Too much of everything

How sad is this?

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

During World War II, the US Marine Corps had two elite units called Raiders. They didn't last long and were absorbed into the rest of the Marine Corps. The Army had its elites -- the paratroopers, the Rangers, now Delta Corps; the Navy has its SEAL teams. But the Marine Corps decided it didn't need any elites because the entire Corps was elite.Robert Ryan and his superior officer Pat O'Brien, are Rangers on Guadalcanal. The film open with a brief, almost surreal, battle scene on the sound stage. Ryan is wounded. Back in New Zealand, he meets the inevitable woman at a party, Ruth Hussey. Before the first night is over they have agreed to be married.BUT -- and it's a necessary but -- O'Brien, who has never met Hussey, thinks that Ryan has the jitters and is lonesome and just fell for the first "ewige Weib" that crossed his path. So O'Brien has Ryan hijacked back to the states, to Camp Pendleton. This introduces the conflict between Ryan and O'Brien, erstwhile friends.The business about Hussey has to be in there somewhere, otherwise what we'd have is not a dramatic story but a training camp film. And, indeed, the boot camp experience is brought in and put on display as if by 1944 no one had yet become familiar with its tribulations. But don't worry. O'Brien and Ryan make up, and Hussey gets her Marine. A captain too; a juicy catch. The film ends with another burst of heroism on a fictional island.The movie is über-typical. You can't get more typical. It has friendship, romance, battle, and patriotism. (They left out the "mail call" scene.) O'Brien comes across as likable but already a bit old for front-line combat. Ruth Hussey's role is unimportant except insofar as it precipitates that argument between the two principals. But Robert Ryan is, let's say, interesting. He's young, somewhat handsome, and more relaxed than I've seen him elsewhere. Of course he's best as a psychopath -- those glittering steely eyes, the scowl. But this is really a decent performance, although the role itself isn't demanding. He was quite good in a few other later films -- "Crossfire" and "On Dangerous Ground," in both of them, a pustule waiting to pop.It's all stage bound except for a bit of newsreel footage. That's not necessarily the kiss of death. It's the script and the clumsy direction and editing that torpedoes the movie. The gags between the two comic reliefs are extended and unfunny. And if you want to see combat effectively mounted on a sound stage, see "Bataan" or the excruciating fifteen-minute combat sequence in "Pride of the Marines." And on the night of their first meeting, Ryan is dancing with Hussey and admits he loves her. The scene lacks conviction, never mind poetry. For impending loss, watch the scene of the pilots dancing with their wives in "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo."

(Some Spoilers) When the rough & ready US Marine Raiders landed at Guadalcanal to prevent the Japs from sending reinforcements there to their beleaguered troops a unit of the Raiders was cut off and annihilated by the defending Japanese forces.Being able to accept getting killed and wounded in battle against enemy troops Raider Capt. Dan Craig, Robert Ryan, just went berserk when his fellow Raider Lt. Tony Junior Hewitt, Russell Wade, was found deep in the jungle still alive, but barley, with his hands chopped off and crucified on a palm tree after he was captured by the Japs! In an almost zombie-like state Dan strolled into the jungle, with Jap bullets and mortar rounds flaying at him in all directions, and gunned down four Japanese soldiers who couldn't as much as lay a glove or bullet on him. Decleared unfit for combat because of mental and battle fatigue problems Dan is sent the Australia to recuperate from his, mostly psychological not physical, combat wounds.Itching to get back into combat and get another crack at the Japs poor Captain Dan was soon sidelined from his lust for war, and revenge, by meeting and falling in love with cute US Army Air Force auxiliary servicewoman Lt. Ellen Foster, Ruth Hussey. It was Ellen who for a brief moment made Dan forget about the war and the reason he's fighting it! This has Dan's best friend Maj.Steve Lockhart, Pat O'Brien, worried that Dan will lose his love for war and possibly, in being the best man in his battalion, the effectiveness his combat unit.Getting, behind the scenes, Dan transfered back to his beloved Marine Raiders Maj. Lockhart is now at odds with Dan's fiancée Ellen in wanting him, as a fighting marine, all for himself and leaving her, in her relationship with Dan, out in the cold. Like in most WWII era made war-films patriotism and one's love of country overcomes such mundane things like the girl back home, or in Australia, or just avoiding being killed or wounded that drives not only Dan but his friend Steve and fiancée Ellen to finally see the light or what its, fighting Japanese Imperialism, all about. In them taking part in the crusade in the destruction of the fascist and expansionist Japanese, or Gen. Tojo, Empire!Dan does get his chance to finish the job, in avenging Lt. Hewitt sadistic death at the hands of the Japanese, that he started back in Guadalcanal but at the same time ends up getting the girl, Ellen, who's relationship that his good friend Maj, now let.Col, Lockhart tried to break up. This all happens in what looked like the invasion of the Gilberts Islands where Dan Steve & Co. really put the hurt on the Japs with small arms grenades as well as artillery and naval bombardments, that Dan radioed in, that finally put an end to Imperialist Japan's dream of a world empire.

Great movie, true to history as I have read. I am a history buff and have read World War II history. We need more movies of this value today. We need more praise of military today. I feel pride while watching this movie. Alway enjoy Pat O'Brien movies. The music score was a plus to this movie. History was followed to the true events. See the website for Marine Raiders. We must be proud of our Marine Raiders. Truly enjoyed this type of movies. Hollywood doesn't seem to produce this type of movie today. Maybe Hollywood should view the movies of the 1930's and 1940's. I enjoyed watching AMC and TBS for the old movies. Movies like Marine Raiders makes my Day.

The jungle battle scenes in opening of this film incorporate an atmosphere one usually finds in film noir. The portrayal of Guadalcanal and the related background music tend in this direction, which was not found in many of the war movies of 1944. Special credit should be given to the director of lighting, especially relative to the deep three-dimensional effect created with the interplay of light and dark.