Marine Raiders

A group of Marines fights the Japanese in Guadalcanal. Maj. Steve Lockhart (Pat O'Brien) tries to guide Capt. Dan Craig (Robert Ryan) through the difficult times. While on leave, Craig meets Lt. Ellen Foster (Ruth Hussey).

This was released a year before the end of the war in the Pacific. It is light at times with the comedy and the romance. There is war footage but it seems intent on rounding out the story with romantic melodrama and comedic scenes. The actors do get an action-packed ending although the miniatures do look fake next to the real thing. The studio set is fine for what it is. This is fine war melodrama.

While Pat O'Brien's films often lacked realism, he was a fun actor to watch and his films almost never failed to entertain. Robert Ryan was also extremely entertaining (but a bit underrated) but a different sort of actor--much more believable and ordinary (in a good way). With both these wonderful actors in the film, it's no surprise that I'd watch this film!

As far as the film goes, it is a pretty standard WWII action film. It chronicles a group of Marines through some nameless engagements as well as a romance between Ryan and Ruth Hussey--who, inexplicably, was cast as an Australian--though she hadn't a trace of the proper accent. Nothing great here, but competently done. Oh, and despite Ryan receiving second billing, clearly he's the leading man here, though O'Brien was the household name--thus the billing. Worth seeing but not necessary unless you are a Robert Ryan fan.

I was bored during the watching of this film, because it remains a propaganda war film from Hollywood and destined to promote the US Army. You have Robert Ryan and Pat O'Brien, so it's not totally useless and I expected far far more footage stock shots in this war fikm, totally predictable. I sometimes used the fast forward button on my VCR - yes I only got it in my library in VHS, from the late eighties, and I totally forgotten it. I can understand why now. Harold Schuster is also a director from whom I tracked the movies down. But he made more interesting films: DRAGONWELLS MASSACRE or LOOPHOLE for instance or JACK SLADE and RETURN OF JACK SLADE. His last part of career, I ignored his first one, including some FLICKA adventures. Rubbish....

The last film Robert Ryan made at RKO before he temporarily quit movies for the real thing. It benefits from photography by later film noir maestro Nicholas Musuraca, with whom Ryan would work again under more auspicious circumstances (and also contains a fleeting appearance by Martha MacVickers, soon to play psychotic nympho Carmen Sternwood in 'The Big Sleep').

Although Pat O'Brien's officially the star it's Ryan who carries the film, and it was already clear he was no ordinary hunk.

U. S. Marine Corps Major Steve Lockhart (Pat O'Brien) and Captain Dan Craig (Robert Ryan) survive the battle of Guadalcanal. Dan falls for Lt. Ellen Foster (Ruth Hussey) during a furlough in Australia, but both he and Steve get sent to the new Marine training facility back in the U. S. After a period of time spent training new recruits, they all look forward to taking the fight to the Japanese once again. Also featuring Frank McHugh, Barton MacLane, Richard Martin, Martha Vickers, Russell Wade, Robert Andersen, Cliff Clark, Selmer Jackson, and Blake Edwards.

Much of this is unexceptional wartime morale boosting, but there were a few sections that I liked, such as the various training bits, including a tour of the base kitchen, a class on edible plants and insects of the Pacific islands, and a class teaching the Japanese language, which is something certainly useful but that I don't recall seeing in other movies of the sort. I also liked the final battle sequences. The director made the unusual decision to film both this and the scenes at the beginning as night scenes, which may have been a cost-cutting measure, but it added some atmosphere, too. Shortly after filming was completed, Robert Ryan joined the Marine Corps for real and didn't appear in another movie for three years.