Customer Reviews

Objective Burma

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4 star:		(11)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Finally--the great Errol Flynn is becoming available on DVD. One can only hope that Warner Bros. will be releasing more classic Flynn titles in the near future. Except for late in his career, when Errol's excessive lifestyle took its toll, we are looking at one of the most exciting stars to ever grace the "silver screen".

As other reviews will tell you, this is a truly memorable World War II drama about American soldiers successfully accomplishing a dangerous mission against the Japanese in the jungles of Burma, only to face the daunting task of returning to home base alive. The film is exciting, touching, sad and uplifting--and if ever there was an actor that men might follow even through the gates of hell, it is Errol Flynn. I agree that this is one of his best performances. At first, we get the famous Flynn bravado, but as the story progresses, we see more desperate human qualities and ultimately a world-weary resignation. The scene where he discovers that one of his men has been tortured to death does not really show the victim--it doesn't have to--the horror and disbelief on Flynn's face says it all.

The film is long--but even when there is no action taking place, the combination of suspense and sharply-drawn characters keeps a firm grip on your attention. You can feel that oppressive heat--the dense jungle--the biting insects--and the constant threat of a ruthless enemy. In many ways the atmosphere foreshadows another nasty war for Americans, in another Asian jungle, some twenty years later.

The DVD is excellent--the picture is very clear and stable for a 58-year old film.

I know that this movie was vilified in the UK for ignoring the huge role played by British troops in this theatre of the war. I don't pass historical judgments--I simply review the film. As such, "Objective Burma" is a powerful statement, and an excellent vehicle for a truly great star.

Raoul Walsh directed this gruelling, gritty, compelling war story, produced during World War Two, as the fight in the Pacific was still in full swing. Errol Flynn, in one of his least glamorous roles, stars as a hard-bitten Captain in charge of an American paratrooper unit that gets sent on a commando mission into Japanese-occupied Burma. They easily achieve their goal of destroying a strategic radar post, but are decimated while trying to return from enemy territory. The film is remorselessly well paced, tense, and manages to transcend the conventions of Hollywood's WWII combat melodramas: it is propagandistic and uses certain formulas, but it is also earthy and anxiety-provoking in a way that the grade-B war films of the era were not. The predicament of the soldiers -- stranded behind enemy lines and cut off from their support -- is made visceral in a way which few movies manage to convey, making this film a clear precursor to "Platoon" and "Black Hawk Down." It's bleak tone and realistic portrayal of the foot soldiers, with their dark humor and fatalistic resolve, all rings true. Highly recommended.

OK, so it does give an impression that only Americans fought the Japanese in Burma. (The British most certainly fought there, too, especially since Burma was THEIR colony, part of the Indian Empire.) I personally don't mind that at all, after all, this was a story about ONE company of paratroopers taking out ONE Japanese radar station. They did not even represent the entire American presence in that front. So I have no problem with that.

But when you consider the time this movie was made, you cannot help but admire the no-nonsense, straightforward manner it was told. Not an ounce of excess fat (OK, maybe a little, but forgivable). This movie simply means business. The language is spot on. The other reviewer's remark about salt tablets was right on the mark. (Who would have thought salt, which terrifies some people today, was so vital to some people, once upon a time?) Equipment checks, last minute reminders, "hook up", "stand in the door", the burying of parachutes, tactics, the positioning and pulling out of machineguns, you'll have to make a great leap forward, to "Band of Brothers" in the 21st century, to find something this sound, this honest. I don't know how technically authentic it was, but I know it just feels so authentic.

No superheroes. Even the lead character, Capt. Nelson, is your average (G.I.) Joe. The only thing that makes him special is his ability to focus on the mission and to put the welfare of his men above all things. Yes, during the scene where they were ambushed after supplies were dropped, you wish Nelson had been more active in saving those stricken men. But when you really think about it, what he actually did, saving those who can still be saved, avoiding an engagement when they were poorly positioned and low on ammunition (they did not get the supplies, remember), is what YOU would have done. No blind, heroic charges against entrenched enemies. No unnecessary displays of gung-ho. Even without all those, you still feel their peril.

(And thankfully, no silly encounters with snakes, scorpions or - God Almighty - rhinos as in most "jungle" war movies. I don't know where the crocodiles in the Editorial review came from, though. Never saw one.)

Obviously, the audio will not match that of modern war movies, such as "Saving Private Ryan", the current standard. Some of the props are poorly done, such as the TNT, which look like wooden blocks painted over. On the other hand, you get a war movie that is nothing short of a breath of fresh air in a world choked by the smoke of "Windtalkers", one that does not rely on special effects to hold you in its grip. Highly recommended.

Errol Flynn made several films about World War II, but two of them are considered classics. One was "The Edge of Darkness," and the other was 1945's "Objective, Burma!" While the film was angrily pulled from theaters in England because it largely ignored British efforts in the fight against the Japanese in Burma, it did a resounding business in the United States.

