Battleground

Rating:
Summary: Realistic dialog
Review: The dialog between the soldiers in this movie is so real that it puts you in the scene with them. The opening moments puts you in the mood with some parade ground humor. The writers certainly had had army experience of their own to know exactly how GIs gab whenever there is a lax moment. The entire movie is in character and never deviates. Without a doubt the conversations were lifted verbatim from actual ones shared by real GIs.
Also this movie accomplishes conveying grave situations and drama without the use of a single swear word. Soldiers have always used swear words, but this movie reflects what most men of the 1940s felt; that swearing was alright to be used under pressure but not for sport. No WWII veteran watching this film today would complain that there was not enough swearing in it. I'm certain they wouldn't even notice its absence except when the platoon sergeant sticks his head in the tent and shouts, "Roll out of those cots and grab your socks."

Rating:
Summary: Still the classic World War II movies about American G.I.s
Review: The first twenty minutes of "Saving Private Ryan" raised the bar on the realism of war film in terms of the portrayal of the violent hell of combat. But in terms of showing us in a movie what it was like to be combat troops in World War II, the standard still remains the 1949 film "Battleground," directed by William Wellman (and I say this having loved "Band of Brothers"). The film won Oscars in 1950 for Robert Pirosh's script and Paul Vogel's black & white cinematography, and was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (James Whitmore), and Best Editing (John D. Dunning).

The setting for "Battleground" is the besieged city of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge and focuses on I Company of the 101st Airborne. Pirosh had based the story on his own experiences during the battle, which including the details like Private Kippton (Douglas Fowley) always losing his false teeth and Private Rodriguez (Ricardo Montalban), who came from L.A. and had never seen snow before he got to Belgium. The situation was pretty simple: the Germans have Bastogne surrounded and the 101st is short on food and ammunition. Sgt. Kinnie (Whitmore) and the men of I Company have there sector to control, so they sit in the freezing cold, waiting for the Germans to attack and praying for the cloud cover to lift so they can get air support and supplies.

I am sure I am not the other kid from my generation who learned to do the cadence call of "Sound off," not knowing that it came from older kids who had seen this movie. This is a movie full of memorable scenes: Private Holley (Van Johnson) trying to make eggs, a checkpoint exchange that shows the importance of knowing baseball terminology like "Texas Leaguer," and a befuddled German officer trying to understand if General McAulliffe's infamous reply of "Nuts" to the demand for the 101st's surrender is a negative or an affirmative response.

For me the key moment in the film comes when I Company finally receives supplies dropped from C-47s. These guys have been freezing and pretty much starving for a week, and when they open up crates of SPAM and K-Rations, they are clearly disappointed. It is not until they find ammunition that they finally get excited. The montage of defeating the Germans is superfluous at that point, because the look in the eyes of these guys captures the moment even better.

In terms of realism I do have one slight knock on this film, in that I Company is atypical because they had winter coats (compare with the Bastogne episode of "Bad of Brothers"), but that is rather secondary to the point of this film, which is to celebrate the citizen soldier. As Holley explains to a major, "PFC" means "praying for civilian." Even when the Chaplain (Leon Ames) answers the big question, as to why these guys had to leave their families and jobs to fight in Europe, in has less to do with fascist ideology and more with the idea that the Germans were bullies throwing their weight around and killing a lot of people.

Still, "Battleground" comes down to the guys in I Company, Jarvess (John Hodiak), "Pop" (George Murphy), Layton (Marshall Thompson), Spudler (Jerome Courtland), Standiferd (Don Taylor), Hansan (Herbert Anderson), Bettis (Richard Jaeckel), Doc (Thomas E. Breen), and Sgt. Walowizc (Bruce Cowling). There is a tendency to make fun of the idea of the melting pot nature of these units, but we are talking diversity in terms of ethnicity more than racial lines and is certainly in keeping with everything I have read about the 101st. The humor in the trenches is a lot grimmer than you hear in most of these movies, an advantage of being made several years after the war ended (compare it with Wellman's 1945 film "Story of G.I. Joe").

This film is more about the psychology of war, putting up with the weather, the lack of supplies, the Germans trying to get them to surrender and showing up dressed in American uniforms, and keeping up morale than it is about actual fighting. That makes it rather unique in terms of movies about World War II in general or the Battle of the Bulge in particular. "Battleground" remains one of the classic films about grunts in the army.

