The Long Gray Line (1955)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Nardi Reeder Campion (book)
Edward Hope (writer)

Release Date:

9 February 1955 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Comedy | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

Warms Your Heart! STIRS YOUR BLOOD! and fires your imagination!

Plot:

The life story of a salt-of-the-earth Irish immigrant, who becomes an Army Noncommissioned Officer and...

Plot Keywords:

Irish | West Point | Cadet | Military Academy | Irish Immigrant

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Tyrone Power	...	Martin 'Marty' Maher
Maureen O'Hara	...	Mary O'Donnell
Robert Francis	...	James N. Sundstrom Jr.
Donald Crisp	...	Old Martin
Ward Bond	...	Capt. Herman J. Kohler
Betsy Palmer	...	Kitty Carter
Philip Carey	...	Charles 'Chuck' Dotson (as Phil Carey)
William Leslie	...	James Nilsson 'Red' Sundstrom
Harry Carey Jr.	...	Dwight Eisenhower
Patrick Wayne	...	Abner 'Cherub' Overton
Sean McClory	...	Dinny Maher
Peter Graves	...	Cpl. Rudolph Heinz
Milburn Stone	...	Capt. John Pershing
Erin O'Brien-Moore	...	Mrs. Koehler (as Erin O'Brien Moore)
Walter D. Ehlers	...	Mike Shannon

Runtime:

138 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.55 : 1

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo

Certification:

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

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Average Shot Length (ASL) = 13 seconds

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Red's Medal of Honor that Kitty shows to Marty and Mary is the current design that goes around the neck. In the story, Red earned it during World War I and at that time the Medal of Honor was on a suspension ribbon like most other US medals. It wouldn't be redesigned for around the neck wear until 1944.

Quotes:

Jim O'Carberry: This is Marty Maher. Whitey Larson.
Martin 'Marty' Maher: How do you do, sir?
Jim O'Carberry: If you have any trouble with horses, drop around and see Marty.
Whitey Larson: But he's in the infantry!
Jim O'Carberry: Well naturally! He knows horses. You don't think they'd put him in the cavalry, do ya?

Soundtrack:

The Thunderer

Pleasant Surprise!!

I've been humbled! I thought of myself as a movie buff. This one slipped past me. I'm a fan of Ford and everyone in this movie. I must admit I had never heard of this movie. Terrific story telling! The music brought back a lot of memories. The old saying "they don't make 'em like that anymore" certainly applies to this one. Telling a good story and characters you care about is more important than spending $100 million. Some of our current film makers could learn from this movie. You can entertain people sitting around a camp fire telling stories. Just tell a good one and make them care. I'll be adding this film to my library!