Prompt: This is the only Sinatra-directed film. How does his direction relate to his stardom? How does the film compare to other Sinatra films?
Once again in this class, I have ended up liking a film that I was not looking forward to watching at all. I guess the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" can also apply to films, because even though war films are not my favorite genre it is good for me to expand my film watching horizons. In class the past few weeks we have been talking about Sinatra and his relation to the fight against racial and ethnic discrimination, so this film goes along with that discussion very nicely. Sinatra plays Francis, the chief pharmacist mate, who is also an Irishman with an affinity for alcohol. Along with Capt. Dennis Bourke (played by Clint Walker), Francis stands up for the Japanese and defends them when most of the American soldiers who are also stranded start saying derogatory comments. One thought provoking moment was when Capt. Bourke told 2nd Lt. Blair, "I wanna whip the enemy as much as you do, not because he's Japanese but because he's the enemy." To me that is such a crucial point to stress because it seems like many people carried around hatred towards the Japanese, no matter what their allegiances were, just because they were Japanese. This film is also interesting because we get to hear the Japanese commander's thoughts, which helps to humanize the enemy and show that they are also just people who are trying to do their job and stay alive as long as possible. The truce between the Japanese and the Americans makes for an extremely unusual dynamic; it allows us to see that even when their lives are at stake the commanding officers of each country open up and become friends with one another. However, as soon as the truce is off and the goal is to fight for their own country, the two groups of men have to shoot at people that they have come to respect and like, and eventually all of the Japanese soldiers are killed. Right before the end credits start rolling, the words "Nobody Ever Wins" come up on the screen. I think that this phrase is trying to get the message of tolerance across, and say that this is a messy world and hating others because they are different from you will in no way benefit you in the long run. None but the Brave is very different from other war films that Sinatra has been in because this is the first time where we meet and get to know the enemy, and see that nothing makes them the enemy except the fact that the two countries are at war with one another.
On a completely different and amusing note, one of my friends found a website yesterday that posted the blog entry that I wrote about Kings Go Forth!
http://www.examiner.com/frank-sinatra-in-national/student-review-of-sinatra-movie-king-s-go-forth
So cool!
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