Beach Red (1967)

I love this movie so much

Best movie ever!

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

BEACH RED is an intriguing war picture, directed by and starring Cornel Wilde, who is a bit long in the tooth for his role but otherwise sound. This is a mildly experimental bit of film-making that takes a psychological approach to a battle, depicting the frightened wits of the young soldiers involved, plonking them into a brutal beach landing and then some claustrophobic jungle combat.What I particularly liked about this film is its stylistic approach, courtesy of Wilde. Most American '60s Pacific War-themed movies simply depict the Japanese enemy as faceless aggressors or even worse as evil demons. Here, they're no different to their American counterparts, frightened and thinking of their family members back home. This film parallels the two sides throughout and builds to a moving climax which really hits home the similarities between the troops.The rest of the film is a little slow and repetitive in places although it holds together quite nicely overall. The action is well depicted at the outset, with a lengthy beach landing which surely must have inspired Spielberg to make the opening bit of SAVING PRIVATE RYAN; the two are photographed in almost identical ways and BEACH RED's action is almost as brutal. The young cast give good turns, particularly Rip Torn, and the photography is fine. The only thing I would change is the use of still photography in the flashback scenes, which dates it a bit.

Visually compelling and focused on the battles of a group of Marines and on men's determination to survive their tour of duty . Intense and bloody fight for an occupied Pacific island and shot in Philippines outdoors . This is a thought-provoking as well as exciting wartime film about a spectacular battle for an essential island on the Pacific toll in which a typical crew of Marines fighting the ¨Yellow Menace¨ and it considered to be by some reviewers one of the best American films about the Pacific conflict during WWII ; however , being sometime slow , boring but generally worthwhile . At the beginning the American Marines ashore on a Japanese-held island . As an US marine unit formed by Captain MacDonald (Cornel Wilde) , Sergeant Honeywell (Rip Torn) and Privates (Jaime Sánchez , Burr DeBenning , Patrick Wolfe) fight against the defenders of a Japanese held island , both sides are haunted by their own thoughts and memories ; as battle experience hardens soldiers . What follows are a series of bloody attacks , on the beach , jungles , mountains in which the rifle company fighting Japanese who hold killers gun-machines and other deadly weapons .It is first hand account of a notorious battle on a Pacific island , and against an important base on a solitary atoll . Focusing on relationship between Capt. MacDonald/Cornel Wilde and his soldiers . Effectively portrays the dehumanizing psychological effects , battling soldiers on both sides are haunted by memories of home and the terrifying , sickening images they experience in combat , and using flashbacks by means of photos and images about their past existences . While the relationship between captain and his men makes the biggest impression and delivers the interesting main plot , among many sub-plots , some of which go nowhere . Interesting screenplay based on Peter Bowman's uniquely constructed novel "Beach Red" , it was published in 1945, near the end of World War II . The sequence in which Japanese troops tried to fool the US Marines by wearing their uniforms was taken directly from the source novel . This dark story produced/acted/directed by Wilde is immensely exciting , firmly characterized on its roles and in places very moving too . The film brings home the true horror of battle and the meaninglessness of it all and visually is stunning . Dealing with the inner thoughts , feeling and philosophical leaning of the soldiers , the picture sacrifices continuity to study several questions , utilizing records , memories and many other things . Combat images are naturally , well filmed and effective , getting spectacular scenes such as the impressive plane attacks on the ending . Atmospheric and evocative cinematography by Cecil Cooney . Sad and touching song sung by Jean Hagen , Cornel Wilde's wife . The movie has only one musical element , this song written by Antonino Buenaventura and it also is heard in other variations throughout the flick . Filmed in the Republic of Philippines and in Japan , the producer gratefully acknowledges the dedicated efforts and the cooperation of the entire cast , Department of National of Defense , the R.P. Marine Corps , the R. P. Navy , the R.P Army , the R.P Air Force , the R. P. Constabulary , the R.P. Research Institute , the R. P. Department of forest and a particularly the friendly and considerable people of the Philippines .This harrowing motion picture was compellingly starred , written , produced and directed by Cornel Wilde , being released through United Artists . Wilde does a competent job both as actor and filmmaker . It's amazingly well done movie , being Cornel Wilde's best film . He is especially credited as a good actor but also known for directing some acceptable flicks . His later films were of varying quality, and he ended his career in near-cameos in minor adventure films . As he directed adventures as ¨Maracaibo¨ ,¨Lancelot and Guinevere¨, ¨Sharks' Treasure¨ but also Noir Cinema as ¨The Devil's Hairpin¨, ¨Storm Fear¨ and Sci Fi : ¨Blade of Grass¨. ¨Beach red¨ rating : 6.5/10 , good film , well worth watching . Essential and indispensable seeing for warfare fans . It's a good stuff for young people and war movie lovers who enjoy enormously with the extraordinary battles in the lush jungle.Other fundamental tales based on Pacific landings were the followings : ¨Thin red line¨ by Andrew Marton with Keir Dullea and Jack Warden and ¨Thin red line¨ directed by Terence Malick with star-laden cast as Jim Cazievel as Private protagonist , Sean Penn as the Sergeant , and many others as George Clooney, Nick Nolte and Woody Harrelson . Furthermore , another important film about Guadalcanal battle turns out to be ¨Guadalcanal diary¨ by Lewis Seiler with Anthony Quinn , Preston Foster, Lloyd Nolan and Richard Conte .

