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Outstanding war film. Based on a true story from WW II, of Guy Gabaldon, who single-handedly brought in more than 1,500 Japanese prisoners and civilians in the Battle of Saipan in 1944. Jeffrey Hunter and the entire cast are excellent. The movie is excellent also because of the portrayal of emotional conflict of Gabaldon. He was raised by Japanese Americans as an orphan, then had to fight and kill Japanese who killed his Army buddies. The film is a rare one in also showing the concern and care by the American combatants for the innocent Japanese civilians. And, it portrays well the conflicted psyche of the grunt Japanese soldiers and civilians who had been told by their leaders that the Americans were cruel barbarians, and that the Japanese must fight to the death or kill themselves and their children rather than surrender.
Wikipedia has an interesting piece on Guy Gabaldon. It's always good to read some biographical info about a real person from the movies. It sounds as though he may have been a little more street tough than portrayed by Jeffrey Hunter. And, that he was a little more threatening of the Japanese soldiers holed up in caves. But, Hunter gives a great portrayal of the hero. Gabaldon must have liked the job Hunter did since he named one of his sons, Jeffrey Hunter Gabaldon.
The only distraction in this great film is the night out the three main characters have with women before they go into combat. The heavy drinking and implied lovemaking probably represented what some GIs, Marines and Sailors did before going to war, but it surely didn't represent most. Few in the Army had such a chance -- once you were in battle you were there for the duration. Some units may have been moved back into reserves in Europe or the Pacific, but there sure weren't bars and girls for all-night parties there. So, this piece adds nothing to the film whatsoever. But, the main film and story, with excellent acting and action overrides any detraction to the film by this usual Hollywood gratuitousness.
score 10/10
SimonJack 17 June 2010
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw2265847/ |
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4-3-2021 00:07:07