BURMA! OBJECTIVE Movie Review

1945 Raoul Walsh

Though many combat adventures had been made before, director Raoul Walsh set the formula in concrete with this rousing potboiler. It has virtually nothing to do with real guerrilla warfare, and as propaganda, its chest-thumping moments are few. But those moments are memorable (see quotes) and the approach that writers Alvah Bessie, Lester Cole (who were blacklisted a few years later), and Ranald MacDougall take to the simple story has been copied and refined countless times since. Objective, Burma! remains one of the best “suicide mission behind enemy lines” tales ever put on film.

An introduction explains that Allied Forces have been kicked out of Burma, “the backdoor to China,” by the Japanese, but now the big push to retake the country is about to begin. Capt. Nelson's (Errol Flynn) paratroopers are restless and ready for action. “We've been sittin' around so much we've all got bunions on our landing gear,” says Cpl. Gordon (George Tobias) in a moment of typical bravado. Nelson is equally brash when he tells correspondent Mark Williams (Henry Hull) why his men have to be young. “Young men, all of us. We've got to be. You know why? I'll give you two good reasons. We jump out of planes and guys shoot at us. It isn't exactly healthy unless you're young enough to take it.”

Then the mission is explained. Nelson and 50 men, with the aging Williams along for the ride, will parachute behind Japanese lines, where they'll be surrounded by enemy troops, blow up a secret radar installation, and make their way to a remote airfield where they'll be picked up. Easy as pie. And it is … for a while.

The film's success lies in its pace and attention to carefully chosen details. Director Walsh lingers on the preparation for the initial jump, noting the number of weapons each man will carry, how many thousand rounds of ammunition, how many grenades. He pays particular attention to the strapping on of the parachutes and the details of the interior of the airplane. Throughout, he repeats the map coordinates that become so important to the characters' movement. When the commandos are in the jungle, he emphasizes the “Awk! Awk! Ooo-Ooo-Ooo!” wildlife sound effects familiar to all Tarzan fans, and somehow manages to make a ranch near Pasadena appear to be an Asian jungle. More or less. Walsh gets considerable assistance from Franz Waxman's score, which has become an archetype for action films in its own right.

The real reason he's able to maintain verisimilitude is the film's carefully calculated pace. The action scenes are widely spaced in the first half, with more screen time spent on the simple business of walking cautiously through the threatening wilderness. When they do occur, the combat scenes are quick and graphic, and in the second half, they intensify to an absolutely ridiculous and far-fetched flag-waving finish.

That's not a criticism; it's the point of this particular brand of escapism.

Cast: Errol Flynn (Capt. Nelson), James Brown (Sgt. Treacy), William Prince (Lt. Sid Jacobs), George Tobias (Gabby Gordon), Henry Hull (Mark Williams), Warner Anderson (Col. Carter), Richard Erdman (Nebraska Hooper), Mark Stevens (Lt. Baker), Anthony Caruso (Miggleori), Hugh Beaumont (Capt. Hennessey), John Alvin (Hogan), William Hudson (Hollis), Lester Matthews (Maj. Fitzpatrick), George Tyne (Soapy Higgins), Erville Alderson (Gen. Stilwell); Written by: Ranald MacDougall, Lester Cole, Alvah Bessie; Cinematography by: James Wong Howe; Music by: Franz Waxman. Producer: Jerry Wald, Jack L. Warner, Warner Bros. Awards: Nominations: Academy Awards '45: Best Film Editing, Best Story, Best Original Dramatic Score. Running Time: 142 minutes. Format: VHS, Beta.