Runtime: 102 minutes
Directed by: Mark Robson
Starring: William Holden, Fredric March, Mickey Rooney, Earl Holliman, Grace Kelly
From: Paramount
Yes, Licorice Pizza fans, this is a real movie. Those that haven't seen Licorice Pizza, I won't explain what the context is of Toko-Ri being brought up. Based on a James A. Michener novel, this follows a ship full of Navy men during the Korean War, and after the main players are introduced & time is spent in Japan on shore leave, an important bridge has to be blown up in an effort to stop those damn Commies.
I get why some find this “boring” for long stretches, or that there isn't enough of Grace Kelly. Personally, it was never dull for my tastes. Kelly's role is naturally small in a wartime movie where her purpose was to illuminate the issues her husband was having. It may sound thankless but besides doing a fine job, you see that Holden's character Harry Brubaker is not happy that he has to fight again after participating in World War II, is worried about returning home to his wife & two young daughters, and him crashing in the opening scene was more damaging to him psychologically than physically. There are some colorful characters, from a guy who is such a boozer that he's only referred to as BEER BARREL yet is great at directing the landing of aircraft on deck, or two rescue pilots that use a helicopter to help those that have crashed.
The cast had some other faces I recognized (Frederic March, Earl Holliman, Charles McGraw, Mickey Rooney) although the most amusing roles were played by Rooney and Holliman. They were the rescue pilots and among other things, because he's so Irish, Ol' Mickey always wears a bright green hat & matching scarf , Navy regulations be damned. The character is such a stereotype, he is a hotheaded Irishman ready to get in a brawl. A donnybrook he started which was said to be a huge Pier 6 kerfuffle in Tokyo (this is when the characters were on shore leave) which is sadly not shown... but a smaller scale fracas he starts is on screen. There aren't too many Korean War movies and this can't be the best one... yet it was better than expected for something I only watched for it being referenced in a new motion picture.
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