Between Heaven and Hell ***½ (1956, Robert Wagner, Terry Moore, Broderick Crawford, Buddy Ebsen) – Classic Movie Review 3402

Director Richard Fleischer’s 1956 war drama stars Robert Wagner as selfish, spoiled, rich Southern gentleman Sam Francis Gifford, who is called up in the US Army. He discovers what friends are for during the war in the Pacific during World War Two, when he rescues his soldier buddy, Private Willie Crawford (Buddy Ebsen).

Sam is mobilised as a sergeant at the start of the war with his National Guard unit. But then he hits his lieutenant, who had fired at his own men, and is downgraded to private. In combat, he becomes closer to the private soldiers, the working men he despised, and he emerges a changed man.

With Harry Brown’s screenplay based on Francis Gwaltney’s best-selling novel, this is an honest, good-hearted liberal message movie. It can be criticised for being dialogue-heavy and unsubtle with its people-before-war tub-thumping. But it certainly boasts expert handling, very decent performances and enough action to satisfy battle film fans. Unfortunately, a rather tepid love interest is set up for the hero with Terry Moore’s character Jenny Gifford, giving Moore some problems.

The main filming was in Southern California at the 20th Century-Fox ranch in the Santa Monica Mountains, but the beach landing was shot on the island of Kaua’i in Hawaii and the Fox film library provides some useful stock battle footage.

The underrated young Wagner gives one of his best performances, kicking up quite a dramatic storm, and Broderick Crawford has a field day as the crazed Company G commanding officer, Captain ‘Waco’ Grimes.

The resulting scenes vary in quality throughout the movie between riveting and interesting, but there are more of the former than the latter.

Also in the cast are Buddy Ebsen, Brad Dexter, Mark Damon, Robert Keith, Ken Clark, Harvey Lembeck, Skip Homeier, L Q Jones, Tod Andrews, Bill Elliott, Bart Burns, Frank Gerstle, Carl Switzer, Gregg Martell, Frank Gorshin, Darlene Fields, Ilene Brown, Scotty Morrow, Pixie Parkhurst, Brad Morow, Scatman Crothers and Sam Edwards.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3402

Link to Derek Winnert’s home page for more reviews: http://derekwinnert.com/