Men in War
[B&W/(1957)USA/UnitedArtists] - (1hr 42min)
Cast ... Characters:
Robert Ryan ... Lt. Benson (2nd Platoon, Co. D)
Aldo Ray ... Sgt. Montana (Joseph R. Willomet)
Vic Morrow ... Cpl. James Zwickley
L.Q. Jones ... Sgt. Davis
Mini-review (2004 screenings):
"Battalion doesn't exist. Regiment doesn't exist.
Command HQ doesn't exist. The U.S.A. doesn't exist...
We're the only ones left to fight this war." - Lt. Benson
Packed house last night at the Walter Reade theater in NYC, and while protesters were warming up around Madison Square Garden for the start of the Republican convention, nearly 200 die-hards (90% male) came for the full 'testosterone' treatment.As expected, Robert Ryan was first-rate as his usual tough-as-nails self playing the battle-fatigued lieutenant just dying for a full night of sleep. The big surprise for me was Aldo Ray grabbing most of the laughs while melding a macho swagger with his devotion to a shell-shocked Colonel, then add to that his fascistic efficiency for killing the (hardly seen) Korean enemy.
As far as war movies go this is a totally unique experience with a lot of drama and a perfect blend of battle scenes and the insanity it produces. MUST-SEE for genre fans though you'll be hard-pressed to find anything to compare it to.
Nice B/W cinematography too.
"Sick?...
This war you're either healthy or you're dead." - Lt. Benson
Directed by Anthony Mann
Writers:
Source: Novel "Day Without End {Combat}" by Van Van Praag
Screenplay by Philip Yordan and Ben Maddow
Director of photography: Ernest Haller
Original Music by Elmer Bernstein
MORE Cast:
Robert Keith ... The Colonel
Philip Pine ... Sgt. Riordan (radioman)
Nehemiah Persoff ... Sfc. Nate Lewis
James Edwards ... Sgt. Killian
Scott Marlowe ... Pvt. Meredith
Adam Kennedy ... Pvt. Maslow
Race Gentry ... Pvt. Haines
Walter Kelley ... Pvt. Ackerman
Anthony Ray ... Pvt. Penelli
Robert Normand ... Pvt. Christensen
Michael Miller ... Pvt. Lynch
Victor Sen Yung ... Korean Sniper
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