Stilwell Road (1945)

Documentary about the construction of the Stilwell Road--originally called The Ledo Road--a 478-mile passage from Assam, India, to Ledo, Burma, during World War II. The road, which was ... See full summary »

Writer:

Robert Presnell Sr.

Stars:

Ronald Reagan, Harold Alexander, Claude Auchinleck

Cast

Credited cast:
Ronald Reagan	...	Narrator (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Harold Alexander	...	Himself - Reads Map (archive footage)
Claude Auchinleck	...	Himself - Studies Map with Wavell (archive footage)
Alan Brooke	...	Himself - in Conference at Quebec (archive footage)
Claire Chennault	...	Himself - Leaves Car (archive footage)
Kai-Shek Chiang	...	Himself (archive footage)
Winston Churchill	...	Himself - at Quebec with FDR (archive footage)
Ernest J. King	...	Himself - in Conference at Quebec (archive footage)
William D. Leahy	...	Himself - in Conference at Quebec (archive footage)
Douglas MacArthur	...	Himself - with Nimitz (archive footage)
George C. Marshall	...	Himself - in Conference at Quebec (archive footage)
Chester W. Nimitz	...	Himself - with MacArthur (archive footage)
Charles Portal	...	Himself - in Conference at Quebec (archive footage)
Franklin D. Roosevelt	...	Himself - at Quebec with Churchill (archive footage) (as Franklin Delano Roosevelt)
Joseph W. Stilwell	...	Himself (as Gen. Joseph Stilwell)

Storyline

Documentary about the construction of the Stilwell Road--originally called The Ledo Road--a 478-mile passage from Assam, India, to Ledo, Burma, during World War II. The road, which was built by 63,000 workers and cost $150 million, was used by the British, Chinese and Indian armies to transport supplies, troops and other essentials from India to Burma in order to keep the Japanese from overrunning the entire theater. Included is footage of the construction of the road itself and of Gen. Joseph "Vinegar Joe" Stillwell, the American general in charge of forces in the China-Burma-India area of operations and for whom the road was named.

---

Plot Keywords:

india | burma | world war two | china

---

Genres:

Documentary | War

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Also Known As:

Burma Campaign

Filming Locations:

Assam, India

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

51 min

Color:

Black and White

Did You Know?

Trivia

Available as an extra on the VCI Entertainment 2008 DVD edition of Surrender - Hell!.

User Reviews

Horrific task surmounted by unsubduable will.

An excellent tribute to the 63000 men who constructed the 478 mile road from Ledo, Assam, into East Burma, this documentary depicts many of the extraordinary achievements of military engineering required for the passage's completion, a 26 month ordeal completed in 1945 by bordering massive gorges, overstriding raging rapids and invading some of the world's most impenetrable jungles, with a cost of many lives and 150 million dollars. "We got run out of Burma, and it is humiliating as Hell", early in the film states "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell, Commander of troops in the CBI (China-Burma-India) Theatre, and the veteran warrior, serving as Chiang Kai-shek's chief of staff returned with a vengeance at the head of his doughty troops, aided later appreciably by personnel from Australia, New Zealand and India under the leadership of British General Ord Wingate, whom we see just prior to his final, fatal flight. Incisively edited, and briskly narrated by Ronald Reagan, the 51 minute work reveals the ongoing testing endured by the construction crews (28000 engineers), in addition to support personnel such as medical staff, maintenance workers for the heavy machinery, et alia, and is replete with combat footage recording the manner in which the original Ledo Road was expanded into the Stilwell Road (renamed in 1945 by Chiang Kai-shek) despite vigourous Japanese opposition, enabling crucial supplies to move from India to China.