What Price Glory (1952)

The wartime romantic misadventures of Captain Flagg, commander of a company of US Marines in 1918 France.

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Phoebe Ephron (screenplay), Henry Ephron (screenplay)

Stars:

James Cagney, Corinne Calvet, Dan Dailey

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Cagney	...	Capt. Flagg
Corinne Calvet	...	Charmaine
Dan Dailey	...	1st Sgt. Quirt
William Demarest	...	Cpl. Kiper
Craig Hill	...	Lt. Aldrich
Robert Wagner	...	Pvt. Lewisohn
Marisa Pavan	...	Nicole Bouchard
Max Showalter	...	Lt. Moore (as Casey Adams)
James Gleason	...	Gen. Cokely
Wally Vernon	...	Lipinsky
Henri Letondal	...	Cognac Pete

Storyline

In 1918 France, Captain Flagg commands a disreputable company of Marines; his new top sergeant is his old friendly enemy, Quirt. The two men become rivals for the favors of fair innkeeper's daughter Charmaine, but the rivalry goes into reverse when Charmaine proves to be angling for a husband. When the company is ordered to the front, this comedy interlude gives way to the grim realities of war.

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Plot Keywords:

marines | military uniform | u.s. military | american abroad | trench warfare | 

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Taglines:

The Glory Story of Them All!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Musical | Romance | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

16 March 1953 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Deux durs à cuire

Filming Locations:

Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Marisa Pavan's film debut,

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Goofs

Captain Flagg's command was referred to M Company, 5th Marines. In WWI Marine Companies were numbered. Prior to WWI they served independently with battalions and above were ad hoc organizations. 5th Marines should 5th Regiment. The change from Regiment to Marines wouldn't come until the 30s.

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Quotes

Captain Flagg: Quirt loves the bottle, and when he's drunk he is the lousiest, filthiest tramp that ever wore a uniform. He's even worse than I am, and you know I don't allow anybody to get as bad as that.

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Connections

Version of What Price Glory (1926)

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Soundtracks

My Love, My Life
Written by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans
Sung by Marisa Pavan

User Reviews

Excellent World War 1 drama of American dough boys in France.

Excellent performances by James Cagney and Dan Dailey with good support from William Demarest and a super young Robert Wagner. Interesting contrast of characters from the battle tested professionals like Cagney and Dailey to the fresh out of basic training and high school Wagner. Also brings out the issue of battle fatigue or "shell-shocked" and how it sometimes affects soldiers directly and indirectly by its effect on the morale of their buddies. The interaction with the townspeople is also well done. All in all I thoroughly enjoyed this movie every time I have seen it. It is like vintage wine and seems to get better with age. The first time I saw this movie was in l954 and I learned to sing the song "Its a long way to Tipperary" from watching it one time.