This is the War Handwavium score for “Pork Chop Hill”, the 1959 movie starring Gregory Peck.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053183/
Gregory Peck plays Lt. Joe Clemons, a company commander in the Korean War.
Actor Rip Torn plays Lt. Walter Russel. George Peppard plays Cpl. Chuck Fedderson. Robert Blake plays Pvt. Velie. Martin Landau plays Lt. Marshall. Gavin MacLeod plays Pvt. Saxon.
“This is a true story based on the book by Brig Gen S.L.A.Marshall, USAR. In most cases not even the names have been changed. We are deeply grateful for the cooperation of the United States Army.”
Technical Adviser Captain Joseph Clemons Jr, Infantry, USA.
Total Score: -94 points.
Note: !!!!!!SPOILERS!!!!!!
-3 points: GI (name of Forstman) complains to Clemons that he’s got his points to rotate out. Army says he is one point short. Showing sacrifice due to bureacratic indifference.
-57 points: Initial operation storming the base of Pork Chop Hill, 19 American GI’s shown killed.
+3 points: Americans storm first trench. 1 Chinese shown killed.
28 minute mark: Chinese bugle sounds.
+6 points: 2 Chinese killed.
-3 points: 1 American with Suki killed.
+1 point: 32 minutes: American runner going from Suki to Clemons crosses a chinese machine gun nest. Throws grenade, misses, injures himself. Throws another grenade, takes out gunner. -2 points for injury. +3 points for killing chinese.
+3 points: 1 Chinese killed
-3 points: 1 American killed.
-6 points: 41 minutes: Love company shows up. 12 men left out of 150. Artillery shell kills 2 men.
-3 points: Wounded GI being carried on stretcher with foot blown off.
+9 points: three Chinese are killed as Americans take bunker.
-36 points: Americans take command post. Artillery shells their position. A dozen men shown in wreckage.
Possibly friendly fire incident. Men are angry. Clemons talks them down.
+12 points, -12 points: Bayonet charge over the hill and into the trenches. 4 Chinese killed. 4 Americans killed.
Take crest of hill and trenches.
-3 points: American (Chuck the machine gunner) is killed.
-6 points: Radio man (Sam) and GI eating beans are found dead by Clemons.
Lieutenant from Public Relations comes up hill to take pictures of “successful” operation.
George company leaves the hill
Franklin points gun at Clemons. Says he doesn’t want to die for Korea. Clemons talks him down. Franklin joins him.
Chinese propaganda officer says they have 45 minutes to surrender or there will be a massive attack. Plays orchestra music.
Division finally contacts on radio. Can’t reinforce. Can’t withdraw.
At peace conference, chinese refuse to negotiate over Pork Chop Hill. Americans think Chinese know they aren’t going to reinforce the hill, and know Chinese intend to attack in an hour to take it. American General thinks Chinese picked the hill because it is worthless and they’re willing to die for it, and it’s a test to see if Americans are willing to die for a worthless hill too.
Attack begins.
-2 points: Suki is wounded.
Americans pull back into bunker. Chinese flamethrower attacks them.
American reinforcements show up.
+6 points: 2 chinese are killed.
The hill is won.
Summary:
I was flipping through the channels when I caught a part of this movie. I was intriqued by the fact that it kept showing Americans getting killed, but not the enemy. So I scheduled it to be recorded on DVR and scored it.
This movie really contrasts the differences between a realistic portrayal of war and a fantasy war-handwavium portrayal of war. The movie focuses on the sacrifices American GI’s made. Compare this to some modern day Rambo movie that focuses on creating an enjoyable gladiator fight in the colosseum where we are encouraged to enjoy the sight of killing.
There is one scene in the movie where the radio guy, Sam, sees some Chinese prisoners, and he exclaims, “That’s what they look like? That’s what I”m afraid of?” Compare this to the demonization of the enemy that a movie like “300″ employed to make the bad guys seem nonhuman.
We’re not meant to watch this movie and enjoy the killing of the enemy. We’re meant to watch this movie and see the sacrifices that Americans made in war.
This movie is the antithesis of the war handwavium flick. And the massive negative score reflects that.
From wikipedia:
The Battle of Pork Chop Hill comprises a pair of related Korean War infantry battles during the spring and summer of 1953. These were fought while the U.S. and the Communist Chinese and Koreans negotiated an armistice. In the U.S., they were controversial because of the many soldiers killed for terrain of no strategic or tactical value. The first battle was described in the eponymous history Pork Chop Hill: The American Fighting Man in Action, Korea, Spring 1953, by S.L.A. Marshall, from which the film Pork Chop Hill was drawn.
The United Nations, primarily supported by the United States, won the first battle when the Chinese broke contact and withdrew after two days of fighting. The second battle involved many more troops on both sides and was bitterly contested for five days before United Nations Command conceded the hill to the Chinese forces by withdrawing behind the main battle line.
The movie portrays the first battle for Pork Chop Hill, when the Americans won, rather than showing the second battle, which the Americans lost.
Wikipedia reports that during the first battle, company K and L attack the hill, suffering 50% initial casualties, later helped by Company G. Due to miscommunication, and not realizing the number of castualties suffered, command orders Company G to withdraw. By the time command realized the true situation, K and L companies were down to 25 men. Command sent reinforcements in the form of several additional companies.
In this respect, the movie is fairly accurate in the window of time it represents. Two companies (about 200-300 men total) start the attack and are reduced to 25 men before reinforcements arrive.
The French premiere was received with criticism on grounds of racism, as the character played by Woody Strode, an African American, was shown to be a coward during the initial attack on the Chinese position. I would have to say the fact that the film has only one African American character, and that character is a coward, is a bit suspect.
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