Home of the Brave

Decades ahead of its time! Years before the services are integrated, a black soldier is sent on patrol with an all white squad. More than just a story of racial tension in combat, this is a character study, a study of the true inner feelings of men in war, and bigotry that was and has been a way of life for so long. Edwards and Bridges win the acting honors here...however the entire cast deserves kudos for having the guts to participate in a picture that was obviously not received well in all parts of the U.S. This one will have you on the edge of your chair and near tears on occasion-guaranteed.

Home of the Brave, for its time, was considered daring as it brought racism to the big screen in a setting of war. James Edwards gives a sterling performance as Peter Moss, a Black man chosen to go on a dangerous mission with 4 white soldiers. The war becomes secondary to the characters and how they react to one another. Lloyd Bridges as "Finch" is excellent as is Frank Lovejoy as "Mingo". This is a fine effort and will keep you on the edge of your seat just watching the tensions rise and fall.

Five soldiers are sent to map out a Japanese held island during WWII. Friction erupts when it turns out that one of the men is black

The years 1949, 50, & 51, witnessed a spate of social conscience movies before the McCarthyite-HUAC purges put an end to them. Unfortunately, this is one of the more obscure. So far as I know, the movie's rarely been revived-- in fact, I had to order a DVD decades after first viewing. Still, the film's many moments of sheer rawness have stayed with me over time.

In my book, the 90-minutes is not a complete success. I still have trouble with the psychiatrist's (Corey) facile analysis of Moss's (Edwards) problem following island combat. It's much too pat and self-assured to be convincing, more like a happy ending contrivance. Yet this Hollywood moment is more than offset by the racially charged atmosphere of the remainder. Note, for example, how the three men react to Moss on his first arrival, which sets the racial stage for what follows. Finch (Bridges) embraces his old friend; Mingo (Lovejoy) is understandably dubious; while racist TJ (Brodie) snubs the black man. Given Mingo's doubts, (understandable, given the intimate nature of the mission that now includes a racial outsider), it's really his ambivalence on which the plot pivots. Lovejoy's low-key performance makes Mingo easy to overlook. Yet, it's really Mingo's trajectory that delivers the movie's ultimate message. I'm with those who think Lovejoy steals the movie in his own mild way.

But get a load of that jungle. It's creepy enough to suck the air out of a dirigible. Anyone like Finch who goes into that maw shouldn't expect to come out. At this point in his career Bridges was one of the most interesting actors around. Always virile and athletic, he's a nice guy here. Yet, catch him in the noir classic The Sound of Fury (1950). There he's egotistical and mean-spirited in totally convincing fashion. Too bad the bulk of his later career, following communist allegations, was spent within the confines of serial TV.

Of course, the movie's mainly remembered for James Edwards' role as a young dignified black man. I think we'd have to go back to Paul Robeson in the 1930's to find a similar black-man persona. Unfortunately, African-Americans were consigned to buffoonish or menial roles during the period. But here, Edwards presents a movie star appearance in a difficult role. His Peter Moss is proud and dignified one moment, yet confused and vulnerable the next. All of which befits an educated outsider in uncertain surroundings. Clearly, there's a laudable effort to deal with the effects racism has on a victim's internal dynamics. Thus, the narrative was an unusual Hollywood attempt at racial honesty, but one that was unfortunately cut short-- after all, the US couldn't fight a cold war by airing its dirty linen to the world. Anyway, thanks reviewer CeOTIS for filling in some facts about Edwards. Clearly, he was suited for Poitier or Belafonte type roles, but I guess his associations with lefties consigned him to the fringes. A genuine loss.

The movie itself manages to rivet interest despite its stage origins. The few sets are confining. Still that has the effect of concentrating the drama. Plus, the fact that we never see the enemy lends an even more unsettling atmosphere. The sudden use of the epithet 'nigger' is jolting to contemporary ears. And especially so, when the easy-going Finch under pressure begins to mouth the word. Then we get an idea of how embedded skin color is in the general culture. Seems to me, however, some latitude should be granted to the lack of combat realism that other reviewers use to criticize. After all, the movie's not really a war movie. Instead, it's a social conscience film using wartime conditions to illuminate conditions at home. Note, however, that the script lays the blame for race prejudice on the individual, that is, unless I missed something. That way more explosive topics like politics or the economy are finessed.

Anyway, viewers who appreciate this film should catch up with other racial films of that pregnant period. Let me recommend—Intruder in the Dust (1950); Lost Boundaries (1949); The Well (1951); No Way Out (1950); and Pinky (1949). Despite isolated exceptions, like The Defiant Ones (1958), movies would have to wait another 20-years before the issues would again be taken up in sustained fashion. Nonetheless, the human drama here has lost little of its power over the intervening decades. A tribute, I think, to all those involved.

To correct a previous commentary... "The Big Red One" is the 1st Infantry Division. The "Red Ball Express" was the name given to the truck convoys. My own opinions of the film: I think a movie like this needs to be appreciated within the context of the time period it was made. Considering that the country then was barely taking baby steps into the civil rights movement, the subject was handled pretty well. It sent it's message without being preachy or patronizing. A great cast also helps it make a worthwhile movie to watch. It's too bad that James Edwards died several years later while still relatively young. He might've made a real breakthrough to some leading roles.

I was 11 years old when my Mother took me to see Home Of The Brave. She came home from work and said, I want to take you to a movie, it is time you see something other than Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy...I can tell you I grew up a lot seeing HOME OF THE BRAVE. I can remember the dialog to this day even though I only saw this movie once. James Edwards and Lloyd Bridges gave star performances, yet the supporting cast was truly outstanding too...... Jeff Corey was the Doctor (psychiatrist)who helped James Edwards overcome the difficulties of war, and of course of being black. (Corey is recognized as one of the greatest character actors in the history of stage and screen. Check his filmography.) It was a landmark scene and performance by both Corey and Edwards. In the 50s Corey was black balled by the House Unamerican Activities Commitee. HUAC. Because he would not name actors sympathetic to the Communists. Many actors did squeal to save there own careers, but not Corey, he laughed at them. Did not work in Hollywood for 12 or more years. He became an acting teacher for the likes of Jack Nicholson, Barbara Streisand, Cher, and many others. Those three won academy awards. May he rest in peace, he left us in 2002. Corey has an outstanding website, check it out, here is the URL address... jeffcorey.com..... James Edwards filmography is full of great performances down through the years.An outstanding filmography by a pioneering actor who never received the recognition he deserved. One year in the 70s, I was involved with a cable TV station in San Diego,we produced the La Costa celebrity tennis tournament. Lloyd Bridges was there and I walked up to him and said, "Thank You for your performance in "Home of The Brave", he was so startled and said to me, when did you see it? I replied, "when I was 11 years old, my mother took me to see it. She said it was an important film, and it was time to know about the freedom this movie is trying to portray." He said to me, "thank you very much, you made my day, in fact my whole month. Thank You." It is nice to know that these great actors who made this film a landmark in cinema were revered by so many. Most are gone now but their performances are preserved in the great history of film. See this movie, buy the VHS on the internet, show it to others and you become part of movie history too. Thank You. RADUDCA