The
Duke teams up with Robert Ryan as Marine pilots fighting the Japanese in the
Pacific during WWII in “Flying Leathernecks,†just released on Blu-ray via the
Warner Archive Collection. The story picks up in Hawaii in the middle of 1942
as Major Daniel Kirby (John Wayne) takes command of a Marine Corps aviation
squadron about to ship out for combat in the Pacific. A veteran of the Battle
of Midway, Kirby meets the men in his unit along with his executive officer,
Captain Carl “Griff†Griffin (Robert Ryan), who is a bit ruffled after being
passed over to take command. While a great pilot, Griff is not good at making
difficult life and death decisions regarding the other pilots and has become
their friend.
On
Guadalcanal, the squadron pilots become experts at close air support which is precision
aerial strafing against enemy ground troops within yards of American soldiers.
The men grumble because they want to become flying aces and take out Japanese
Zeros in dog fights. This results in pilot deaths as they break from missions
to go out on their own in search of Zeros. It’s no safer on the ground as the
airfield is routinely attacked by enemy strafing and bombing.
Between
missions, Jay C. Flippen offers comic relief as Master Sergeant Clancy, the
flight line chief. He’s not only the chief mechanic, but also their “don’t ask
me any questions†scrounger. Everything from tents and cake to captured
Japanese sake. Flippen is likable and steals every scene he’s in. Actor and director
Don Taylor plays Lieutenant Vern “Cowboy†Blithe, Griff’s brother-in-law. He
sports a pair of brightly colored cowboy boots while in his flight suit
claiming military boots hurt his feat. William Harrigan is on hand as the Navy
doctor, Lt. Commander Joe Curran who shows up to offer advice to Major Kirby.
The
efforts of the squadron in close air support are successful and Kirby is
reassigned and promoted. He returns to his wife Joan (Janis Carter) and their
son Tommy (Gordon Gebert) who refers to his father as major and later colonel.
The squadron returns to combat on Okinawa and continue their close air support
of the ground troops. The movie comes to a satisfying conclusion with Kirby and
Griff putting old grudges aside.
The
film makes use of color air combat footage from the Korean War which was waging
as the movie was in production, and inter mixes that footage with shots of the
pilots on their cockpits and the troops on the ground. WWII era Grumman F6F
Hellcats were still in use during the Korean War, but nitpickers will note the
Wildcats used during the Battle of Guadalcanal were Grumman F4Fs. I doubt most
people noticed then or will notice now.
You
may be wondering what a leatherneck is. The name dates back to 18th century
when American and British Marines and soldiers wore a leather collar around their
neck, often sewn into the cloth collar to improve posture and military bearing.
The leather collar continued to be used as part of the U.S. Marine uniform
until it was discontinued in 1872. An alternative legend to the origin of the
term states the leather collar was worn to protect against saber blades when
Marines boarded enemy ships. It can also be used as a derogatory reference. Whatever
the truth, Marine pilots would be Flying Leathernecks. The reference is less
common today and I’ve never heard any of my Marine friends use the name.
Produced
by Edmund Grainger and directed by Nicholas Ray, the movie is presented by
Howard Hughes and released by RKO in August 1951. The music score by Roy Webb
is serviceable, utilizing the Marine Corps song as the title track and
variations of the Marine song used throughout the movie.Not every John Wayne
movie can be a classic but this is an enjoyable WWII aviation movie and
certainly can be seen by the more cynical as pro- war propaganda. The Korean
War was waging and the Duke’s politics were well known.
The
movie has a 102 minute running time filled with aerial combat and drama on the
ground. The Warner Archive Blu-ray and sounds slightly better than the previous
two DVD releases, but you will have to decide if this it’s worth the upgrade.
For me, the Warner Archive Collection Blu-ray is a welcome addition to my John
Wayne home video collection. The only supplements are subtitles and the
re-issue trailer.
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