The Forgotten Battle Parent Guide

Although the Allied invasion of Normandy was successful, the Allies can’t take the fight to Germany until they secure a supply line into the Netherlands. They have seized the major Belgian port at Antwerp, but unless they control the Scheldt before it flows into the port, all ships will be at serious risk from the massive German batteries at the island of Walcheren. And although the Canadian army is pushing towards Walcheren, the Germans are determined to make them pay a high price for it.

For Teuntje Visser (Susan Radder), who lives in the area, that means a major crackdown from the occupying Nazi troops, a crackdown which threatens to take her from her brother Dirk (Ronald Kalter), who has ties to the Dutch Resistance. For British glider pilot William Sinclair (Jamie Flatters, it means being involved in a dangerous drop which will leave him behind enemy lines, caring for a wounded officer, Tony (Tom Felton), as they try to make their way to the battle. And for Marinus van Staveren (Gijs Blom), a Dutch national who signed up to fight with the Nazis, it means the ultimate test of his loyalty to his ideology, his country, and his morality. As the Canadian army pushes towards Walcheren, all three will have to decide what this war means – and what cost it will demand.

War movies have a tendency to be very combat-focused – see Saving Private Ryan, which is a remarkable overview of the D-Day invasions but is also relentlessly bloody for just about the entirety of its runtime. And while The Forgotten Battle has, believe it or not, some scenes of combat and violence, that’s by no means the lion’s share of the film. This is primarily a movie about how different people make difficult choices in impossibly demanding circumstances. I also think it does an important job bringing to light a battle which, as the title indicates, is largely overlooked in media. The Causeway was ultimately taken by the Calgary Highlanders, a regiment which still commemorate this battle every single year. I think they would be pleased to see their contribution brought to a broader audience.

The Forgotten Battle also has remarkably little profanity, especially for a war film. Of course, on the other hand, you will see people suffering terrible injuries in battle, including a man whose leg is dramatically blown off. There is also a scene depicting torture, which does not lend itself well to family viewing. But for older teens and adults, this production could serve as an interesting history lesson. With so many films made about the same parts of World War II, it’s refreshing to see a different theater of war on the screen.