Red Ball Express

The story was inspired by events in Louis L'Amour's life when he served in the European campaign. Louis L'Amour for those who may not know was a prolific writer of Westerns and single-handedly reinvented that literary form.

He told his WWII tales at the Brown Derby on Vine Stree in Hollywood. Louis often met with Cobb who ran the place. They often spoke of American Natives especially the Crow Indians in Wyoming and Montana. In any case, someone overheard Louis's WWII tales and it became this film.

I don't know if Louis L'Amour was ever credited. I don't think so. Much of this author's early life could easily serve as an exciting source of several entertaining and illuminating films.

It's a sad commentary that before the Armed Services were integrated post World War II by President Truman, the Red Ball Express was one of the few that black American soldiers could fully participate in and that one was relatively behind the lines.

Jeff Chandler plays the steely eyed commander of this bunch of formerly civilian truck drivers now chosen as a unit to supply Patton's advancing army with needed fuel. Among the cast is a young Sidney Poitier as one of the drivers. They may have been behind the lines, but the picture clearly shows their participation in the war wasn't an easy street.

Chandler's job is to weld this disparate bunch into a unit and he succeeds despite a lot of racial tension. The cast performs admirably in this picture.

One of the great stories of World War II was the rapid advance across France of Patton's army after the breakout from the Normandy beachhead. He could have never done it without the heroic efforts of the men depicted in this movie. It was Ike's and Patton's secret weapon and this picture an admirable tribute to them.

In Red Ball Express, a group of soldiers whose job isn't normally featured in movies gets center stage. War pictures are usually about the daring Marines or the sailors who are desperate for a taste of the action, not the folks assigned to the boring jobs. These men are the truck drivers who deliver supplies to the fellows featured in the other movies. It's an interesting angle, and if you do find that aspect of the war intriguing, you'll probably like it.

Jeff Chandler stars as the head of the platoon, and of course (since there has to be some drama in a movie that doesn't scream 'drama') he clashes with the other men. Alex Nicol holds a grudge because his brother was killed in a battle involving Jeff. There are also some testy scenes involving Sidney Poitier and the white soldiers who begrudge being assigned to an integrated unit. I've seen much more riveting war movies in my day, but if it sounds interesting to you, give it a shot and see what you think.

This is not my favourite from Budd Boetticher, not his best either, just a common war flick, but speaking of something rather important for US Army just after D Day for logistics matters, because all the French railway nets were destroyed. It had to be told about, I guess not other film did it. That said the cast is OK, with a convincing Jeff Chandler but not as good as in MERRIL'S MARAUDERS for instance. The real Red Ball Express took many Black soldiers who could not fight in regular troops because of racial segregation in US Army during this period. Yes, this story had to be told, but I guess many things, details have been changed from reality.

There is more to war than just the glory boys; 95% of the GIs in WW 2 (and all other wars) are never in the limelight as heroes, but they did more than their fair share of sacrifice. My father was one of those guys. He landed at Normandy, was with the infantry marching to the Hurtgen Forest, and getting overrun in the Battle of the Bulge. He was there for it all. He might not have been a hero in those battles (he was always looking for dry socks), but he was a hero to me. He and thousands of others, such as the men in The Red Ball Express, doing thankless jobs and sacrificing a lot more than just a few days lost sleep. Try driving 30 hours without sleep sometime. An underrated film, very similar to The Sorcerer, and the French film, Wages of Fear, but a bit more traditional. Good viewing.