Rating:
Summary: Still the classic World War II movies about American G.I.s
Review: The first twenty minutes of "Saving Private Ryan" raised the bar on the realism of war film in terms of the portrayal of the violent hell of combat. But in terms of showing us in a movie what it was like to be combat troops in World War II, the standard still remains the 1949 film "Battleground," directed by William Wellman (and I say this having loved "Band of Brothers"). The film won Oscars in 1950 for Robert Pirosh's script and Paul Vogel's black & white cinematography, and was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (James Whitmore), and Best Editing (John D. Dunning).

The setting for "Battleground" is the besieged city of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge and focuses on I Company of the 101st Airborne. Pirosh had based the story on his own experiences during the battle, which including the details like Private Kippton (Douglas Fowley) always losing his false teeth and Private Rodriguez (Ricardo Montalban), who came from L.A. and had never seen snow before he got to Belgium. The situation was pretty simple: the Germans have Bastogne surrounded and the 101st is short on food and ammunition. Sgt. Kinnie (Whitmore) and the men of I Company have there sector to control, so they sit in the freezing cold, waiting for the Germans to attack and praying for the cloud cover to lift so they can get air support and supplies.

I am sure I am not the other kid from my generation who learned to do the cadence call of "Sound off," not knowing that it came from older kids who had seen this movie. This is a movie full of memorable scenes: Private Holley (Van Johnson) trying to make eggs, a checkpoint exchange that shows the importance of knowing baseball terminology like "Texas Leaguer," and a befuddled German officer trying to understand if General McAulliffe's infamous reply of "Nuts" to the demand for the 101st's surrender is a negative or an affirmative response.

For me the key moment in the film comes when I Company finally receives supplies dropped from C-47s. These guys have been freezing and pretty much starving for a week, and when they open up crates of SPAM and K-Rations, they are clearly disappointed. It is not until they find ammunition that they finally get excited. The montage of defeating the Germans is superfluous at that point, because the look in the eyes of these guys captures the moment even better.

In terms of realism I do have one slight knock on this film, in that I Company is atypical because they had winter coats (compare with the Bastogne episode of "Bad of Brothers"), but that is rather secondary to the point of this film, which is to celebrate the citizen soldier. As Holley explains to a major, "PFC" means "praying for civilian." Even when the Chaplain (Leon Ames) answers the big question, as to why these guys had to leave their families and jobs to fight in Europe, in has less to do with fascist ideology and more with the idea that the Germans were bullies throwing their weight around and killing a lot of people.

Still, "Battleground" comes down to the guys in I Company, Jarvess (John Hodiak), "Pop" (George Murphy), Layton (Marshall Thompson), Spudler (Jerome Courtland), Standiferd (Don Taylor), Hansan (Herbert Anderson), Bettis (Richard Jaeckel), Doc (Thomas E. Breen), and Sgt. Walowizc (Bruce Cowling). There is a tendency to make fun of the idea of the melting pot nature of these units, but we are talking diversity in terms of ethnicity more than racial lines and is certainly in keeping with everything I have read about the 101st. The humor in the trenches is a lot grimmer than you hear in most of these movies, an advantage of being made several years after the war ended (compare it with Wellman's 1945 film "Story of G.I. Joe").

This film is more about the psychology of war, putting up with the weather, the lack of supplies, the Germans trying to get them to surrender and showing up dressed in American uniforms, and keeping up morale than it is about actual fighting. That makes it rather unique in terms of movies about World War II in general or the Battle of the Bulge in particular. "Battleground" remains one of the classic films about grunts in the army.

Rating:
Summary: Where's the DVD?
Review: This and "Twelve O'Clock High" are the two best American movies made about the Second World War, or any war. The plain unadorned realism of both was very close to the bone of American attitude, which saw little or no reason at the time for Americans to be fighting in Europe. The US had been attacked by Japan and a great many people (among them Douglas MacArthur) felt America's fight was in the Pacific. The cast in "Battleground" are all second-string contract players and they are amazingly good, one of the best ensemble performances you're ever going to see.

Rating:
Summary: One of the great, transitional war films.
Review: This film focuses on an airborne infantry squad in the fabled 101st Airborne which held the Bastogne pocket through some of the darkest, early days of the Battle of the Bulge.

The film was produced at a time when "realism" (to the extent that term can be applied) was making its way into World War Two films. Yes, there are plenty of stereotypes and schmaltzy dialogue. But there is also the grim fact of buddies being killed and displays of cowardice as well as heroism.

