The Big Red One (1980)
In the Second World War, screenwriter Samuel Fuller served as an infantryman in the 16th Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, nicknamed “The Big Red One” after the distinctive markings on their uniforms. During his experiences, Fuller and his fellow soldiers fought their way across North Africa and Europe, seeing combat in Tunisia, Sicily, France among many other places, while also being present at the liberation of a concentration camp in Czechoslovakia.
After the war ended, Fuller embarked upon a career as a writer/director courting acclaim and controversy in equal measure. Eventually after 35 years, Fuller would draw upon his wartime experiences to create what many consider to be his masterpiece, the semi-biographical war epic The Big Red One.
The film follows a group of soldiers of the titular regiment as they battle their way from the beaches of Africa to the beaches of Europe. In their travels they are faced with the horrors of war, encountering death and destruction, but they also encounter hope and happiness as they draw ever closer to the final victory, all under the watchful wings of their grizzled Sergeant.
I was recommended this film by a commenter on Twitter who expressed some minor outrage that I had not spotlighted it in any of my previous war films list, an unforgivable sin that hopefully, this review allows me to atone for. And frankly, I’m glad that commenter recommended this film to me because The Big Red One is a film that I now happily add it to my list of favourite war films of all time.
From the performances of the cast to the battle sequences to the more human moments to Dana Kaproff’s wonderful musical score, I adored nearly everything about this film.
The cast that makes up the titular regiment are simply outstanding in their performances with a few standouts being my favourites. I feel that Mark Hamill, in particular, excels in his performance as Pvt Griff, whose reluctance to kill his enemy, deeming it murder, serves as one of the film’s most fascinating and powerful character arcs.
However, it is the towering figure of the legendary Lee Marvin that dominates the film as the man known only as The Sergeant, a dry-witted, cigar chomping, battle hardened veteran now tasked with keeping the young men under his command alive.
Marvin’s performance is easily one of his best, being full of dry humour, wisdom and the kind toughness that you’d need a jackhammer to punch though. Yet, beneath his tough exterior we are shown shades of a man who has an almost fatherly air to him, tough and stern in one moment, yet kind and understanding in the next such as when he hands Griff an extra ammunition clip in one key scene towards the end. The Sergeant is also a man who appears to be haunted by guilt for his actions during the First World War in which he killed a German soldier, only to be told by his commander that the war had been over for several hours, with his commander’s insistence that “he didn’t know it was over” seemingly not doing much to soothe him.
I spotlight the characters of The Sergeant and Griff in particular as I feel that they highlight one of the film’s core recurring themes, the difference between “killing” and “murder”. Griff says he can’t “murder” the enemy, while The Sergeant replies “We don’t murder them, we kill them” a sentiment echoed by a German commander who pops up throughout the film when he asked a similar question by a subordinate. It’s only when the men liberate a concentration camp and are confronted by the aftermath of the mass murder of the Holocaust that the difference becomes clear, especially to Griff when he finds a lone German soldier hiding in one of the camp’s large ovens.
The film is littered the usual battle set pieces that fill war films, including a pretty well executed D-Day beach landing sequence that likely influenced some aspects of the more famous opening of Saving Private Ryan, with the recurring shot of a dead soldier’s wristwatch subtly showing us the excruciating amount of time it took for the men to push through the near impassable German defences.
My personal highlight is when the men assault a Belgian mental asylum that German forces have taken over, with the barrage of bullets that follow the men entering the lunch hall, being treated by the patients as a minor inconvenience to the enjoyment of their food.
The highlights of the film though are not the battles but the more human moments outside of the destruction of the war. Such as a scene in which the men help a French woman give birth in a tank while using ammo belts as makeshift stirrups, or when The Sergeant reunites with his men in Africa after being wounded, dressed in full traditional Arab clothing ala Lawrence of Arabia all the while still chomping his cigar.
It’s these touches that really make the difference, adding pathos, humour and most important humanity to the film. It’s these moments that really allow you to become attached the soldiers and you root for them as they fight their way through Africa and Europe.
Now, this is one of those films in which you have a choice of two cuts to choose from when watching. For this review, I watched the 1980 theatrical cut which runs just under two hours, and while it is still an excellent film there are moments that do feel like the film is missing some chunks. I’d recommend that to get the complete experience that you seek out the 2004 directors cut dubbed The Restoration which runs just under 3 hours and is closer to Fuller’s vision for the film.
Regardless of which cut you watch though, The Big Red One is a simply incredible film.
Full of great set pieces, terrific performances, humanity and humour and fascinating themes on the nature of “killing”, this is a film that I highly recommend you watch if you’re a fan of war films. A truly brilliant work that is easily one of the greatest war films of all time that now ranks as one of my favourites.
