v_imdb-99
While this was a good attempt to articulate the disaster from a cinematic point of view, it lacked in many areas. First off, the glaring historical errors were bothersome, including the fact the city was lit like a Christmas tree despite strict blackout restrictions. The soap opera like plot lines involving Trixie and the German spy seemed a bit much, aside from the fact she was portrayed so naively when it came to love despite her extensive political knowledge. I also felt the city came off as a backwards two-bit town rather than a metropolis caught in the midst of war. I suppose this is because it was shot in Lunenburg, which is much smaller than Halifax was at the time of the explosion. I also thought the Titanic ploy of linking the past with the old woman who remembers the past seemed a bit trite.However, the soldiers' plight was well-articulated. Truth is, the first half of the mini-series is quite good, along with the special effects, but the second half degenerates into some melodramatic soap.The story, however, would have been better had the producers stuck to reality. Truth is stranger than fiction, and what is strange, is the fact the script made up things when the city was abuzz with far more fascinating things.Before the CBC markets these things as historical series, they should check to make sure they're accurate.
AndyDanger
Shattered City, despite being historically accurate of the period's social objectives and changes, as it conveys evidence of women's rights movements, labor disputes, conscription, and civilian attitude towards War and war measures, fails to express the true significance of the explosion to Haligonians and the Royal Canadian Navy. The production aired nationally to provide Canadians with insight into the history of their nation with the story of the greatest tragedy to occur on Canadian soil. However, the wide-ranging significance of this event in Canadian history is not portrayed at all as no information is given about the fate of Halifax or the navy residing in its harbor. However, these disguised details are quite often the beginning of a long chain of repercussions and influence in the rules of causality that shape the history of events to come. For instance, in sociologist Samuel Henry Prince's thesis "Catastrophe and Social Change" a manuscript on the systematic study of disaster and relief, he says "The Halifax hit by the explosion was unattractive, poorly serviced and outmoded." He wrote "Tourists had returned year after year and found her unaltered. 'Dear, dirty old Halifax' they had called her," even though, Halifax, as a strategically important harbor city, was experiencing a time of great prosperity when the explosion extinguished Nova Scotia's capital. The devastation brought forth the opportunity to change this concept of the city, a significant outcome the movie does not touch on. On 01/22/1917 the Canadian federal government implicated the Halifax Relief Commission to distribute the twenty-one million dollars in donations to rebuild Halifax and provide pensions to those disabled by the detonation . These funds situated a number of architects into the mess in turn changing the complete outlook on Halifax. "architect George Ross insisted the new residences be fireproof, have indoor toilets, and not be monotonous in appearance. He also wanted to avoid quick replacement housing that would turn into slums." "Never rebuilt there were three piers, a railway station, a sugar refinery and other nineteenth century industrial facilities. The devastation sped up plans to develop piers in the city's south end, and gave early life to a planned south-end rail station." CBC's presentation of Shattered City unfortunately only depicts the immediate pains of the explosion including the intricacies in the loss of life and does not truthfully detail the most important part of a disaster; recovery. It is in recovery, that some of the greatest personal tragedies and extreme transformations that make this event so momentous play themselves out. Another short-coming, is our personal relationship with the Collins family in that it gives us the only intimate insight to the lives touched by the disaster. There were many families that experienced greater devastation than the Collins family by far. For example, fourteen year old Barbara Orr was the only survivor in her nuclear family of her family of five other brothers and sisters. There are a number of stories similar to this one, all of which depict a more horrific experience than the ones delivered in Shattered City. Although CBC's presentation accurately discusses casualties and costs, it consistently refers to the fictional Collins family for reference to the grief of Halifax civilians. With this been said, Mari Leckie's interpretation does not make evident the carnage that many experienced during and after the explosion. For instance, Shattered City does not convey the wrath of the tidal wave which swept many out into the harbor. In fact, it depicts Trixie Collins; a young woman standing on the harbor, unscathed after the eruption had ended. Also, the film does not communicate the extent of injuries sustained by Haligonians, including decapitation, dismemberment, ghastly disfigurement, impalement's, and bodily severance. Nor does it discuss the removal of important institutions such as the Royal Naval College of Canada as it was moved to Kingston after its destruction, and the removal of the Fleet Wireless School for the same reason. David Bercuson explains to us the key markers of a good interpretation of history, one of which is the cumulative weight of rational analysis. This factor challenges the narrative's ability to explicate information based on all of its circumstances, not just at face value. Evidently, Shattered City does not do this. The Royal Canadian Navy, residing in the port is another community hardly touched on in the film. In fact, during the film's reenactment of the scene, there are no ships within the harbor besides the Belgian Imo and the French Mont Blanc. When in actuality the Belgian relief ship Imo moved into the right hand channel to pass two ships traveling at the proper speed. This placed the Imo in direct path of the Mont Blanc. The damage sustained by the many ships in the harbor prevented timely departures and cost a number of lives.The CBC presentation gives the impression that the state of Massachusetts provided great assistance to the city of Halifax, which is true. However it makes no connotation to the many other governments involved in the donations of funds that would very much help to rebuild the Richmond community and surrounding areas. Money poured in from as far away as China and New Zealand. The Canadian government gave $18 million, the British government almost $5 million, but most Haligonians remember the generosity of the state of Massachusetts, which donated $750,000 in money and goods and gave unstintingly in volunteer assistance through the Massachusetts-Halifax Relief Committee. All in all, the depiction of the Halifax explosion is ultimately an example of bad history.Nevertheless, it is not the fault of bad scholarship rather the product of commercialization. If this presentation were to be shown on The History channel, perhaps the director would have discussed its consequences for the city, navy, and society in greater depth. Shattered City is a movie geared towards entertaining a Canadian audience, because of this it lacks evidence of this moment's significance in any events to come thereafter that owe their occurrence in full, or in part to the Halifax explosion of 1917.
andrea-45
I have to thank CBC, actually, for making this movie. Before a visit to Halifax on the QE2, I had never heard of the Explosion (typical American - although, in fact, I'm Canadian-born). But even seeing the great memorial didn't really register the extent of the disaster until I saw the movie. Yes, characters were combined or fictionalized in some cases, but that is absolutely secondary to the portrayal of that horrific episode in Canadian history. The effects of the blast were particularly well done. I hope it plays again, as indeed it should every couple of years or so, to remind us all of both the losses and the bravery incurred that day.
