The Big Red One is a 1980 war film written and directed by Samuel Fuller, produced by Lorimar and released by United Artists in the U.S. on July 18, 1980. Fuller wrote a book with the same title which was more a companion novel than a novelisation of the film, although it features many of the scenes that were originally cut. The film portrays the horrors of war as it affects the men on the front lines. It was heavily cut on its original release, but a restored version was premiered at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, seven years after Fuller's death. The Big Red One is the nickname of the 1st Infantry Division, organized in 1917. The film aired on HBO in late 1980.
The Big Red One was originally rated PG by the MPAA. When the film was reconstructed in 2004, it was re-rated R for "war violence and some language" by the MPAA.
Background
Fuller saw a great deal of action in World War II as a member of the US First Infantry Division, which was nicknamed The Big Red One for the red numeral "1" on the Division's shoulder patch.
Patch of the United States Army's 1st Infantry Division.
Plot
The story's focus is on the four privates who survive the war from beginning to end with their sergeant, becoming known as "The Sergeant's Four Horsemen" as early as Sicily. The body of the movie consists of a series of episodes highlighting the insanity and grotesqueness of war.
The film starts at the end of the First World War and is shown in black and white. A shell shocked black horse threatens the sergeant (Lee Marvin) and damages his rifle. He then kills a German soldier arms up praising a crucifix that the war is over. The camera moves away from the action and towards a life-size wooden crucifix in the background, the wood infested with termites.
When he returns to his company's deserted headquarters he is told that the war ended "about four hours ago." Killing versus murder is a theme that repeats throughout the film. The 1st Division logo is shown in color.
The film cuts to Possum decades later, now a sergeant, as he leads a squad of men through North Africa, Sicily, then on to the D-Day landings, where they land on Omaha Beach at the start of the Battle of Normandy.
The squad crosses the same field where he stabbed the German decades before, but now contains a memorial:
- Johnson: Would you look at how fast they put the names of all our guys who got killed?
- The Sergeant: That's a World War One memorial.
- Johnson: But the names are the same.
- The Sergeant: They always are.
The squad then treks though Europe, ending up at the liberation of Falkenau concentration camp (a subcamp of Flossenbürg) in Czechoslovakia.
At the end of the film, the sergeant is in a forest, at night, having just buried a young boy he had befriended after liberating a concentration camp. A German soldier approaches, attempting to surrender, and the sergeant stabs him. His squad then arrive and inform him that the war ended "about four hours ago." This time, as the squad walk away, one of his men notice the German is still alive, the sergeant and his men work frantically to save the life of the wounded German soldier.
Cast
- The Sergeant, 1st Squad, 1st Platoon (Lee Marvin) - A WW1 veteran, he leads the squad through WW2.
- Pvt. Griff, 1st Squad, 1st Platoon (Mark Hamill) - A skilled marksman who refuses to "murder."
- Pvt. Zab, 1st Squad, 1st Platoon (Robert Carradine) - Author of "Dark Deadline". The film's narrator.
- Pvt. Vinci, 1st Squad, 1st Platoon (Bobby Di Cicco) - As a Sicilian, he proves an important asset to his squad in Sicily.
- Pvt. Johnson, 1st Squad, 1st Platoon (Kelly Ward) - As a civilian, he was a farmer and a medic.
- Feldwebel Schroeder (Siegfried Rauch) - The German counterpart to "The Sergeant", he's a devoted follower of Hitler and totally ruthless with his own men as well as the enemy.
Scenes Restored
- Extended scene after the beach landing when the squad are resting and eating, more quirky scene involving an Arab boy.
- The Sarge and the 'horsemen' are trapped in an ancient Roman Colosseum, and are relieved by French Moroccan cavalry. the scene ends with the Moroccan Goums cutting off the ears of dead Germans.
- Extended Sicilian landings where the squad engage a machine-gun nest.
- Omaha beach, D-Day, extended scene that includes the whole of the company including Zab encountering casualties (this was how Fuller earned his Silver Star on D-Day).
- Aftermath of the attack on the lunatic asylum, where Griff has sex with Walloon.
- Belgian innkeeper uncovers a German infiltrator as the squad eat a meal.
- Scene showing the General giving an interview to a war correspondent (played by Sam Fuller).
- Tree shelling scene extended to include the German artillery piece being destroyed by a Bazooka.
- The squad approach a derelict castle, losing one man to a sniper. They capture the sniper to discover him to be an adolescent boy.
- The squad encounter a protest march of old Germans, who refuse to let the squad pass until the Sarge threatens to shoot the leader.
- Schroeder removing his equipment and thus ending his responsibility to fight.
Notes
Marvin enlisted in the US Marine Corps at the beginning of WWII. In the battle of Saipan in June 1944, he was wounded in the buttocks by Japanese fire which severed his sciatic nerve. He received a medical discharge.[1]
Production
Warner Brothers was strongly interested in filming The Big Red One in the late 50's to early 60's sending Fuller on a trip to Europe to scout locations and also had him film Merrill's Marauders (film) as a dry run for the film. When Fuller argued with Jack Warner and his studio over cuts they made to Merrill's Marauders the plans to film The Big Red One were dropped.[2] Ironically, the company that ended up producing the film, Lorimar Productions, would be acquired by WB and thus the latter studio owns the rights to the film today.
Sam Fuller, who wrote and directed the film, served in the 1st infantry division in World War II, and was present at the liberation of Falkenau concentration camp.[2]
The film was shot on location in Israel and Ireland, with some snow scenes featuring Marvin shot in and around Big Bear and the National Park before the four horsemen were cast.
Trim Castle in Trim County Meath was used as the derelict castle where the child sniper kills one of the GIs as he crosses the river (Boyne).It was also used as the main location by Mel Gibson for the making of Braveheart (1994).
Originally, the film was to have been made with John Wayne starring as The Sergeant but Fuller felt that he would not have been right for the role.[2]
Reception
The Big Red One ranks 483rd on Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time.[3]
The film was entered into the 1980 Cannes Film Festival.[4]
References
Bibliography
- The Fighting First: The Untold Story of The Big Red One on D-Day by Flint Whitlock - 2004. ISBN 0-8133-4218-X
- The Big Red One (novel version) by Samuel Fuller - 1980; republished in 2004.
External links