I hope that the film will be re-issued, in wide screen format.

Rating:
Summary: Battleground - the movie/
Review: This is a very well made "war" movie. The ensemble cast includes Van Johnson, George Murphy, James Whitmore, Marshall Thompson and Ricardo Montalban. The story is about a platoon of the 101st Airborne Div. sent from a rest camp in France following the Holland campaign (A Bridge too Far)to Bastogne to meet the oncoming German juggernaut of the Battle of the Bulge. The soldiers are mostly veterans who parachuted into battle on D-Day and later in Holland. Marshall Thompson is a replacement joining the unit just as it begin to dig in in the woods outside Bastogne. The film portrays combat in winter conditions, men sleeping in foxholes, etc. The characters are well drawn - mostly normal guys who volunteered to jump out of airplanes. Van Johnson is a bit of a shirker and complainer but essentially brave and steady - fleeing from a terrifying firefight he is followed by the rookie Marshall Thompson's character who believes he is moving to flank the enemy when he is in fact running away - this shames him into actually attacking and helping to rout the assaulting Germans. The soldiers' morale wavers as they fight on and on in freezing conditions for days without relief - men are wounded and killed, there is little food, ammunition is running out and the enemy is closing in. Seeing the enemy approaching and with nowhere to go the terrified the men pull out their bayonets, grenades and their last few clips of ammo and wait for the Germans' final assault. Clearing skies save them allowing fighter-bombers and heavy and bombers stop the Germans and drive them back. The fighting men cold, frostbitten, filthy and mentally and physically exhausted are eventually sitting on the periphery of the battle as fresh troops and vehicles move in - orders are given for the unit to move out - possibly back into the fight but then they are ordered about face and march away from the fighting, assuming soldierly postures and trying not to embarass themselves in front of the fresh troops - singing a marching song as old as the army itself. The film is one of the best films made about fighting in the European theater of WW II - there are few genuine heroes, just highly trained paratroopers in a very bad position - some people behave honorably, a few behave in a cowardly manner but even these redeem themselves eventually. The film was an Academy Award nominee for Best Picture and the quality shows. One of the best aspects of the film is that the soldiers maintain a constant sarcastic banter about life in the army and how great it is to be a paratrooper and jump out of airplanes - it is a way for them to air their gripes about being turned into foot soldiers for this campaign and to poke fun at
army propaganda "... it must be true I read it in Stars and Stripes..." and "...you never had it so good before you joined the army..." and similar comments. This banter tends to add to the film's realism as do the several instances of temporary cowardice and less than admirable conduct of soldiers under extreme stress.

Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: This is an excellent war movie, with a good picture of what the Battle of the Bulge would have been like for regular soldiers. The characters are interesting and likeable, and the battle scenes are gripping. The end is heart- rending but uplifting, and there are many moving scenes along the way, including a good short speech by a chaplain. Even some of the "wise- cracking" phrases that the American soldiers use in the movie are documented as being frequently heard during the war.

Rating:
Summary: A great movie, "that's for sure. That's for DANG sure."
Review: This is one of the best post-WWII films about the war. It's a cast that any movie buff will be familiar, and a great portrayal of the harsh realites experienced. When I was in the 101st, I made this required watching for my soldiers, sort of "historical awareness" of our forefathers.

Great flick...check it out.

Rating:
Summary: Sexy Denise Darcel
Review: This is one of the finest movies ever made. I have read all the reviews listed in Amazon and cannot understand how the "critics" missed the stellar performance of Denise Darcel. Who can forget the scenes of her cutting that loaf of bread with a knife dangerously close to her upper anatomy, and Van Johnson's reactions. Or her decending the stairs of her home, with her sexy walk and again, provoking another halarious reaction from Van Johnson. I'd say she stole all the scenes she appeared in. A beautiful lady who should have gone further in her Hollywood career...... [e-mail]

Rating:
Summary: The Best American War Movie of the 20th Century
Review: This is one of the two WWII movies that Steven Spielberg studied (the other was "A Walk in the Sun")before making "Saving Private Ryan". Dore Schary's script, William Welman's direction, and the performances of Van Johnson, Marshall Thompson, and an outstanding supporting cast (check out how YOUNG James Arness is!) succeed in capturing on film the quintessential portrait of Americans in combat. There are no heroics here, just heroes --- the cynical, homesick, scared, cold, dirty, profane, tired GIs --- who do their duty and make their sacrifices not for glory, but for each other.