Bataan (1943)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Tay Garnett

Writer:

Robert Hardy Andrews (original screenplay)

Release Date:

24 April 1944 (Sweden)

Genre:

War

Tagline:

THE STORY OF A PATROL OF 13 HEROES

Plot:

Japan has just invaded the Phillipines and the US Army attempts a desperate defence. Thirteen men are...

Plot Keywords:

Pacific War | Japanese Army | Asia | Pacific Ocean | Sergeant

Cast

Robert Taylor	...	Sergeant Bill Dane
George Murphy	...	Lieut. Steve Bentley
Thomas Mitchell	...	Corp. Jake Feingold
Lloyd Nolan	...	Corp. Barney Todd
Lee Bowman	...	Capt. Henry Lassiter
Robert Walker	...	Leonard Purckett
Desi Arnaz	...	Felix Ramirez
Barry Nelson	...	F.X. Matowski
Phillip Terry	...	Matthew Hardy
Roque Espiritu	...	Corp. Juan Katigbak
Kenneth Spencer	...	Wesley Epps
Alex Havier	...	Yankee Salazar (as J. Alex Havier)
Tom Dugan	...	Sam Malloy
Donald Curtis	...	Lieutenant

Runtime:

114 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish | Latin

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:G | Norway:16 | Finland:K-16 (1964) | Finland:S (1945) | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #9122) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Company:

Loew's

Trivia:

The Call Bureau Cast Service lists Lynne Carver and Dorothy Morris as "Nurses", but they were not identifiable in the movie, although one nurse is seen from the rear and another in long-shot. Also Richard Derr was said to be a cast member and Mary Elliott a "Nurse" in contemporary news items; they also were not seen in the movie.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie (1993) (TV)

Soundtrack:

St. Louis Blues

Commemoration of the U. S. Role in World War Two

This movie dramatizes the U. S. decision to stand fast and defend the Phillipines, a decision which in hindsight may or may not have been the wisest, militarily, given the almost untenable position that the U. S. forces found themselves in when the war broke out, but from a moral standpoint represented the U. S. at its finest. The quality of the movie is not that important; what is important is the story itself, a story of determination and selfless sacrifice in the face of overwhelming odds that hopefully will not be forgotten. Indeed, that China today is an independent state is due to the U. S. decision to confront Japanese expansionism, at a huge cost to the U. S., and to the U. S. Open Door Policy ... but that's the another subject.