Cornel Wilde directed this combat film on Luzon in the Philippines, and he did a realistic job of it. He had the cooperation of what appears to be the entire armed forces of that nation. He had the cooperation of the U. S. Marine Corps too, but when they saw the results, they asked that their credit be deleted.There had never been another movie quite like it, but this was 1967 and a time of experimentation. Wilde had his actors lugging real forty-pound backpacks around on the beach. It's crude and sometimes arty and confusing but it was an original in its time. I don't believe we'd ever seen an assault from the sea in which bloody body parts were left floating in the water before. Corpses, yes, blown-off arms and legs, no.Wilde gives a good deal of sympathetic time to the Japanese defenders of this island. It's completely unlike any of the early World War II movies, such as, say, "Bataan," where the enemy is faceless and referred to only as "bandy legged baboons" and worse. Here, not only do the Japanese soldiers have faces, but some of them are handsome too, and they have friends, and, like the Americans, they have families back home and like the Americans they fight well before they die in agony. It's the kind of movie that's likely to make some people nervous. Not too many, only the ones who think about what they're watching.But it IS crude. I don't know what the novel is like, but I'll bet I could pick out the bits of dialog that were drawn from it. The rest is overblown and tends to state the obvious. And Wilde uses (sparely) internal monologues that could better have been dispensed with. We see a close up of a man's face and we hear his thoughts. "Will I get out of this alive? Oh, sure I will. I got my lucky rabbit's foot with me." That sort of thing. The dumb theme song is so glaringly obvious that it's almost palpable.It's arty too, as befits a war movie made in the 60s. An ominous spider hides in a pretty white blossom. (Did Terence Malick see this?) Lots of reminiscences about life back home, almost all of them in still shots. The interior monologues roll on. ("I love you, darling.") Everybody -- Americans and Japanese alike -- seem to have pretty wives and smiling children at home. Every damned one of them seems to have lived a better life than I have so far! And it's confusing, especially towards the end, as if hurried. This had nominations from two professional organizations for best editing and I can't imagine why. Wilde discovers that the Japanese are about to mount a flank attack and calls in the air force to stop it. "Here come the flyboys," he remarks with satisfaction. And indeed a couple of fighters fly over the beach and strafe the troops to pieces. The only problem is that the troops are all wearing Marine fatigues and there's not a Japanese in sight.The two men we've gotten to know best -- a hillbilly and a minister's son -- evidently have a terrific mano a mano battle with a Japanese soldier until only one American and one Japanese are left alive to show each other a touch of ironic humanity. But we don't see the battle, just the three soldiers lying there.Still, I give the thing extra points for its ambition and its ability to make war creepier than most films do. I can think of only three or four films that can make you squirm with discomfort while watching a battle, by showing that the enemy is something more than a villainous rat. I think of THOSE as true anti-war films. The others are puffery. Maybe necessary propaganda, even good propaganda, but propaganda nonetheless. I wonder if it's ever morally sound for us to leave a movie theater after a war movie feeling satisfied and proud, as if our local high school had just won a football game.

Cornel Wilde... If he were putting this project together today with deep pocketed empathetic sponsors... Wow... would it be of import in this state of mind in our hearts growing cold. Personally, I can get past any critique of the production... This is a cinematic treasure that... if you open yourself to it.. will break your heart... Beach Red.. stands alone with faint comparison... Watch it alone; that you are not looking for reactions from another, trusting that they might feel, what you experience with this examination of war.Cornel Wilde... If he were putting this project together today with deep pocketed empathetic sponsors... Wow... would it be of import in this state of mind in our hearts growing cold. Personally, I can get past any critique of the production... This is a cinematic treasure that... if you open yourself to it.. will break your heart... Beach Red.. stands alone with faint comparison... Watch it alone; that you are not looking for reactions from another, trusting that they might feel what you experience with this examination of war.