Chef de patrouille

Chad Everett is a Marine who survives a brutal Japanese attack on his unit, and because of his heroism is sent Stateside on a morale-building tour, where he falls for the beautiful woman assigned as his guide. This film is actually better than it sounds; Everett is quite effective as the Marine who didn't think much about his own mortality while in combat, but begins to realize that circumstances are entirely different now that he has a wife to worry about. The supporting performances are generally competent, though Marilyn Devin's inexperience as an actress is obvious in her role as Everett's new wife (she later left the industry and became a newscaster). Gene Hackman and James Best are quite good as two of Everett's fellow Marine combat veterans. The battle scenes are well done, the story moves along at a good clip, though it does lag in spots, and overall it's one of director Christian ("The Thing") Nyby's better efforts.