In the film, Errol Flynn's character leads a group of paratroopers on a mission behind Japanese lines in Burma. When they are stranded there, only one recourse is left to them: to fight their way out. The ensuing struggle to get back to friendly lines presents some of the most tense and action-packed battle scenes in WWII film history.

Note: Watch for the scene in which Errol Flynn weeps. He is watching one of his men, who has been mercilessly tortured by the Japanese, die. The camera moves in on Flynn's face, an extreme closeup. Watch closely, because the scene is dimly lighted and the moment is brief. Big tears of grief roll from Flynn's eyes, indicating he was a much better actor than many critics gave him credit for. END

This is a great restoration of the original movie and two shorts. Any fan of Errol Flynn or WWII movies will enjoy it. This is one of the best jungle war movies you will ever see. The sound effects and sets they used to give the feel of the jungle are great. Even if it is black & white you will feel like you are there. The action is good paced with a group of paratroopers going from a quick in and out destroy a radio station mission to a drawn out survival mission walking back to friendly territory. The DVD includes a short movie on Tailgunners with Burgess Meredith and Ronald Reagan and another about Tanks with Paul Tobias. These were used as propaganda films during the war and are actually fun to watch. The one on tanks is in color. This is well worth adding to any movie collection. I'm sure most fathers would love to get it as a gift.

When I read histories of the Pacific War, I frequently come across passages telling of a rage held by allied soldiers against the Japanese, more intense than that held against the Germans (though had they known at the time about Malmedy and the Holocaust, it might have been a different story). There is a scene in "Objective Burma" which conveys to me, more effectively than any other film, how that rage was born.

This is a Warner Brothers "A" picture, directed by the great Raoul Walsh, and it shows. The acting is superb, and the locations are totally convincing. The framework for these is a conventional story of an allied patrol's sabotage of an enemy radar station, deep in the jungle, and its harrowing trek back to safety. What sets "Operation Burma" apart is its concentration on the humanity of the characters within an "action film" context, without resort to melodrama. It is a delicate balance, that many films fail to maintain, and it is perhaps why Errol Flynn is ideal as Captain Nelson, leader of the patrol. Flynn's screen persona as a swashbuckler was always tempered by a disarming mildness, which not only made the ladies swoon but enabled him convincingly to reveal the human frailty behind the bravura. And nowhere else does he display this double facet to better effect than in "Operation Burma". It is said that the best commanders are those who only have to ask in order to be obeyed. Flynn is this kind of commander.

Other fine players should not be neglected. There is a standout performance by Henry Hull, as an elderly journalist whose ambition to cover the war from the ground leads him to the realization that in war it isn't just combat that kills. I also like Warner Anderson, both grim and sympathetic as Flynn's commanding officer. And the uncredited Erville Anderson's "Vinegar Joe" Stillwell is so convincing, I fancied the general was playing himself!

I like to have films representing each of a broad range of interests. For Errol Flynn, I have "The Adventures of Robin Hood," "Operation Burma" and "That Forsyte Woman". As well as any others, these three films define Errol Flynn's career. For World War II, I have "Operation Burma," "They Were Expendable" and "Saving Private Ryan". As well as any others, these three films define World War II. They are musts for any comprehensive film library.

... and it's as humiliating as hell. - Gen Joseph Stilwell

By 1945, the year Raoul Walsh's OBJECTIVE, BURMA was released, the Allied armies would be well on their way to reclaiming Burma. The movie chronicles an operation undertaken on the eve of a massive invasion of the country. A Japanese radar station near the front line needs to be taken out of commission. The air force doesn't know exactly where the camouflaged installation is, so a small group of paratroopers, lead by Lieutenant Errol Flynn, are to be air dropped somewhere near where they believe the radar station is, destroy it, and force march themselves to a rendezvous point, where U.S. transports plane will be waiting to return them to base. Inevitably things don't go as planned, and Flynn and his small squad suddenly find themselves trapped in hostile territory. They become a `lost battalion,' deep in enemy territory, their condition and chance of rescue diminishing rapidly.

Some of the best movies about World War II were made between 1945 and 1950. A certain war weariness on the home front, returning veterans, and, of all things, newsreels from the battlefield conspired to force out much of the jingoism and almost all of the martial enthusiasm that were prominent components of movies made just a couple of years earlier. Realism counts in action movies based on real events, and OBJECTIVE, BURMA is about as realistic as they come. Not convincing in terms of special effects or convincing gore - later generations of films would concentrate on stuff like that. Rather, Walsh leaves this one relatively blood free. There are scenes of violence and carnage that would tax the ingenuity of today's CGI wizards, but in those scenes Walsh simply, and cannily, pulls a tight close up on Flynn and let his subtly expressive face reflect the horror and disgust, pity and sadness we'd feel if we saw what he sees.

This is a movie that works on every level. The photography, by James Wong Howe, is spectacular. Another future Oscar winner, Franz Waxman, scored this movie. More than the music, though, I was impressed by the ambient sounds of the jungle this movie was filled with. More than most thrillers this one had me on the edge of my seat throughout. It feels like it was filmed in a Burmese jungle although, after a trip to my favorite internet movie site, it appears the jungle scenes were shot in the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden. The highest recommendation for this great war movie.

