This Is the Army (1943)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Casey Robinson (writer) &
Claude Binyon (writer)

Release Date:

14 August 1943 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | War

Tagline:

It's your own army - in the army's own show!

Plot:

In WW I dancer Jerry Jones stages an all-soldier show on Broadway, called Yip Yip Yaphank. Wounded in the War...

Plot Keywords:

Show | Male Female Relationship | Military | Variety | Basic Training

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 nominations

Cast

George Murphy	...	Jerry Jones
Joan Leslie	...	Eileen Dibble
George Tobias	...	Maxie Twardofsky
Alan Hale	...	Sgt. McGee
Charles Butterworth	...	Eddie Dibble
Dolores Costello	...	Mrs. Davidson
Una Merkel	...	Rose Dibble
Stanley Ridges	...	Maj. John B. Davidson
Rosemary DeCamp	...	Ethel Jones
Ruth Donnelly	...	Mrs. O'Brien
Dorothy Peterson	...	Mrs. Nelson
Frances Langford	...	Herself
Gertrude Niesen	...	World War One Vocalist
Kate Smith	...	Herself
Ronald Reagan	...	Johnny Jones (as Lt. Ronald Reagan)

Runtime:

121 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

UK:PG (DVD rating) (2005) | UK:U (original rating) | Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

[Film adaptation from Broadway play] This Is the Army (1942). Musical revue. Music by Irving Berlin. Book by James McColl and Irving Berlin. Lyrics by Irving Berlin. Musical Director: Milton Rosenstock. Dialogue for Minstrel Show by Pvt. Jack Mendelsohn, Pfc. Richard Burdick and Pvt. Tom McDonnell. Music arrangements for dances by Pvt. Melvin Pahl. Scenic Design and Costume Design by Pvt. John Koenig. Choreographed by Cpl. Nelson Barclift and Sgt. Robert Sidney. Additional direction by Joshua Logan. Military Formations by Chester O'Brien. Directed by Sgt. Ezra Stone. Broadway Theatre: 4 Jul 1942- 26 Sep 1942 (113 performances). Cast: Pvt. Juss Addiss, Alan Anderson, Arthur Atkins, Pvt. Leonard Berchman, Eugene Leander Berg, Sgt. Irving Berlin, Dick Bernie, Pvt. Howard Brooks, Marion Brown, Peter J. Burns, Joe Bush, Pvt. Samuel Carr, Pvt. Stewart Churchill, Joe Cook Jr., Pvt. Belmonte Cristiani, Cpl. James A. Cross, Pvt. Louis de Milhau, Ross Elliott, Derek Fairman, Pvt. Ray Goss, Dan Healy, Hank Henry, William Home, Richard Irving, Burl Ives, Fred Kelly, Harold J. Kennedy, Pvt. Robert Kinne, Alan Manson, Pvt. Ralph Margelssen, James McColl, Sgt. John Mendes, Pvt. Gary Merrill, Pvt. Pinkie Mitchell, Robert Moore, John Murphy, Peter O'Neill, Pvt. Jules Oshins, Earl Oxford, Tileston Perry, Pvt. William Pillich, Richard Reeves, Jack Riano, William Roerick, Hayden Rorke, Pfc. Anthony Ross, Louis Salmon, Robert Shanley, Sgt. Robert Sidney, Sgt. Arthur Steiner, Sgt. Ezra Stone, The Allon Trio, Philip Truex, Norman Van Emburgh, Pvt. Claude Watson, Pvt. Larry Weeks, Pvt. William Wykoff. Produced by Uncle Sam (U.S. Government).

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: During the "God Bess America" sequence, Kate Smith barrels up to the microphone and her dubbed-in voice is heard to say "It is my happy privilege to introduce a new song: 'God Bless America'" If you read her lips, however, she actually says the words "new tune."

Quotes:

Jerry Jones: Will you marry me tonight?
Ethel: Well, of course.
Jerry Jones: Wonderful. Congratulations, darling, you're a war bride. I've just been drafted.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Odd Couple: That Is the Army Mrs. Madison (#4.7)" (1973)

Soundtrack:

Poor Little Me, I'm on KP

This movie is a classic

This movie is a classic of World War II movies. It was made as a moral booster during the war, and includes the music of Irving Berlin. One thing to note especially is the song "Someday I'm going to murder the bugler" which is sung by Irving Berlin himself (wearing his own WWI uniform).

In order to really appreciate this movie you need to understand the world in which it was made, which was a whole lot different than 2004. There was a world war and everyone was concerned about stopping evil. (as opposed to today, where everyone is concerned about how terrorism, or the fight against it, is going to disrupt their daily life)

This movie was made as a way to give people something to feel good about, and show patriotism.