I’ve been watching the World War II Supercut. It’s an interesting project that cut 143 films and TV series into a series of twelve one-hour episodes.

The scenes are cut into chronological order, so the end result is that the viewer effectively watches the entire war. Each scene has a note in the bottom left corner giving the date and explaining what event is being depicted.

The variety of sources means that some historical figures are portrayed by multiple actors. Sometimes a figure is portrayed by two or more actors in quick succession. It’s a testament to the skill of the actors and the quality of the editing that this is not jarring or confusing.

The series covers the prelude to war and the aftermath, as well as the war itself. The first episode covers the period 1900 to 1930. This means that it neatly sidesteps the question of when the war began.

The final episode spans July 1945 to 2006, and covers events such as the partition of India, the Korean War, and holocaust denial.

Naturally, it is only able to cover events for which suitable footage was available. The editor also tried to use modern films where possible.

This meant the North African campaigns before Operation Torch, for example, don’t get a lot of coverage, and the Madagascar campaign isn’t covered at all. Some films that I really enjoy, such as the 1958 Dunkirk film, aren’t included at all.

The end result is an excellent instructional tool. It presents the entire history of the war in an accessible format. Because events are shown in chronological order, it shows how they relate to one another.

It’s rare to see events in the western theatre described in the context of events not just in that theatre, but all other theatres. That this edit manages that, and does it well, is possibly its greatest achievement.

I thoroughly recommend this edit to anyone with an interest in the Second World War.