Tonight I was watching a really awful action movie called "Operation Delta Force IV: Deep Fault". It's super cheesy and nothing very memorable except that about midway through it there is a significant number of scenes with a T-72. The action with it is pretty unrealistic (a guy standing still about 50 feet in front of it when it fires at him/misses and suvives) but it does have a few quick shots of the inside with the autoloader working. Another pretty hilarious instance was putting a molotov cocktail down the barrel and blowing up the inside of the tank, only to have the heroes then commandeer it to use. Other highlights include never empty ammo magazines and rocketless RPG's being fired...you get the idea... Anyways, if anyone wants to see a T-72 in action though I'd recommened you rent this piece of trash just for that.

talk about crappy movie, how bout Rambo III? johnny driving a T series at the same time being the gunner? now that's crap!

Anyway, the "Beast" is better somewhat..."tank...kabooom !!!"

Hollywood certainly does use artistic license doesn't it?

another bad movie incident is james bond goldeneye! He drives around in something similar to a T-72 (at least they jad the driver position right ) he stops on railroad tracks, and fires at an oncoming train! Where did the ammo come from anyway? Who stores live ammo in a tank in a motorpool?

Most movie makers are unconcerned that geeks like us will look at what they call a tank and laugh.

Saving Private Ryan used real German armor and 2 Tigers built on a T-34 chassis. Although you knew it wasn't a real Tiger it was as good as it gets. The tank was camo - armor yellow with green and not Panzer Gray!

Band of Brothers went a step further using ex British equipment to build Stugs, and other armor. From a distance and with the right camera angle they looked like the real deal.

I too would like to see the "real" deal in movies. Perhaps with the advances of digital technology (ie LOTR) maybe we can see "real" Tiger II's vs Shermans in a remake of the Battle of the Bulge.

'Enemy at the Gates' has a couple of 'tanky' bits in it despite being a sniper duel movie.
I can remember a scene where the Jude Law character is stuck in a ruined fountain and the counterattacking German forces have what appears to be a PzKpfw 3 in support (ie, in the middle of the street firing at everything with the commander elbows out of his cupola...).
There's also a later scene at a German HQ, with a face to face line up of about thirty or so PzKpfw 3 outside - but it's very brief, perhaps because it's another shonky piece of CGI.

Given the advances in CGI and given that some film-makers and directors actually appear to give one about 'authenticity', maybe one day we'll finally see a darkly horrific and realistic portrayal of armoured warfare.
Anything's better than seeing all them M48s with German crosses (Patton) or Super Shermans masquerading as 'Tigers' (The Big Red One)...

Just my $0.02...

acav out

It's funny how movies do spice things up quite a bit and make the subject matter look funny. The Beast is probably the closest I've seen in terms of accuracy, there were plenty of errors in that movie like any other but they did at least try to convey the life of a tank crew. Wish someone would make Harold Coyle's 'Team Yankee' into a movie, would make for a good one if done right.

Airwarrior, in response to your question

Who stores ammo in a tank in a motorpool?


WE DID !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mid 70' Germany. It would take over an hour to physically load the rounds into the tank (provided they were sitting there) 63 is a lot and they weigh 40 lbs each. have to be hand loaded, and turret shifted frequently to get them all in. If rounds had been stored off site...add at least another two hours. Not much good in an alert with supposed Russian planes coming in across the border planning on bombing you in the motor pool. We had an hour total to get clear. grab your personall gear (already packed in a duffle) go to arms room draw 45'3 and M-3 and the M85 and 30 cal for the tank as well as firing pin for main gun and then lug up to motor pool throw off tarp crank up do head count and blast out

Hey MOe

I went to school with Harold Coyle. He was two years ahead of me at VMI. He was the Tanker platoon leader (We had 5 M-48a1's there). You notice in all his Future history and Civil War books the hero is a VMI man.

Yes Moe "Team Yankee" would be a great movie.With all the Ex-Warsaw pact stuff sitting around,the producers could use "real' T-55's and 72's also if they could get them the M1's.One of my favourite books which I would really like to see in movie form.

That's it, let's call Spielberg and get them cranking on this movie.

I concur Blaster, humping 63 rounds wasn't an easy task when ramping up for a live fire exercise, I couldn't imagine how insane it would be if the balloon went up.

Sabot wasn't all that bad, it was the HEAT rounds that sucked BIG TIME! lol Having to do the 'turret dance' to get them stowed didn't make it any easier. Glad they phased out HEP when I first got in, was one less round to worry about and I never had to deal with "beehive" rounds, don't forget ol' Willy Pete. Then you have to break down and link all the M-60 and .50 ammo, stow that in the ammo boxes in the turret floor and commander's cupola too.

Then of course you had to get those damned annoying cammo nets that got stuck on every piece of gear sticking up all over the place. lol