None But the Brave (1965)

American and Japanese soldiers, stranded on a tiny Pacific island during World War II, must make a temporary truce and cooperate to survive various tribulations. Told through the eyes of ... See full summary »

Director:

Frank Sinatra

Writers:

John Twist (screenplay), Katsuya Susaki (screenplay),

Stars:

Tatsuya Mihashi, Takeshi Katô, Frank Sinatra

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tatsuya Mihashi	...	Lt. Kuroki
Takeshi Katô	...	Sgt. Tamura (as Takeshi Kato)
Homare Suguro	...	Lance Cpl. Hirano
Kenji Sahara	...	Cpl. Fujimoto
Masahiko Tanimura	...	Lead Pvt. Ando
Tôru Ibuki	...	Pvt. Arikawa (as Toru Ibuki)
Ryucho Shunputei	...	Pvt. Okuda
Hisao Dazai	...	Pvt. Tokumaru
Susumu Kurobe	...	Pvt. Goro
Takashi Inagaki	...	Pvt. Ishi
Kenichi Hata	...	Pvt. Sato
Frank Sinatra	...	Chief Pharmacist Mate
Clint Walker	...	Capt. Dennis Bourke
Tommy Sands	...	2nd Lt. Blair
Brad Dexter	...	Sgt. Bleeker

Storyline

American and Japanese soldiers, stranded on a tiny Pacific island during World War II, must make a temporary truce and cooperate to survive various tribulations. Told through the eyes of the American and Japanese unit commanders, who must deal with an atmosphere of growing distrust and tension between their men.

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Taglines:

The brave are never different - only different looking!

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

24 February 1965 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Lohn der Mutigen

Filming Locations:

Kaua'i, Hawaii, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Tokyo Eiga Co Ltd., Toho Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording) (uncredited)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During downtime while shooting the picture, Brad Dexter saved Frank Sinatra from drowning when he dived into the ocean and saved the floundering Sinatra.

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Goofs

In some scenes the Japanese officer is carrying a Walther P-38, which is a German-made pistol, but in other scenes he's carrying a Nambu, which is a Japanese-made pistol.

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Crazy Credits

The line "Nobody Ever Wins" appears in place of "The End" just before the end credits start, which is appropriate given the film's anti-war message.

User Reviews

He did it his way

Old blue eyes directs and co-stars in this pacific WW2 film with an emphasised anti-war message, where a unit of American soldiers are stranded along with a small contingent of Japanese soldiers on a small island, reluctantly agreeing to co-operate under a temporary truce to overcome challenges they collectively face. Big Clint Walker is the leader, with the tough exterior and soft centre of an egg, who despite a willingness to adapt to the unique circumstances, never loses sight of the overall picture, unlike Sinatra, who is flagrantly defiant in his pacifism.

Three reasons to invest the hour and forty in this film are it's battle scenes, bloody and generally well staged, an unexpected shark attack, and of course, if worship Sinatra, then you get two for the price of one as he co-stars and directs. The scenery is reminiscent of other films of the ilk and era, most notably "PT109", although there's more hand to hand combat present in this picture.

Unfortunately the key aspect of the picture that didn't work for me was the jingoist attempt at pathos, and its predictable conclusion. The sentiment was over-the-top at times, in point of fact, the film's closing line "nobody ever wins" seemed a laboured self-indulgent political commentary that didn't need to be so obvious. Better than John Wayne's "The Green Berets" which espoused similar anti-war themes, but not what I'd consider to be among the better movies depicting war in the pacific (e.g. "Beach Red").