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Between Heaven and Hell (1956) More at IMDbPro »

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Overview

User Rating:
6.7/10   366 votes
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Down 21% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Richard Fleischer
Writers:
Harry Brown (screenplay)
Francis Gwaltney (novel)
Contact:
View company contact information for Between Heaven and Hell on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
5 December 1956 (Japan) more
Genre:
Drama | War more
Tagline:
From the best-selling novel of young love in war! more
Plot:
The spoiled rich son of a wealthy Southerner is changed by his experiences in the Pacific during World War II. full summary | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar. more
User Comments:
Interesting for Its Time more (12 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Robert Wagner ... Sfc. / Pvt. Sam Francis Gifford
Terry Moore ... Jenny Gifford

Broderick Crawford ... Capt. 'Waco' Grimes, CO Co.G

Buddy Ebsen ... Pvt. Willie Crawford
Robert Keith ... Col. Cousins
Brad Dexter ... Lt. Joe Johnson aka Little Joe
Mark Damon ... Pvt. Terry Co. G
Ken Clark ... Morgan
Harvey Lembeck ... Pvt. Bernard "Bernie" Meleski (Co. G)
Skip Homeier ... Pvt. Swanson Co.G
L.Q. Jones ... Pvt. Kenny Co.G
Tod Andrews ... Lt. Ray Mosby
Biff Elliot ... Tom Thumb Co.G
Bart Burns ... Pvt. Raker Co.G
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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
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Runtime:
94 min
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)
Certification:
South Korea:12 | USA:Approved (certificate #18043) | Canada:PG (video rating) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG
Filming Locations:
Malibu Creek State Park - 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas, California, USA
Company:
Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Tod Andrews character is named Lt. Ray Mosby. Andrews would later portray Maj. John Singleton Mosby in the television series "The Gray Ghost" (1957). more
Goofs:
Factual errors: In the cast listing, Robert Wagner is listed as Sfc/Pvt. Sam Francis Gifford. He should be listed as T/Sgt/Pvt. Sam Francis Gifford. The rank Sfc (Sergeant First Class) did not exist during WWII. At that time it was T/Sgt (Technical Sergeant). more

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful.
Interesting for Its Time, 11 January 2009
6/10
Author: dougdoepke from Claremont, USA

I expect this 1956 war movie was passed over by critics because its star, Robert Wagner, was considered just another light-weight pretty boy of the day. Nonetheless, the movie is better than just another celebrity vehicle, while Wagner is a much better actor than his good-looks suggest, and, I think, time has proved.

Two features distinguish this film from others of the day. First is the subplot of tenant farmers and the class barrier separating them from the land owners they work for. A number of pre-Vietnam movies dealt with racial differences in the military; this is the only one I know of dealing with white Southern sharecroppers and their difficulties. Wagner's unit is a National Guard battalion which means that the unit is made up of men from the same locale with the same class distinctions of civilian life carried over into the ranks of the unit itself. Thus, Robert Keith a patriarchal rich man in civilian life is in similar command of the battalion as the colonel, while Tod Andrew's land owner heads up a platoon as a lieutenant. In short, land owners make up the ranks of commissioned officers, while share-croppers make up the enlisted ranks.

Now, the screenplay departs from this logic in Wagner's case. Though a land owner, he's not an officer; instead he's a sergeant in the enlisted ranks. The reason I think is pretty clear. Officers do not fraternize with enlisted men. But for the plot to deliver its main message, it must break down the social barrier between tenant farmer Buddy Ebsen and land owner Wagner, and that requires that they fraternize. Hence, the screenplay makes Wagner an enlisted man. But this curious departure is for a good cause. Only by getting to know a man (Ebsen) personally can the haughty Wagner overcome the cruelty he has shown his share- croppers in civilian life. The lesson here is similar to that of racially inspired films—it's personal contact that ultimately humanizes and breaks down social barriers. Thus, once the social distance is overcome, the two can become friends and equals and be carried off to the same hospital ship, side-by-side. A humane message, well delivered.

The second feature is perceptively pointed out by Kayaker36. There's an unmistakable homosexual subtext to Broderick Crawford's command center scenes. Today, that wouldn't merit much mention, but remember this is 1956 when about the only thing worse than being a gay was being a communist. And to even hint that gays might be in the military—and in a position of command—is really quite remarkable. The screenplay is adapted from a novel, and I suspect the idea comes from the novel and was rather boldly adapted into the screenplay. But, whatever the source or reason, this is the only war film of the post-war era I know of to even hint at that forbidden topic.

Anyway, the movie is well produced by TCF, with just enough battle scenes to satisfy war- movie fans. The screenplay is also unusual in its depiction of death by friendly fire, a much more common occurrence among soldiers than movies led us to believe. On the other hand, note how, in passing, the script works in a love interest for Wagner so that Terry Moore's name could go up on the marquee and broaden audience appeal. Note too, how Crawford gets a rather lengthy and unnecessarily histrionic scene to justify, I suppose, his starring credit. Remember, he was only a few years past his Best Actor Oscar, at a time when his name still carried audience weight. Actually, combining this film with Tony Curtis's 1954 war movie Beachhead would make a revealing double-feature, showing again how slick and entertaining films from Hollywood's studio period could be. This may not rank with the best or most suspenseful war films of the period. But it does remain an interesting oddity.

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