It is a place 8ft wide, 600 miles long, man-made and God-forsaken.
I caught this on Film4 a few months ago. The Trench is a bit of an oddity as it is more of a play than a film but is highly recommended for anyone with an interest in WW1.
"In the early hours of July 1, 1916, a long line of British soldiers left their trenches in northern France and advanced slowly towards the German front. The military high command estimated that the dramatic increase of allied artillery shelling had largely destroyed the German positions, and that the advancing soldiers would find mostly abandoned fortifications. Their assessment was catastrophically wrong.
By the end of the day, in the greatest single loss of life in British army history, 60,000 lay dead or wounded. That day's slaughter inaugurated what became known as the “battle of the Somme”.
The Trench is set during the last 48 hours before the Somme offensive. Directed by the novelist William Boyd ( A Good Man in Africa, Brazzaville Beach, Armadillo, New Confessions), the film focuses on a single platoon of British soldiers as they hold their position on the front. We catch glimpses of their existence in the cramped dugout tunnels they inhabit together—the lonely sentry watch; drill-time and other daily trench duties; the boredom of waiting for an attack that never comes.
Platoon leader Sergeant Winter (Daniel Craig) has a strong belief in rigid discipline. He neither shares the patriotic enthusiasm for the war of his immediate circle nor the somewhat naïve sentiments of the trench soldiers. He is uninterested in the “glory” of battle, but neither is he afraid to make the ultimate sacrifice.
In contrast, Winter's immediate superior, Second Lieutenant Hart (Julian Rhind-Tutt), cuts a rather pathetic figure. He spends most of his time holed away in his quarters, swigging whisky. He seems to be completely unsuited for the front line.
The film begins with the men “holding position”, but soon they are ordered to storm the enemy lines. After their long wait, the men greet this news with a sense of relief. After all, they are led to believe “the big push” will involve minimal danger, little more than a walk straight across no-man's land to take control of the ruined enemy defences."
WW1 was more or less skipped over during History classes in High School. The Trench will make you glad that the world we live in now is unlikely to see a war like that again.
Not too bad a film. Anyone interested should make the short trip over to Northern France, to the old Somme battlefields. It is a truly haunting experience.
