Halls of Montezuma (film)

1951 film by Lewis Milestone

Halls of Montezuma

Theatrical release poster

Directed by| Lewis Milestone
Written by| Michael Blankfort
Produced by| Robert Bassler
Starring| Richard Widmark
Cinematography|

* Winton C. Hoch
* Harry Jackson

Edited by| William H. Reynolds
Music by| Sol Kaplan
Color process| Technicolor

Production
company

20th Century Fox

Distributed by| 20th Century Fox

Release date

* January 4, 1951 (1951-01-04)

Running time

| 113 minutes
Country| United States
Language| English
Box office| $2.65 million (US rentals)[1][2]

Halls of Montezuma is a 1951 American World War II war film directed by Academy Award-winner Lewis Milestone and starring Richard Widmark. It also stars Robert Wagner in his first credited screen role and features Richard Boone in his feature-film debut. The story is about U.S. Marines fighting on a Japanese-held island, and the title is a reference to the opening line from the Marines' Hymn.

Real color combat footage from the war in the Pacific was incorporated into the film's cinematography, and scenes at Camp Pendleton, California, were filmed on location with the full cooperation of the Marines.

The film was referred to in M*A*S*H (1970), directed by Robert Altman.

## Plot[edit]

During World War II, a Marine battalion prepares to land on a Japanese-held island in the Pacific. Lieutenant Colonel Gilfillan orders the men to take prisoners in order to gain information about Japanese fortifications. Below deck, veteran Lieutenant Carl A. Anderson reassures a frightened corporal, Frank Conroy, that he has shown courage before and can do so again. In the landing boat heading to shore, Navy corpsman C. E. "Doc" Jones is worried because Anderson has been suffering from "psychological migraines" for months. He relies on Doc to supply him with painkillers to keep him going. Anderson leads the men as they hit the beach and dig in. Later, they try to take a ridge of hills but are deterred by a sudden Japanese rocket attack. Afterwards, Anderson meets with other officers at battalion headquarters, where Gilfillan informs them that he has received orders to stop the rockets within nine hours, before the next assault on the hills. He assigns Anderson's platoon the task of capturing Japanese prisoners to interrogate in an effort to learn the exact origin of the rocket fire. The colonel further assigns Sergeant Johnson, an expert in Oriental languages and culture, to assist Anderson.

Among those whom Carl picks for his task, he includes six of his most battle-hardened veterans. Guided by Sergeant Johnson, he leads them on patrol to a Japanese-held cave, where they are ambushed. But Anderson's men manage to capture five Japanese soldiers and kill the rest. However, during their return to battalion headquarters, their number are reduced. Even Doc, the corpsman who has been with Anderson the longest, does not survive. Finally, Anderson, Johnson, Conroy, another private, and a war correspondent, Dickerman, are the only fully able-bodied survivors of the patrol. Anderson takes his prisoners to headquarters, but one Japanese officer commits hara-kiri. Later, Anderson and Johnson learn that one of the prisoners is a highly educated officer disguised as a private. After questioning him, they deduce where the rockets are located.

A map expert at headquarters matches the location. Anderson's mission is thus accomplished, and Colonel Gilfillan offers his grateful thanks. But as Anderson makes his way back to the platoon, he learns Cpl. Conroy has been killed. Anderson takes the news hard, questioning the meaning of his sacrifice. In response, war correspondent Dickerman reads aloud a note the ill-fated Doc had given him. Anderson, inspired by Doc's appeal for him to be strong for the sake of those whom he survives, throws away his painkillers, smashing them with the butt of his weapon. He leads his men in another assault on the Japanese. As the film closes, U.S. Navy F4U Corsairs fly in and smash the Japanese rocket positions.

## Cast[edit]

* Richard Widmark as Lt. Carl A. Anderson
* Jack Palance as Pigeon Lane (as Walter {Jack} Palance)
* Reginald Gardiner as Sgt. Randolph Johnson
* Robert Wagner as Private Coffman
* Karl Malden as Doc
* Richard Hylton as Conroy
* Richard Boone as Lt. Col. Gilfillan
* Skip Homeier as Pretty Boy
* Don Hicks as Lt. Butterfield
* Jack Webb as Correspondent Sgt. Dickerman
* Bert Freed as Slattery
* Neville Brand as Sgt. Zelenko
* Martin Milner as Whitney
* Philip Ahn as Nomura

## Production[edit]

### Casting[edit]

According to a January 1949 Los Angeles Times, actors Dana Andrews, Anne Baxter and Paul Douglas were originally set to star in the picture. However, they were not cast in the film.

### Filming[edit]

The film used various locations around Camp Pendleton and the adjacent Pacific coast for the landing scenes. The USMC also provided accurate military equipment, such as weapons, tanks and uniforms, as well as providing the manpower to create the logistics of a wartime U.S. Marine battalion.

USMC also provided expertise by assigning three time decorated, Major George A. Gilliland, as Technical Advisor for the film.He was the recipient of two Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart.

### Direction[edit]

This was the last American-made World War II film directed by Lewis Milestone. After the Halls of Montezuma, he made films in Europe as well as other movie genres such as the Rat Pack caper film, Ocean's 11. In 1959 he directed the acclaimed Pork Chop Hill, starring Gregory Peck, his final war film set during the Korean War.

## Release[edit]

Serving U.S. Marines and Second World War veterans attended the film's premieres in New York and Los Angeles. Proceeds from the premieres were donated to various charities associated with the United States Marine Corps. The studio also allowed the USMC to use the film for recruitment purposes. On January 11, 1951, The Hollywood Reporter noted that a full company of Marine recruits were to be sworn in at the film's premiere in San Francisco.[citation needed]

## References[edit]

1. ^ 'The Top Box Office Hits of 1951', Variety, January 2, 1952
2. ^ Aubrey Solomon, Twentieth Century-Fox: A Corporate and Financial History Rowman & Littlefield, 2002 p 223

## External links[edit]

* Halls of Montezuma at IMDb
* Halls of Montezuma at the TCM Movie Database
* Aveleryman Film Credits

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Films by Lewis Milestone

Directed|

* Seven Sinners (1925)
* The Caveman (1926)
* The New Klondike (1926)
* Two Arabian Knights (1927)
* The Garden of Eden (1928)
* Tempest (uncredited, 1928)
* The Racket (1928)
* Betrayal (1929)
* New York Nights (1929)
* All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
* The Front Page (1931)
* Rain (1932)
* Hallelujah, I'm a Bum (1933)
* The Captain Hates the Sea (1934)
* Paris in Spring (1935)
* Anything Goes (1936)
* The General Died at Dawn (1936)
* The Night of Nights (1939)
* Of Mice and Men (1939)
* Lucky Partners (1940)
* My Life with Caroline (1941)
* Our Russian Front (1942)
* Edge of Darkness (1943)
* The North Star (1943)
* The Purple Heart (1944)
* A Walk in the Sun (1945)
* The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)
* Arch of Triumph (1948)
* No Minor Vices (1948)
* The Red Pony (1949)
* Halls of Montezuma (1951)
* Kangaroo (1952)
* Les Misérables (1952)
* Melba (1953)
* They Who Dare (1954)
* The Widow (1955)
* Pork Chop Hill (1959)
* Ocean's 11 (1960)
* Mutiny on the Bounty (1962)

Screenplays|

* Up and at 'Em (1922)
* The Yankee Consul (1924)
* Listen Lester (1924)
* The Mad Whirl (1925)
* Dangerous Innocence (1925)
* The Teaser (1925)
* Bobbed Hair (1925)

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