Fixed Bayonets!

source: Fixed Bayonets!

The war was still going on. No one, especially MacArthur, knew WHAT was going on. I spent a year in Korea and when I came back I asked my brother a lot about his experiences. He was in the 1st Cav which spent most of it's time running South and East towards Hungnam and pulling the 1st Marines out of the Changjin debacle after their mentally challenged commander refused to retreat and was cut off. I then began to study that war. My conclusion about this movie; it is as factual as Hollywood's movies about the Earp brothers, Billy the Kid, Bonnie and Clyde, et al. In other words, it was as much about the real Korean war as it was about life on Mars. The screen writers knew nothing about the war so they made up one. A God-awful grasping at sophomoric conjecture. An insult to the men from the 16 allied countries who served there.

Sam Fuller, the director, could sometimes give interviews that were as interesting as his movies. No baloney, and his cynicism was up front and cheerful. He'd been a Chicago newspaperman, straight out of "The Front Page", and there is a photo of him leaning back in his chair, feet propped on the desk, a cigar in his mouth, his fedora tilted back with a "press" card in its band. A kind of caricature of a hard-boiled reporter, almost a cartoon. That, for some reason, is how many of his war films strike us today -- as cartoons rather than reality -- and "Fixed Bayonets" isn't an exception. I know the story is from a novel but it might as well have been a comic book with stereotyped soldiers uttering sentences short enough to fit into dialog balloons above their heads. Don't know why. Fuller was in the First Infantry Division during the war, the Big Red One, already in his mid-30s, and he never got over it. Years later, when the war was all over, when Fuller was safely back home, he could tell interviewers that he couldn't even listen to a noise like this (and here, he'd rap his knuckles lightly against a wooden surface) without leaping to his feet. The guy had been through hell. One of his fellow sufferers was nicknamed Griff, and there is a character named "Griff", sometimes unseen, in most of his movies. "Fixed Bayonets" is the story of a platoon picked to provide a rear guard while the rest of the regiment retreats. Their mission is to engage any communists in pursuit and try to convince them that the entire regiment is present at this last ditch stand. The central figure is a lowly corporal (Richard Basehart) who is both brave and intelligent but who cannot bring himself to kill another man or to order someone else to do it. Three men are above him in the chain of command. You can guess what happens to them. There's nothing much to be said about the performances. The lines being so rudimentary, there is hardly any performance to be given. "I'll get you back alive, Sarge." "Hey! Watch it. That's an open wound!" Richard Basehart is at least believable as the unfortunate corporal. He's never been a bravura actor and that slight, stiff reticence is precisely what the part calls for. He seems to be thinking, and thinking doubtful thoughts, while he performs the requisite tasks. I don't mean to suggest that the film stinks in any way. Fuller may use stereotypes but he uses different stereotypes from the ones we expect. It's an in-your-face report of a handful of men doing a dangerous job requiring skill. No prattling on about why they're fighting. (The enemy are simply "gooks".) And nobody dreamily describes the main street in Basset, Nebraska. Nor does some illiterate from Brooklyn tell the story of the goil me met on the Steeplechase at Cony Island. They're all too busy and too scared for that. There are a lot of close ups too, of sweaty, smudged, bearded, determined faces. In a way, it's primitive movie-making, in the way that Grandma Moses is a primitive painter. The most memorable feature of the movie is its set-bound, snow-bound pseudo-location. There is no wind to speak of, and although everyone's feet are in danger of frostbite, nobody's breath steams in the supercold air. And yet the rugged, snowy set is claustrophobic and as effective in invoking an atmosphere as anything short of a "Lawrence of Arabia" epic. On a low budget, this is about the best you can do, and it's pretty good.

I have only recently seen some of Fuller's films after hearing about him for years. I have been surprised and pleased by each one. "Fixed Bayonets!" Is a great example of how Fuller made the Hollywood system of the time work for him simply because he got films done on time and on budget, (I think). What would have been either a "GungHo" movie or a trite rehash of "Red Badge of Courage" becomes an involving and action packed story of a man becoming a soldier and leader, something Fuller had first hand experience of in WWII. If you have heard the expression "dogface" applied to a soldier and wondered what it meant this picture will provide your answer. Fuller uses the closeup in just the right amount and just the right time here, and the closeups put the finishing touch on each of the characters, all of whom are distinct and varied. Instead of seeing soldiers similar to others films, these men come across somebody you might know as a regular guy. Anyone interested in putting stories on the screen should see Sam Fuller's work.

I saw this movie on the AMC movie channel, (cable). Had to be in 1997 or 98, I'm not that sure but I do know it was just before Saving Pvt. Ryan came out and AMC was playing all these war movies on Memorial day. I never saw this movie before so I started watching and from the first scene of the General jamming a big hunk of chew in his mouth I knew this would be a good movie. Well need-less to say it just got better. I only wish film makers today, or should I say movie exec's had the stones to make these kind of movies. No message, just a good story about men in combat doing the task that that job requires. A warriors story about warriors - Great job Sam. I was able to tape it too, so I have it to view anytime - what a treat.

