Themes: Living With Disability, Home From the War, Great Battles
Main Cast: John Garfield, Eleanor Parker, Dane Clark, Ann Doran, John Ridgely, Rosemary de Camp
Release Year: 1945
Country: US
Run Time: 119 minutes
MPAA Rating: NR
Plot
John Garfield stars as Al Schmid, a true-life marine who served in World War II. Schmid becomes a hero at Guadalcanal, defending a machine gun post and killing 200 Japanese before he is permanently blinded by a grenade. Despite being awarded the Navy Cross, Schmid returns home embittered by his disability. After a long and grueling convalescence, he is shaken back to life by his girl friend Ruth (Eleanor Parker) and his best pal (Dane Clark), neither of whom allow Al to wallow in self-pity. The pride in Pride of the Marines comes from Al Schmid's ultimate realization that his sacrifice was worthwhile, and that his sightlessness need not prevent him from leading a full and rewarding life. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Pride of the Marines is a stirring, powerful, hard-hitting World War II drama. Actually, it's probably more accurate to say it's a post-War drama, as the real meat of the picture concerns a wounded soldier's return to civilian life. While Pride is undeniably patriotic, it also is not afraid to ask some serious, hard questions or to present war as less than a grand adventure. It really features only one battle sequence, which lasts some ten minutes; it's an amazing, gripping sequence, but it doesn't glorify battle as many similar films do. The men involved are fighting for their lives, and they react exactly as people really do react in such a situation. Similarly, the discussion about what life will be like when they return home dares to present the possibility that things will not be all roses, a rather bold suggestion for a 1945 film. Finally, the anguish, torment, and bitterness that the lead character experiences is striking and affecting. Pride benefits from a very strong screenplay, but that screenplay is helped by Delmer Daves' excellent direction. He employs some fairly experimental techniques (e.g., shooting a dream sequence in reverse negative) to highlight the emotionalism of the piece, but never goes too far. Pride also benefits from its superb cast, lead by John Garfield in a performance that never hits a false note. It's arguably Garfield's best and most powerful performance and is searing. He is well supported by Eleanor Parker and Dane Clark, who play their parts to near perfection. Pride of the Marines is an especially fine film. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Leo K. Kuter - Art Director, Milo Anderson - Costume Designer, Delmer Daves - Director, Owen Marks - Editor, Franz Waxman - Composer (Music Score), Leo F. Forbstein - Musical Direction/Supervision, Perc Westmore - Makeup, J. Peverell Marley - Cinematographer, Jerry Wald - Producer, Walter F. Tilford - Set Designer, Robert Burks - Special Effects, Edwin DuPar - Special Effects, Stan Jones - Sound/Sound Designer, Marvin Borowsky - Screenwriter, Albert Maltz - Screenwriter, Roger Butterfield - Short Story Author
The film is divided in three parts. The first takes place prior to the war where cocky Philadelphia steel worker and "Man's man" Al Schmid (John Garfield) despises the idea of marriage and losing his independence until he meets his match in Ruth Hartley (Eleanor Parker). Ruth takes no nonsense from him and impresses Schmid by enjoying a hunting trip he takes her on.
The second part takes the audience to Guadalcanal where Schmid is in the crew of a M1917 Browning machine gun with his buddies Jewish Lee Diamond (Dane Clark) and Native American Johnny Rivers (Anthony Caruso) of "H" Company 2nd Battalion Fifth Marines. The three man their weapon, beating off Japanese attacks during the Battle of the Tenaru River by killing 200 of the enemy. Rivers is killed, Diamond wounded in both arms and Schmid blinded by a Japanese soldier entering their gun pit with a hand grenade. The second portion ends with Schmid's blinding, but previously the audience had been shown how the range card and traversing and elevation mechanism of the weapon operated that enabled Schmid to accurately fire his weapon by following Diamond's instructions for the rest of the night.
The third part is Schmid's humbling rehabilitation where he has to become dependent, particularly on Ruth, who he attempts to break up with. Schmid learns responsibility through Diamond, hospital rehabilitation officer Virginia Pfeiffer (Rosemary DeCamp) and the other wounded veterans. He is awarded the Navy Cross.
Production
During the Battle of Guadalcanal, two enlisted Marines, Mitchell Paige and John Basilone were awarded the Medal of Honor for their use of the M1917 Browning machine gun against massed Japanese charges. In Jim Proser's book I'm Staying With My Boys: The Heroic Life of Sgt. John Basilone USMC (ISBN 097554610 Lightbearer Communications Company 2004) Proser tells of Basilone's friendship with John Garfield and Eddie Bracken when they toured the United States selling war bonds.
Screenwriters A. I. Bezzerides and Alvah Bessie developed a 26 page treatment of Roger Butterfield's book Al Schmid Marine.[1] Martin Borowsky also did an adaptation of Butterfield's book that was rewritten by Albert Maltz who Garfield has spoken to about Butterfield's story. Prior to filming Garfield visited American soldiers in hospitals in Italy.[2]
Garfield met Schmid during his rehabilitation before a movie was ever planned.[3] Once the film was planned, Garfield lived with the Schmids for several weeks, becoming friends with the couple.[4]
Pride of the Marines was adapted as a radio play on the January 31, 1945 episode of Lux Radio Theater and the June 15, 1946 episode of Academy Award Theater, both with John Garfield reprising his role.
Notes
^ p.342 footnote Norden, Martin F. The Cinema of Isolation: A History of Physical Disability in Movies 1994 Rutgers University Press
^ p.71 McGrath, Patrick J. John Garfield: The Illustrated Career in Films and Stage 1993 McFarland
^ p.115 Gerber, David A. In Search of Al Schmid quoted in Mitchell, David T. and Snyder, Sharon L. The Body and Physical Difference: Discorses of Disability 1997 University of Michigan Press
^ p.72 McGrath, Patrick J. John Garfield: The Illustrated Career in Films and Stage 1993 McFarland
