This 1956 film about World War I was produced by NBC as part of the “Project Twenty” series. The music was written by Robert Russell Bennett and narrated by Alexander Scourby. German soldiers parade prior to WWI. Kaiser Wilhelm II is greeted by England’s King George and Queen Mary (1:35-3:22). Russian Czar Nicolas II views his troops. Austria-Hungary Emperor Joseph. Belgium King Albert rides with the Kaiser (3:23-4:45). 1914 newspapers declare the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand in Sarajevo. World leaders discuss war (4:46-5:30). Germany christens a ship. Battleship guns are tested (4:46-6:45). Austria declares war on Serbia. A woman buys a Kaiser pin. Pocket flowers are handed to troops. Troops wave from train windows (6:46-8:22). Repeated cannon fire hits buildings in Belgium. Belgium troops hide in trenches. German troops take prisoners (8:23-9:40). A German soldier kicks a dog. Destroyed buildings are interspersed with German troops’ faces and marching boot shadows (9:41-10:20). The Union Jack flies amid smoke. Shown are the HMS Lance (G87) and HNLMS Van Galen (G84). Cigarette-smoking soldiers on deck (10:21-11:21). In Paris, taxi cabs are used to transport soldiers. A close-up shows elderly hands clasped in prayer. Belgium women and children evacuate (11:22-12:55). In the U.S., a woman in 1914 clothing mails a letter. Ice is delivered out of a B. David Ice & Coal horse-drawn wagon. A trolley advertises a Belgian Relief Rally. The Daily Eagle declares “America Remains Neutral” (12:56-13:35). New York streets bustle. Passengers wave from the Lusitania as it leaves the harbor. Passengers relax. Only the periscope of a German U-boat moves through the water. A torpedo moves through the water. Onboard footage shows panic as water pours in. Wreckage floats on the water. The newspaper says “Sub Sinks Lusitania.” An effigy is marched through the streets. A church signs says “Lusitania Memorial Service” (13:36-16:54). Pacifist protesters march with signs. The Capital and White House are shown. President Wilson addresses a large crowd about peace. Former President Theodore Roosevelt speaks vehemently against neutrality. Marchers carry signs calling for war. President Wilson sits at a paper-laden desk. Secretary of State Lansing and Secretary of War Baker telephone. Secretary of the Navy Daniels pinpoints locations on a large globe. “U.S. Declares War” headlines (16:55-20:49). Wilson chooses a paper from a bowl as part of the draft. Men in 1914 clothing with straw hats march, then in military uniforms. Soldiers practice with wooden guns. Liberty Bonds posters are shown. Actors Marie Dressler, Mary Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, and Vaudeville performers encourage crowds to buy Liberty Bonds. U.S. troops board ships (20:50-24:15). The troops entertain themselves with dice, sack races, greased pole fights, boxing, and dancing with each other (24:44-26:15). The American Expeditionary Force arrives in France. Troops march in front of General “Blackjack” Pershing. Troops visit the Arc de Triomphe, eat at cafes, and dance with French women to piano music (26:16-28:08). Flanders Field is shown in different seasons. Barbed wire fence is mangled. Dead soldiers. Graves are marked by guns with helmets on top. Wounded are carried in blanket stretchers. Doctors and nurses treat wounded (28:09-29:29). Soldiers from various countries inhabit the muddy trenches. A soldier cleans his bayonet (29:30-31:20). Germany, Austria, Turkey, and Bulgaria military leaders meet under Marshall Hindenburg. German soldiers’ boots’ slog through mud and wait in the trenches. March 21, 1918 German Spring Offensive / Operation Michael are shown. The cannons fire and trenches explode. Machine guns (31:21-38:55). Pretty girls smile as American troops arrive in France. German planes drop bombs and chemicals. Dogfights are shown from the gunner’s point-of-view. Planes spiral down in smoke (38:56-41:11). July 1918; the counter-attack begins. Soldiers wait in trenches. One uses a field telephone. Troops advance. Rounds of machine gun shells are used. Soldiers fall as they go over the top. Soldiers walk through muddy trenches littered with bodies and equipment. Tanks span the trenches. Soldiers are shown advancing, fighting, shooting, and falling (41:12-46:46). Dead soldiers on the field and in trenches and tangled in barbed wire. Bodies are carried on stretchers to a mass grave. Soldiers toss a handful of dirt in (46:47-47:22). Defeated German troops march into captivity. The newspaper says “Armistice!” and “War Ends.” Soldiers dance and cheer in front of an American flag. Crowds cheer in Paris and London. The transport ship passes the Statue of Liberty. The decks are full of waving soldiers. The wounded are taken off. A “Welcome Home” sign crosses the streets. A military parade passes through the Arc de Triomphe. Troops pass in front of a smiling General Pershing (47:23-52:15).