Ike: Countdown to D-Day

Overview:

Ike: Countdown to D-Day is a 2004 American television film originally aired on the American television channel A&E, directed by Robert Harmon and written by Lionel Chetwynd. Tom Selleck portrays General Dwight D. Eisenhower, US Army, popularly known by his nickname of "Ike". The film deals with the difficult decisions he made leading to up to D-Day, including dealing with the varied personalities of his command: General Omar N. Bradley, US Army, Lieutenant General George S. Patton, Jr., US Army, General Bernard Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, British Army and General Charles De Gaulle, Free French. The film does not have action sequences, focusing instead on the inner workings of Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force that led to the successful D-Day invasion of World War II. Concentrating on decisions actually made by Eisenhower and the pressures brought to bear on him personally, it includes his personal relationship with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his own Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Walter Bedell Smith, US Army. The film is also notable for being the only major production in which General Montgomery's portrayal concentrates on his role as a competent military professional, instead of focusing on his alleged personality disorders, while still showing his egocentricity and foibles. General Patton's complex personality is also outlined in a very brief set of scenes played by Gerald McRaney.