Edward Albert), falls in love with a Japanese-American woman who is headed for an internment camp.		Midway (1976) Rated "PG" 131 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/9/9e/Midwayworksheet.pdf Midway Film Worksheet]
World War II - European Theater Saving Private Ryan is a 1998 American epic war drama film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. Set during the Invasion of Normandy in World War II, the film is notable for its graphic portrayal of war, and for the intensity of its opening 27 minutes, which includes a depiction of the Omaha Beach assault during the Normandy landings. It follows United States Army Rangers Captain John H. Miller (Tom Hanks) and a squad (Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Adam Goldberg, and Jeremy Davies) as they search for a paratrooper, Private First Class James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon), who is the last-surviving brother of four servicemen.		Saving Private Ryan (1998) Rated "R" 169 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/2/23/Savingprivateryanquestions.pdf Saving Private Ryan Film Worksheet]
World War II - European Theater Patton is a 1970 American epic biographical war film about U.S. General George S. Patton during World War II. It stars George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Michael Bates and Karl Michael Vogler. It was directed by Franklin J. Schaffner from a script by Francis Ford Coppola and Edmund H. North, who based their screenplay on the biography Patton: Ordeal and Triumph by Ladislas Farago and Omar Bradley's memoir A Soldier's Story.Patton won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Scott won Best Actor for his portrayal of General Patton, but declined to accept the award. The opening monologue, delivered by George C. Scott as General Patton with an enormous American flag behind him, remains an iconic and often quoted image in film. The film was successful,and in 2003, Patton was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant". The Academy Film Archive preserved Patton in 2003.		Patton (1970) Rated "PG" 170 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/0/01/Pattonquestions.pdf Patton Film Worksheet]
World War II - European Theater - Resistance Movements Col. Claus von Stauffenberg (Tom Cruise) serves Germany with loyalty and pride but fears that Hitler will destroy his country if allowed to run unchecked. With time running out for Germany and the rest of Europe, von Stauffenberg joins a group of like-minded, high-ranking men who want to overthrow the Nazi regime from within. With everything he holds dear in the balance, von Stauffenberg becomes the trigger man in a plot to assassinate the evil dictator.		Valkyrie (2008) Rated "PG-13" 124 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/7/7f/Valkyriequestions.pdf Valkyrie Film Worksheet]
World War II - European Theater - End of War In 1942, young Traudl Junge (Alexandra Maria Lara) lands her dream job -- secretary to Adolf Hitler (Bruno Ganz) at the peak of his power. Three years later, Hitler's empire is now his underground bunker. The real-life Traudl narrates Hitler's final days as he rages against imagined betrayers and barks orders to phantom armies, while his mistress, Eva Braun (Juliane Köhler), clucks over his emotional distance, and other infamous Nazis prepare for the end.		Downfall (2004) Rated "R" 156 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/1/15/Downfallquestions.pdf Downfall Film Worksheet]
Human Rights Violations/Genocide - Holocaust Schindler's List is a 1993 American epic historical period drama film directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg and scripted by Steven Zaillian. It is based on the novel Schindler's Ark by Australian novelist Thomas Keneally. The film relates a period in the life of Oskar Schindler, a Sudeten German businessman, during which he saved the lives of more than a thousand mostly Polish-Jewish refugees from the Holocaust by employing them in his factories during World War II. It stars Liam Neeson as Schindler, Ralph Fiennes as SS officer Amon Göth, and Ben Kingsley as Schindler's Jewish accountant Itzhak Stern.		Schindler's List (1993) Rated "R" 195 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/1/15/Downfallquestions.pdf Schindler's List Film Worksheet]
Human Rights Violations/Genocide - Holocaust Life Is Beautiful (Italian: La vita è bella [la ˈviːta ˈɛ ˈbɛlla]) is a 1997 Italian comedy-drama film directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, who co-wrote the film with Vincenzo Cerami. Benigni plays Guido Orefice, a Jewish Italian book shop owner, who employs his fertile imagination to shield his son from the horrors of internment in a Nazi concentration camp. The film was partially inspired by the book In the End, I Beat Hitler by Rubino Romeo Salmonì and by Benigni's father, who spent two years in a German labor camp during World War II.		Life is Beautiful (1997) Rated "PG-13" 116 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/0/0b/Lifeisbeautifulquestions.pdf Life is Beautiful Film Worksheet]
Human Rights Violations/Genocide - Holocaust Walking with the Enemy is a 2014 American action drama film directed by Mark Schmidt, and scripted by Kenny Golde and Mark Schmidt. The film stars Jonas Armstrong, Ben Kingsley, Simon Kunz, Hannah Tointon, Simon Dutton, Burn Gorman, and Charles Hubbell. It is inspired by the true story of Pinchas Tibor Rosenbaum. Set in Budapest and nearby villages, it depicts the German occupation of Hungary during the final months of the Second World War. The story is about a young man, Elek Cohen (played by Jonas Armstrong) who dons an SS uniform to pose as an officer to find out the fate of his family and to rescue fellow Jews from the Holocaust.		Walking With the Enemy (2014) Rated "PG-13" 127 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/e/eb/Walkingwiththeenemyquestions.pdf Walking With the Enemy Film Worksheet]
