Land and Live in the Jungle

During WWII, many actors did their part to help with the war effort. Quite a few served in units overseas and saw action while others stayed home to make military training films. Actors such as George Reeves, Jimmy Stewart, Clark Gable and Van Helfin made such films. Surprisingly, many of these old training films still exist and can be found on YouTube. My favorite of these are the cartoons...made by directors, artists and voice actors from Disney, Looney Tunes, Walter Lantz.

"Land and Live in the Jungle" is a live action documentary designed to be shown to flight crews in the Pacific, as this B-25 bomber crew are forced to bail out over the dense jungle. The pilot, a true idiot through and through, gets separated from his men and makes mistake after mistake after mistake...showing viewers what NOT to do. The four crew members, however, remember their training and actually eat well and have plenty to drink. What does become of these men? See the surprisingly interesting film.

The only big star I recognized in this one was Van Heflin, who played the dopey pilot. At the end, he talks to the viewer...otherwise the entire film is narrated.

I was really shocked, as watching a film about jungle survival sounds dull as dirt...but it wasn't and the film holds up well today. An unusual curio to say the least.

Here's a fascinating training film from the Second War to End All Wars. In it, the crew of a downed B-25 bomber has to make their way out of the jungle. Fortunately for most of them, they've been separated from their boneheaded pilot and senior officer, played hilariously by Van Heflin. Not only did Van forget to bring half his crash kit, but he knows less than a Cub Scout would know about how to use it. One has to wonder just how making fun of a pilot was received by the men who saw this production. Was it seen as a good-natured poke at authority, or did it undermine confidence in the whole officer corps? In any event, it's entertaining, and will make your mouth water for a slice of roasted bush pig.

This is actually a good little movie. It was made as a WW II training movie, and was well done.

A bomber crew bails out of their plane over the jungle. Four of them are under the direction of their sergeant, Mel Ford, and they do very well with their survival equipment and following the suggestions in their book, provided by the army, as they make their way back to the plane and are directed to a nearby friendly village. Lieutenant Van Heflin is separated from them, panicky, and succeeds in losing his equipment. Must be a Second Lieutenant.

It's not a fiction story, but a one-hour training film made by the First Motion Picture Unit for the US Army Air Force. Using Van Heflin as the Goofus to Ford's Gallant is a matter of easy casting. He was one of the most accomplished screen actors of his day, but he played a lot of weaklings and even won an Oscar for playing one in JOHNNY EAGER.

While I don't think I could be dropped into a random jungle and do as well as the non-coms, I think with the survival and equipment they have, I could do better than Heflin does here!