Sergeant York (1941)

“Remember, guys, you’re usin’ real live ammunition! A bullet hasn’t got any brains! It’ll hit whatever you’re aimin’ at, so don’t start murdering each other!” – Sgt. Early

Number of Times Seen – 1 (7 Nov 2013)

Brief Synopsis – The true story of poor man in rural Tennessee who became one of the greatest hero’s of WWI.

My Take on it – I didn’t know much about this movie before seeing it besides the fact that Alvin York received numerous commendations of valor in WWI and that Gary Cooper won an Oscar for playing him.

This biopic movie is split into two parts of his life; the first hour deals with how he went from being a rambunctious young kid to finding God and trying to make something of himself as a farmer and as a potential husband for a local girl that he wants to marry.  The second hour deals with his experiences in the army during WWI that changed his life forever.  Both of these parts seem to somewhat drag on and I wish they had edited it better so that there wouldn’t be so many lulls in the movement of the story.

It is noteworthy that when this movie was made, many of the true-life characters (including York himself) were still alive and gave their approval and vouched for the accuracy of the story.  York himself even insisted that the movie wouldn’t be made if Cooper wouldn’t play him.  Cooper who was 40 at the time originally refused to play the 29 year old York, but eventually agreed when York approached him personally.

Bottom Line – Interesting biopic, movie feels missing something and is quite slow moving, but still worth seeing. Recommended

Rating – Globe Worthy