Also on the disk are a couple of fun shorts filmed during the war.

The Tanks are Coming - George Tobias, who also has a substantial role in OBJECTIVE BURMA, stars as a "cabbie from the Bronx" in this 1941 two-reel recruitment film. There's a lot of documentary to this one. We travel along with Tobias to Fort Knox, Kentucky, to partake in a detailed look at the training of `America's first armored force.' Tobias participates in calisthenics, training in gas masks, gets to fire 37mm tank guns mounted on wobbly plates, and watch as a passel of `blitz buggies' directly imperil his carefully hidden taxi cab which, I believe, he named Betsy. A nifty little Techni-Color short that was nominated for an Academy Award. Nifty doesn't mean classic, great, or even Oscar-worthy, but patriotism was running pretty high when the Oscars were held for this one (2/26/1942) and `Tanks' lost out in its category (Best Short Subject, Two-Reel) to `Main Street on the March!' , yet another short about America gearing up for war.

Rear Gunner - Burgess Meredith stars as the title character in this 1943 b/w two-reeler. Meredith is a recruit from Kansas with a clever speech impediment who begins the film, it appears, oiling the hinges on plane fuselages. Meredith's character, we're told, is one of those fellows who are `short on height, long on ambition' the armed services were constantly on the lookout for. Best of all he was good at "hittin' down crows" back ta home. Turns out he's a dead-eye killer on the skeet range, too, which lands him in gunnery school and a chance to become one of the Air Force's modern knights of fire. Pretty soon the movie has him, along with squad commander Ronald Reagan and a crew of lesser stars, heading for a place called Over There. Unlike `The Tanks are Coming,' `Rear Gunner' shows its star in (heroic) action. "Berlin and Tokyo beware!"

Objective Burma is a gritty, suspenseful account of American paratroopers dropped behind Japanese lines in Burma to destroy one of the Japanese radar stations. They end up trapped behind enemy lines and need to walk and fight their way out. Errol Flynn stars as their leader, and it's easily one of the best performances I've ever seen him give. Instead of his usual dashing heroics and cocky attitude, he plays this character with maturity and subtlety, and he is never less than convincing. The locations look very realistic and atmospheric, the sounds of animals and the swamp becoming an important feature of the soundtrack. Director Raoul Walsh paces the film well, building tension expertly and balancing the human elements of the story with excellent episodes of action. This is one of the better WWII movies to come out of Hollywood during the war.

If I was an Englishman I might give this movie only 1 or 2 stars, because for them it would be like if we were watching a movie about the Normandy invasion of D-Day in which no Americans were ever seen to participate and the whole invasion was accomplished by UK sailors and soldiers. We'd be a little upset too and who could blame us? So, cut the British public some slack, they had every reason to shun this movie when it popped up in general release in England during the height of the war, when many British families were still mourning the loss of their sons, brother and fathers in the jungles of Burma (or still waiting anxiously for news of their boys captured by the enemy and languishing in prisons or on death marches). It was not a good time for anyone.

That said, OBJECTIVE BURMA is a super thrilling movie filled with tension, fraught with suspense, and packed to overflowing with good performances by a whole troop of Warner Brothers' contract players. Raoul Walsh was a very different sort of director than Michael Curtiz, who had filmed most of Errol Flynn's classics of the 1930s. At this juncture, Walsh was just taking over from Curtiz as Flynn's #1 director of choice, for he clashed often and mightily with the abrasive Curtiz. In this film Flynn is no swashbuckler but instead plays a more seasoned, rueful part, with great steel and more than a few tears. You can practically feel the gnats in the air, stinging your neck, feel the jungle heat and sweat. Flynn's portrayal is always center stage, as the man who has to hold the whole company together even in peril, as they're lost behind enemy lines without any contact to the outside world. It's amazingly realistic and at times, thrilling.

Indeed it's so realistic I'm surprised Army censors didn't put more cuts in it, as it certainly makes fighting the Japanese sound like a bleak prospect; while you're watching the picture you're almost convinced Japanese superiority and sheer mass of artillery and personnel will win the war. It's a great show and so cleverly constructed you don't even want to leave your seat and get popcorn.

A Great transfer to DVD for a great movie. Although not the best history lesson considering Burma was a major British theater of operations and not American, the movie still provides an excellent story about the many obstacles "the fog of war" throws in the way of a group of paratroopers lead by Errol Flynn. The DVD picture is crystal clear and the sound transfer is good. Flynn's acting in this film is surpassed only by The Adventures of Robin Hood and The Sea Hawk.

It is well past time for Flynn's great films to be released: The Adventures of Robin Hood (September 30, 2003 FINALLY), The Sea Hawk, Gentleman Jim, The Charge of the Light Brigade, and Captain Blood!!! It has been a real travesty keeping fine Flynn vehicles like these films unavailable on DVD.