At War with the Army (1950)

Director:

Hal Walker

Writers:

James B. Allardice (based on a play by)
Fred F. Finklehoffe (written for the screen by)

Release Date:

17 January 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical | Romance | War

Tagline:

THE FUNNIEST PICTURE EVER! (re-release print ad - all caps)

Plot:

Alvin Corwin is low man on the totem pole, and goes from one mishap to another at an army training camp in World War II. |

Plot Keywords:

American Soldier | Uniform | Beautiful Woman | Army Life | Military Spoof

Cast

Dean Martin	...	1st Sgt. Vic Puccinelli
Jerry Lewis	...	Pfc. Alvin Korwin
Mike Kellin	...	Sgt. McVey
Jimmie Dundee	...	Eddie
Dick Stabile	...	Pvt. Pokey
Tommy Farrell	...	Cpl. Clark
Frank Hyers	...	Cpl. Shaughnessy
Danny Dayton	...	Supply Sgt. Miller (as Dan Dayton)
William Mendrek	...	Capt. Ernest Caldwell
Kenneth Forbes	...	Lt. Davenport
Paul Livermore	...	Pvt. Jack Edwards
Ty Perry	...	Lt. Terray
Jean Ruth	...	Millie
Angela Greene	...	Mrs. Deborah Caldwell
Polly Bergen	...	Helen Palmer
Douglas Evans	...	Col. Davis
Stephen Roberts	...	Doctor (as Steve Roberts)
Al Negbo	...	Orderly
Dewey Robinson	...	Bartender
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lee Bennett	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Joe Gray	...	Soldier (uncredited)

Directed by
Hal Walker

Writing credits
James B. Allardice		(based on a play by)
Fred F. Finklehoffe		(written for the screen by)

Produced by
Fred F. Finklehoffe	....	producer
Abner J. Greshler	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Joseph J. Lilley		(uncredited)

Cinematography by
Stuart Thompson		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Paul Weatherwax

Art Direction by
George Jenkins

Makeup Department
Lee Greenway	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Norman A. Cook	....	production manager (as Norman Cook)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Alvin Ganzer	....	assistant director

Sound Department
Frank McWhorter	....	sound

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Jack Dowsing	....	wardrobe

Music Department
Mack David	....	songs by
Joseph J. Lilley	....	musical director (as Joseph Lilley)
Jerry Livingston	....	songs by
Sidney Cutner	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Gus Levene	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
George Parrish	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Leo Shuken	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Vern Alves	....	assistant to producer
Joan Hathaway	....	dialogue director
Charles Ray MacCallum	....	presented on the stage by: in association with
Henry May	....	presented on the stage by
Jerome E. Rosenfeld	....	presented on the stage by

Production Companies

• Fred F. Finklehoffe Productions
• Screen Associates Inc.
• York Pictures Corporation

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1950) (USA) (theatrical)
• OMAT Pictures (1958) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Hollywood Classics (1995) (USA) (VHS)
• Madacy Entertainment (1995) (USA) (VHS)
• Digital Disc Entertainment (1997) (USA) (DVD)
• Laserlight Entertainment (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Front Row Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• GoodTimes Home Video (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Madacy Entertainment (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• Alpha Video Distributors (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• BFS Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Diamond Entertainment Group (DEG) (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Passport Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Westlake Entertainment Group (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• BFS Video (2004) (USA) (VHS)
• Platinum Disc (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• St. Clair Vision (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Weton Wesgram (2004) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2007) (worldwide) (all media)
• Lii-Filmi (1951) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Paramount (1955) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Paramount-Films (1951) (Finland) (theatrical)
• FilmAnnex (2006) (worldwide) (all media)
• Finnkino (2009) (Finland) (DVD)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1998) (Finland) (TV)
• Mistar (1990) (Finland) (VHS)
• Punto Zero (2008) (Italy) (DVD)
• Vídeo Network (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1995) (Finland) (TV)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | Australia:G | Finland:S | Sweden:Btl

Filming Locations:

Corriganville, Ray Corrigan Ranch, Simi Valley, California, USA

Company:

Fred F. Finklehoffe Productions

Trivia:

Is part of the Public Domain.

Goofs:

Continuity: For the first half of the opening song, "Beans", Alvin has a bandage on his finger (left hand, middle finger). Halfway through the song, the bandage disappears.

Movie Connections:

References Going My Way (1944)

Soundtrack:

Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral (That's an Irish Lullaby)

A slow start...

This is Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis' first STARRING film--some reviews have said that this was their first film, though this was "My Friend Irma" from the previous year and "My Friend Irma Goes West" came out a few months before "At War With the Army". Because it was such an early film, the style and chemistry of the movie certainly isn't what you might expect for the team. The first big difference you'll notice is Jerry's musical number in his first scene! The next is that there really isn't much chemistry between them--as if it's a "Martin VERSUS Lewis" film! All too often, Dean yells at Jerry--and there's nothing all that funny about this. Any sort of camaraderie between them is missing. And, oddly, Jerry plays a guy who is married! The film is an army comedy--a type of film that was very popular around 1940-1941 but had a bit of a resurgence in the 1950s--with films like this one, "No Time for Sergeants" and "Jumping Jacks". Compared to such classic films as these plus "Caught in the Draft", "Buck Privates" and "Tanks a Million", "At War With the Army" comes up very short--mostly because it just doesn't have the laughs or chemistry the other films had.

Before joining the Army, Jerry and Dean had been friends. Now, Dean's a sergeant and Jerry is a lowly private. And, quite often, Dean bosses Jerry about--sort of like some sort of slave. But most of the film consists of Jerry doing his thing and Dean doing his--and not at all like a team. As a result, the overall plot isn't particularly good but the viewer instead is waiting for good moments--little gems that appear here and there. One of the best is seeing Jerry in drag--he made a very, very interesting (and hairy) blonde! The reaction of everyone in the bar was priceless! And, some of the songs aren't bad. But again, these are only moments within an otherwise humdrum film.

Overall, this is a film that is a must-see for Martin & Lewis fans...otherwise, eminently skip-worthy!