Genre Guesstimation – Battle Cry (1955)

The idea behind this feature (Genre Guesstimation) is for me to watch a bunch of new movies (or ones that I haven’t seen many times) from the chosen monthly GG genre in order to expand my knowledge of movies within that particular genre.

This month’s genre has been chosen by me and we will be reviewing our favorite Oscar Nominated or Winning Movies.

Please get me your submissions by the 25th of Mar by sending them to andtheOscargoesto…@movierob.net

Try to think out of the box!

Let’s see if I felt that this movie would be worthy of being in the company of my others favorite movies in the genre of Oscar Nominated or Winning Movies……….

“They were marines now, and they would be until the day they die. ” – MSgt. Mac

Number of Times Seen – 1 (2 Mar 2022)

Brief Synopsis – A group of Marines training to enter the Pacific Theater during World War Ii must deal with their hard commander and their personal lives as they eagerly wait to be sent on a real mission.

My Take on it – This is a film that I’ve been meaning to watch for years and finally this month’s genre convinced me to take a look at it.

I was blown away with how great a story they present here.

the film is truly an ensemble piece and they get to show how despite the diverse nature and backgrounds of the soldiers in the platoon, they know how to band together and feel so close to their brothers in arms both on and off the battlefield.

The cast is superb with Van Haflin, Aldo Ray, Dorothy Malone Nancy Olson, Raymond Massey,Tab Hunter, Anne Francis, L.Q. Jones (who legally changed his real name to his character’s name in this film after it was over), and William Campbell all adding so much to the way that this story unfold.

James Whitmore tho steals the show as the company sergeant who gets to be in the company of the grunts and the officers and gives the viewer a peek into the lifestyles of both.

He also narrates the story and helps put things in perspective along the way.

The movie is based on the novel of the same name by Leon Uris who actually was in the unit depicted in the movie and it all comes across quite realistically.

There aren’t many battle scenes, but that is a plus here because it allows each of the characters to be developed even more because we get to see how they act while training, yet still have longings for their loved ones away from the front.

Many of the stories told here are timeless and the characters could be in any time or place and that adds a whole new aspect to the way one can look at this kind of story.

This movie has one Oscar nomination – for Best Score, but it didn’t manage to win that award.

I’m so glad that I finally got a chance to watch this movie.

Highly Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – During the scene where the Marines are resting during the march back to camp they are passed by the 1st Marines returning in trucks. There is waving and jeering as the trucks go by. One of the Marines sitting on the ground can be seen “flipping the bird”. (From IMDB)

Genre Grandeur Worthy? – Absolutely! They do a wonderful job with this ensemble cast and show how diverse units were during the war, yet could come together when needed.

Rating – Oscar Worthy (9/10)