CineSavant Column
Hello!
I start out with what is a fun photo for me. Ten years ago I gave up trying to take care of my 1966 Mustang GT — with no garage for it and inadequate $ to really fix it up, I told my daughter that I might have to get rid of it. The solution was to give it to her … she got the ‘car’ bug more seriously than I ever did; she’s about 500 miles up in the Bay Area and has a garage to keep it safe.
Once or twice in the past I’ve posted pix of the car, which I get to drive for a few minutes every other year or so. She reworked parts of it and keeps it in great condition.
My daughter loves a particular Wim Wenders film almost as much as I do, and used its title for her custom license plate. And a few weeks ago she finally got the opportunity to take a posed picture with the Mustang in downtown San Francisco, matching a camera angle seen in the Wenders movie. So here it is … it can be enlarged so that the license plate is readable. Someday we’ll get some pictures matching the angles in the movie perfectly.
Dependable Michael McQuarrie sends along a pair of timely short subjects from World War 2, one English and one American. I have to say, the speech to America’s generals earlier this week, urging them to get tough, kill without mercy, etc., was pretty bizarre.
Well, I think I need to get tough around the house … and these two training films from our parents’ war are just the thing I need.
The 1940 English piece is all about battlefield etiquette, and a concept of ‘controlled fire’ — selling the idea that only infantry action that will succeed is orderly and directed by an officer. We love the vintage voiceover guy and his repeated admonition: “Shoot to kill!”
The basic message is to not shoot too early, and give away your position. It’s also judged unwise when scouting, to just stand up in the middle of a field where you can be picked off. Since training films were made to serve a purpose, you can bet that someone requested the topic because soldiers were just wandering around presenting themselves as targets. The training film is 35 minutes long — I can see young recruits being either confused or bored. But that title surely got ’em. Here’s the link:
The American picture makes its point with the kind of ruthlessness we associate with smart-aleck Warners cartoons, starting with its sarcastic title. It’s a gem, a well-directed piece with a very recognizable Stephen McNally and Barry Nelson playing tough GIs.
McNally captures two Japanese infantrymen who have just killed ten of his friends. The prisoners tell him that the American soldiers killed themselves, by making their positions known, ‘hiding’ in plain sight, and bunching up where a single machine gun burst could kill them all. It’s corny but effective, as it gets the point across. It’s also only about 8 minutes long, leaving nobody time to get bored.
Lock ‘n’ load! America’s secretary of defense needs you ready to be tough. Here’s your link!
Thanks for reading! — Glenn Erickson