Why We Fight: Prelude to War
Prelude to War was the first film of Frank Capra's Why We Fight propaganda film series, commissioned by the Pentagon and George C. Marshall. It was made to convince American troops of the necessity of combating the Axis Powers during World War II. This film examines the differences between democratic and fascist states.
From the archive
This motion picture film explores the background of World War II. Reel 1 shows the bombing of Pearl Harbor, London air raids, cavalry and tank battles in Russia, and Panzer and Luftwaffe operations in western Europe. Footage also shows Fascists in Italy and Nazis in Germany as they riot and parade. In Reel 2, Emperor Hirohito inspects Japanese troops. Footage also shows military demonstrations in the Axis countries, their legislatures in session, German slave labor, Alfred Rosenberg's denunciation of the church in Germany and reenactments of political assassinations. In Reel 3, Axis school children receive political indoctrination, Secretary of State Frank Billings Kellogg hands the 1929 Peace Pact to President Hoover, and U.S. citizens state isolationist views. Footage also shows Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and Works Projects Administration (WPA) workers constructing a road. Reel 4 contrasts play of U.S. children with military games of Nazi children and diagrams territorial ambitions of the Axis. The reel contains footage of Adolf Hitler, Hermann Goring, Rudolph Hess, and Joseph Goebbels. In Reel 5, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto speaks of Japanese desires, troops parade in Berlin, Japanese troops advance in Manchuria, Secretary of State Henry Stimson denounces the Manchurian action and Japanese delegates leave a League of Nations meeting. In Reel 6, Japanese troops land at Shanghai, Chiang Kai-shek leads a parade in China, the Italians invade Ethiopia, Haile Selassie asks the League of Nations to intervene in Ethiopia, and President Franklin Roosevelt denounces the Italian action.
Why this is free to watch
Why We Fight: Prelude to War (1942) is hosted by the Internet Archive as a public-domain or openly licensed work, which means its copyright has expired, lapsed, or was released by the rights holder. No signup, no payment and no advertising interrupts playback. Nitrate streams the file directly from the Archive and hosts no video itself.
- Director
- Frank Capra
- Starring
- Walter Huston, Max Schmeling, Adolf Hitler
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