RETREAT, HELL! - 1952
This film, one of several that more or less, tell the same story about the U.S. Forces retreat from the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea.
The film starts in the States with ex-Marine officer, Richard Carlson being called back to active service. Carlson is not all that happy with the recall but reports. His commanding officer is hard as nails, Frank Lovejoy. It is the job of the few World War Two veterans to train the fresh recruits and whip them into combat ready soldiers.
Training is somewhat rushed because of the desperate situation going on in South Korea. The Reds have overrun most of the country and pushed the few surviving forces into a pocket on the southern end of the country.
U.S. Forces launch a counterattack by landing at Inchon and flanking the North Korean Army. The Reds soon cave and the chase is on all the way up the peninsula. Just as it looks like the war might end, the Chinese Red Army comes boiling over the border from China. This catches the U.N. forces by surprise forcing, shall we say, a rather retrograde manoeuvre.
The film follows Lovejoy's Marine battalion from training, through the Inchon landing, up through the North, and as they make their way back south.
The Marines are badly outnumbered, low on ammo and poorly supplied with winter equipment. The Chinese Reds throw massive human wave attacks at the unit. This causes a dangerous run on medical supplies, and further depletes the already low ammunition reserves.
It is only the odd air supply mission and constant air support that gives the Marines a chance to make their way to safety. Soon their trucks are out of fuel and they are forced to carry their growing collection of wounded. The Marines work their way through several more Red attacks and ambushes. Lovejoy gets wounded and Carlson must take command.
They are joined along the way by various other retreating units, including some British Royal Marines. Needless to say they manage to make it safely to the coast and are evacuated by sea.
The film, like, Alan Dwan's HOLD BACK THE NIGHT, Sam Fuller's THE STEEL HELMET, FIXED BAYONETS and Anthony Mann's MEN AT WAR all deal with this same retreat. This Joseph H. Lewis directed work is quite watchable, by not quite as good as these others. Alan Dwan directed the superb WW2 Marine film, SANDS OF IWO JIMA.
The acting is fine, and the look of the film is quite good with ex special effects man, Warren Lynch at the cinematography controls. The film's director, Joseph Lewis is best known for several cracker-jack film noir such as, SO DARK THE NIGHT, MY NAME IS JULIA ROSS, THE BIG COMBO and of course, GUN CRAZY.
This film, one of several that more or less, tell the same story about the U.S. Forces retreat from the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea.
The film starts in the States with ex-Marine officer, Richard Carlson being called back to active service. Carlson is not all that happy with the recall but reports. His commanding officer is hard as nails, Frank Lovejoy. It is the job of the few World War Two veterans to train the fresh recruits and whip them into combat ready soldiers.
Training is somewhat rushed because of the desperate situation going on in South Korea. The Reds have overrun most of the country and pushed the few surviving forces into a pocket on the southern end of the country.
U.S. Forces launch a counterattack by landing at Inchon and flanking the North Korean Army. The Reds soon cave and the chase is on all the way up the peninsula. Just as it looks like the war might end, the Chinese Red Army comes boiling over the border from China. This catches the U.N. forces by surprise forcing, shall we say, a rather retrograde manoeuvre.
The film follows Lovejoy's Marine battalion from training, through the Inchon landing, up through the North, and as they make their way back south.
The Marines are badly outnumbered, low on ammo and poorly supplied with winter equipment. The Chinese Reds throw massive human wave attacks at the unit. This causes a dangerous run on medical supplies, and further depletes the already low ammunition reserves.
It is only the odd air supply mission and constant air support that gives the Marines a chance to make their way to safety. Soon their trucks are out of fuel and they are forced to carry their growing collection of wounded. The Marines work their way through several more Red attacks and ambushes. Lovejoy gets wounded and Carlson must take command.
They are joined along the way by various other retreating units, including some British Royal Marines. Needless to say they manage to make it safely to the coast and are evacuated by sea.
The film, like, Alan Dwan's HOLD BACK THE NIGHT, Sam Fuller's THE STEEL HELMET, FIXED BAYONETS and Anthony Mann's MEN AT WAR all deal with this same retreat. This Joseph H. Lewis directed work is quite watchable, by not quite as good as these others. Alan Dwan directed the superb WW2 Marine film, SANDS OF IWO JIMA.
The acting is fine, and the look of the film is quite good with ex special effects man, Warren Lynch at the cinematography controls. The film's director, Joseph Lewis is best known for several cracker-jack film noir such as, SO DARK THE NIGHT, MY NAME IS JULIA ROSS, THE BIG COMBO and of course, GUN CRAZY.