BATTLEGROUND

(November 1949, U.S.)

As previously mentioned, there are two types of war films; combat films and war dramas. BATTLEGROUND follows what has often been the traditional formula in many black and white World War II combat film. We're first introduced to the characters that make up the fighting military unit of the film (101st Airborne Division, in this case). Admittedly, the characters in these films are often uninteresting and even quite obnoxious. In BATTLEGROUND, I can't quite make up my mind which soldier annoys me the most. There's the soldier who can't stop chewing his disgusting tobacco, the soldier who insists on chattering his false teeth and the lonely (and horny) soldier (played by star Van Johnson) who is absolutely hell-bent on protecting the eggs he took from a French woman's farmhouse. In fact, the only soldier here who is even a little interesting is Roderigues (played by Ricardo Montalban) who loves baseball and has never seen snow up close.

After we've met these men, it's when the fighting finally starts that the film really takes off. The fighting in BATTLEGROUND takes places at the Seige of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge in World War II. The combat is violent and explosive, as you'd expect. The cinematography is gloriously black and white with the added touch of the harsh snow and dense fog that fills up the forest of Bastogne. There is a very intruiging element during the fighting in which the American soldiers must determine and identify German soldiers infiltrating as Americans complete with American military uniforms and perfect English. In one case, their conclusion of this depends on correctly using American baseball lingo and determining who actress Betty Grable is currently married to.

As with most combal films of the World War II era, the spirit and comradery of the American soldier and what our country was fighting for overseas effectively makes its point. When America was at war, films like BATTLEGROUND were just what the American people needed to keep up the morale of the country. Makes me wonder why we've never succeeded in doing the same things with films since we were attacked on September 11, 2001.

Favorite line or dialogue:

The Chaplain: "Now it's nearly Christmas... and here we are in beautiful Bastogne enjoying the winter sports. And the $64 question is: "Was this trip necessary?" I'll try to answer that. But my sermons, like everything else in the army... depend on the situation and the terrain. So I assure you this is going to be a quickie. Was this trip necessary? Let's look at the facts. Nobody wanted this war but the Nazis. A great many people tried to deal with them, and a lot of them are dead. Millions have died... for no other reason except that the Nazis wanted them dead. So, in the final showdown, there was nothing left to do except fight. There's a great lesson in this. Those of us who've learned it the hard way aren't going to forget it. We must never again let any force dedicated to a super-race... or a super-idea, or super-anything... become strong enough to impose itself upon a free world. We must be smart enough and tough enough in the beginning... to put out the fire before it starts spreading. My answer to the sixty-four dollar question is yes, this trip was necessary. As the years go by, a lot of people are going to forget. But you won't. And don't ever let anybody tell you you were a sucker to fight in the war against fascism."