There may not have been a better director – that is a more reserved, honest and careful craftsman – of war films than William A. Wellman. A veteran himself, Wellman brings a mournful but not suffocating, cynical but not contemptuous viewpoint of men at war.
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Much more deliberate and diffuse than the director’s spiritual successor, the comparatively brisk Battleground, The Story of G.I. Joe unfolds at an artist’s gape, confidently easing in-and-out of squatted conversations amongst the 18th Infantry both wistful and casual.
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Following them is real-life war correspondent Ernie Pyle (played here by Burgess Meredith), who through his tenderly-typed news articles and transitional voiceovers, narrates the progress, good or bad, of this fragile, battered bunch.
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Robert Mitchum, who received his first and only Oscar nomination for the role, plays Capt. Bill Walker, a tough-nosed soldier with a hushed, comforting demeanor, but it’s Wellman’s supporting cast (as with Battleground) that fleshes out this impeccable ensemble piece, bringing a pronounced human influence, be it wicked or saintly, to every single character.
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Sprawling yet intimate, his films bristle with interaction and sensitivity, but more than any other filmmaker of his kind, Wellman makes films that feel, don’t tell. [B+]
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Great write up Chase! This is one of my favorite war films and one I often recommend when people say they thought SAVING PRIVATE RYAN was good. Wellman's films (this & BATTLEGROUND) are much more interesting and realistic than Speilberg's overrated emotionally sodden flick.
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