Human Rights Violations/Genocide - Rwandan Genocide Hotel Rwanda is a 2004 British-Italian-South African historical drama film directed by Terry George. It was adapted from a screenplay written by both George and Keir Pearson. It stars Don Cheadle and Sophie Okonedo as hotelier Paul Rusesabagina and his wife Tatiana. Based on the Rwandan genocide, which occurred during the spring of 1994, the film, which has been called an African Schindler's List, documents Rusesabagina's acts to save the lives of his family and more than a thousand other refugees by providing them with shelter in the besieged Hôtel des Mille Collines. Hotel Rwanda explores genocide, political corruption, and the repercussions of violence.		Hotel Rwanda (2004) Rated "PG-13" 121 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/2/20/Rwandaquestions.pdf Hotel Rwanda Film Worksheet]
Communist China - From Republic to Communism, Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution Fugui's (Ge You) gambling leads him to lose everything, including his wife, Jiazhen (Gong Li), and his home. Over the following decades, he struggles to live as a peasant. He tries joining a theater troupe, and then he enlists in the Chinese army in hopes of being a good citizen. Yet, just as things get better -- and Jiazhen and their baby daughter return to him -- the Cultural Revolution begins and tragedy continues to strike his family. Despite numerous hardships, Fugui never gives up hope. The film was banned in mainland China by the Chinese State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television due to its critical portrayal of various policies and campaigns of the Communist government.		To Live (1994) Rated "NR" 133 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/9/96/Tolivequestions.pdf To Live Film Worksheet]
Cold War - Technology, Spies, Cold War Tensions, Ideologies Bridge of Spies is a 2015 historical drama legal thriller film directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg, written by Matt Charman, Ethan and Joel Coen and stars Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, Amy Ryan, and Alan Alda. Set during the Cold War, the film tells the story of lawyer James B. Donovan, who is entrusted with negotiating the release of Francis Gary Powers—a U.S. Air Force pilot whose U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union in 1960—in exchange for Rudolf Abel, a convicted Soviet KGB spy held under the custody of the United States, whom he represented at trial. The name of the film refers to the Glienicke Bridge, which connects Potsdam with Berlin, where the prisoner exchange took place. The film was an international co-production of the United States and Germany.		Bridge of Spies (2015) Rated "PG-13" 144 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/6/66/Bridgeofspiesquestions.pdf Bridge of Spies Film Worksheet]
Human Rights Violations - Apartheid Invictus is a 2009 American-South African biographical sports drama film directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon. The story is based on the John Carlin book Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation about the events in South Africa before and during the 1995 Rugby World Cup. The Springboks were not expected to perform well, only recently returning to high level international competition following the dismantling of apartheid – the country was hosting the World Cup, thus earning an automatic entry. Freeman and Damon play, respectively, South African President Nelson Mandela and François Pienaar, the captain of the South Africa rugby union team, the Springboks.		Invictus (2009) Rated "PG-13" 133 minutes	[http://www.classroomexplorations.org /wiki/images/f/f9/Invictusquestions.pdf Invictus Film Worksheet]
Cold War - Class, Gender, Great Britain Post WWII In her twilight years, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher (Meryl Streep) reflects on her life and career as she finally prepares to dispose of the belongings of her late husband, Denis (Jim Broadbent). Daughter of a Grantham grocer, she successfully broke through a double-paned glass ceiling of gender and class. Thatcher became the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom and remained as such for 11 consecutive years, until declining popularity forced her to resign.		The Iron Lady (2011) Rated "PG-13" 105 minutes	File:Ironladyquestions.pdf The Iron Lady Film Worksheet]
Iranian Revolution - Post WWII, Decolonization, Islamic Revolution, Human Rights Betty Mahmoody (Sally Field) is an American woman married to "Moody" (Alfred Molina), an Iranian-American living in the United States. When Moody informs her that he wants her and their daughter, Mahtob (Sheila Rosenthal), to visit Iran with him, Betty is reluctant because of the country's harsh treatment of women. When the family arrives in Iran, Betty discovers that her husband plans to stay in the country for good, and has no intention of letting her or Mahtob return to the United States.		Not Without My Daughter (1991) Rated "PG-13" 116 minutes	File:Notwithoutmydaughterquestions.pdf Not Without My Daughter Film Worksheet]