Fixed Bayonets completes director Samuel Fuller's one-two of 1951 movies about the Korean War, the other being the equally (maybe even slightly better) gritty and gripping The Steel Helmet. For those unfamiliar with Fuller's style, let's just say it is as far removed as possible from what Hollywood passes for war movies the past 20 years. No sentimentality and schmaltz here, just a straight-forward and fine-tuned soldier movie, from the boys, for the boys. Fuller, a war veteran himself, takes a no-frills, realistic approach. With a tight script that weaves themes of courage and confronting one's fears into superb suspense and action scenes that have stood the test of time admirably, Fixed Bayonets does exactly what it says on the cover. The miniature work is decent enough and the studio backlot that passes for the Korean mountains completes the illusion without distractions. It's still a low-budget b-movie but it's holding well at the seams. The acting is all-around solid with Gene Evans once again stealing the show as the gruffy, no-nonsense Sgt. Rock. Having worked as a journalist for New York newspapers in his younger years, Fuller understands the importance of story above all. Sure, he's not exactly the epitome of subtle - the inner monologues for example should have been avoided altogether. But I'm willing to ignore that because his movies have a sense of urgency and conviction that is hard to find: he's a man with a story to tell, he grabs you by the shoulder and says "this is how it happened, now watch this". And "this" is not about the politics or dramatization of war but war itself, men killing other men in some snowy hills in the middle of nowhere.

And I am afraid that I cannot imagine why. It really is a genuinely dire and exceptionally boring film. In some ways it is reminiscent of early science fiction when every set had been knocked up on a Hollywood back lot out of whatever was lying around. From the minuscule and unconvincing set (snipers seem to be about ten meters away) apparently made of plaster, to the actors who are also apparently made of plaster with "amusing" stereotypes painted thinly on top, to the oddly warm pool in a frozen cave, to the survival of the cast uninjured when medium artillery shells burst a few meters away on open ground, and finally the awful script that reads like a training manual more than a film.... I really cannot say how dull this is. Even the opportunity to see whether the young James Dean survived wasn't enough to keep me watching for more than an hour. This really is one to be avoided at ALL costs.

Here is the OTHER of Sam Fuller's classic Korean War films - the other is "The Steel Helmet", arguably the better of the two - which now thanks to the miracle of DVD will get the wider audience, I pray, which it so richly deserves. The AMAZON site, of course, for this masterpiece has some nice comments, too, and you can get the DVD there at a good price. I recommend this one as the other one to veterans of combat infantry units, who aren't stuck in the "puppets and stew-meat" mentality of the puerile Steven Spielberg, who tries to blend "Combat!" TV episodes with Tom Savini makeup effects in "Saving PVT Ryan". RFuller's depth of characterization and his shades of meaning in his magnificent closeups are just a ten thousand yard stare better than 99% of the stuff that passes for 'war' movies. So, pretend you are a ten-year old boy, get Fuller's Korean War movies, and prepare to be shocked.

This film is about a small group of soldiers who are given the unenviable task of slowing down the oncoming Korean/Chinese army in order to allow the rest of the army to bid a hasty retreat. It is assumed that few, if any, of these brave men will survive and it's all a matter of digging in and waiting for the inevitable. Writer/Director Sam Fuller was the first to make a Korean War film when he made STEEL HELMET. This film was made with a minuscule budget, yet was a terrific war film due to his excellent touch--along with acting of wonderful roguish actors, such as Gene Evans. Well, only months after creating this film, Fuller is back with FIXED BAYONETS! and in many, many ways the film is highly reminiscent of the earlier film. Both featured a small group of brave American soldiers who have become separated from the rest of the army. As a result, they are forced to make a brave stand against the odds. And, like STEEL HELMET, you see little bits and pieces about each man--often just before they are killed. Of the two films, I definitely preferred STEEL HELMET because it managed to do so much with the tiniest budget and because it seemed more original. FIXED BAYONETS! was almost like a retooling of the original format. FIXED BAYONETS! had a larger budget and cast than the previous film, though it still was a very economically made film--mostly due the use of character actors instead of big-name stars. Once again, the exceptional Evans was on hand to play, what else, a battle-hardened and wise non commissioned officer. Richard Basehart, a wonderful actor, played co-lead with Evans and that was a good thing, as he was as capable as any actor in Hollywood but was still relatively unknown (i.e., cheap). Look closely, and you might spot James Dean in a small role and there are many other exceptional actors that give the film lots of color and gritty realism. Because of all these factors, FIXED BAYONETS! is still a very good film and Fuller is really in his element with these war films--probably because he lived the life himself during WWII. No major surprises--just a realistic, simple and effective war film.

This Korean war(1951-1953) drama is the fare of American GIs in Korea early 1951 and stands as one of the best warlike film . A band of Chinese troops follows a soldiers group posing as a regiment. Then, they take refuge into a cave stronghold but the group is besieged. They simply do their best to survive a terrifying situation. But the superiors are murdered and the corporal Demmo takes command. The film is dedicated to the queen of battles-the United States Infantry. The producers give grateful thanks to the Department of the Army for its encouragement , advice and active cooperation in the preparation and production of this picture. The film is based on true events, a Chinese communist offensive formed by 350.000 soldiers who vanquished 8º Army commanded by Ridgway and withdraw across southern. Posteriorly, American Army and UN multi-national troops undergo a contra-offensive and retrieve lost territory until 38 parallel. This is a conventional story bolstered considerably by director Fuller's flair for warlike drama and action. Dark and thoughtful and hurriedly made, the movie gains strength as it goes on, and shows a tremendous grasp of the tale as an unit. Excellent performance by male leads, boasting and most restrained acting by Richard Basehart as the corporal taking the command responsibility. Top-notch Gene Evans as brave sergeant and excellent secondaries, Craig Hill, Skip Homeier, Michael O'Shea and appearance an uncredited James Dean. Samuel Fuller's most fluid and strongest film-making lies in his war pictures from ¨Steel helmet,Fixed bayonets, Merril's marauders, Hell and high water, and specially : Big red one¨ all are tremendously exciting and stirring. Rating : Better than average. Well worth watching.