07-07-26 Flying Leathernecks (1951)

Seen: July 18th, 2007
Format: DVD
Rating: 5

The Duke's war films are almost as good as his westerns. I remember seeing The Green Berets as a kid and being moved to tears. His swaggering persona and good humor worked well whether he was leading a posse or a squad of infantryman.
It's a shame that it didn't work here.
This film was made only six years after the war. I have to imagine that it was still very fresh in the psyche of America. It was fertile ground for this type of film, especially since the cold war was coming up to full steam. American pride and solidarity was cresting, and a film where our boys put themselves on the line for their country was probably received fairly well.
The problem here is that this film is really about the sacrifices that leaders must learn to make if they're going to be effective leaders. It's a bit of a risk, really.
Movie leaders are the ones their ranks all gush over. They're strong and lead by example. They're compassionate and understanding. They put their lives on the line for their men and make sacrifices for their outfit.
The reality of the situation is a bit different. Flying Leathernecks attempts to illustrate that great leaders are actually the ones who routinely send their men into dire situations. That they can't afford to coddle and aren't nearly as interested in being popular as they are about the cohesiveness of their unit. They realize that men, including themselves, are valuable, but expendable.
Unfortunately, this doesn't make for very good cinema. The message is there, and it's clear, but it's not very well or artfully expressed. The film is much more concerned about the glories of war.
There is a huge volume of wartime footage in this film, gun camera film in particular. This lends an authentic feel to it, but tends to become the focus, continually dragging us away from the central theme of the film. In some ways, it seems the film was actually constructed around this footage. It's hardly seamless and the transitions are jarring.
Outside of plot, the rest isn't particularly wonderful either. While Kirby is pretty well developed, the rest of the characters are cliches and generally pretty thin. Even Griff isn't as rounded as he needs to be, given his role in the film.
In short, this is an action film from the early 50s. It attempts to do something deeper, but in the end, is mostly about about marine aviators taking it to the Japanese.
The Good: The Duke
The Bad: Where's the plot?
The Ugly: Being a leader