AniInterview Sorry, this movie sucks

Hayden Kane There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Daniel Michael O'Conail --I don't have much to add about the positive aspects about what this movie *says*. I happen to agree, and that's all well and good. What I would like to mention as far as a *technical* review goes is that the attention to detail is quite remarkable. This is the first time I've seen a G43 rifle used in a WWII movie. Additionally, the *sounds* of the firearms are different, which is something that is often missed in a production. When people creep around while being shot at, they look like they have actually been shot at.I've read that this movie was comprised largely of actual 442 veterans, which takes it from being a matter of "Interesting Public Domain" to being something of a National Treasure, in terms of visual history.

Walt Levinson Others have said it quite well -- an otherwise routine war film with the all-too-familiar stock characters (the stuffy officer who eventually loosens up, the belly-aching enlisted man, the bigoted sergeant, the lovable underdog, the kid brother) spiced up by a very intriguing and little-known story about a regiment made up entirely of Japanese-American volunteers. The film-makers deserve praise for making their points with humor rather than "speechifying." Look fast for The Six Million Dollar Man's Oscar Goldman (Richard Anderson) as the officer struggling with the Japanese names in the roll call and Hogan's Heroes' Sgt. Schultz (a younger, much leaner and almost unrecognizable John Banner) as the surrendering German officer stunned to be captured by Asian soldiers.

bkoganbing Van Johnson who was MGM's all American GI in many a World War II film, co-stars with a bunch of veterans from 442 Division which was a regiment made up of Japanese-Americans who chose this over internment in the various camps set up for them. The most distinguished member of this regiment is current United States Senator Daniel K. Inouye who lost an arm in Italy during that campaign.After training the 442nd was assigned to Italy after the Salerno landings, took part in the campaign for Rome, and then was part of the invasion force into Southern France that occurred in August of 1944.Johnson delivers a fine performance of an officer who is reluctant to soldier and train with this new outfit. His prejudices, honed to a fine edge by Pearl Harbor, weren't exactly atypical of a lot of Americans back then. Over time, he grows to appreciate his troops as men and as fighters.Having all of those Nisei veterans lends a real ring of authenticity to this film. A few non-veterans were in this as well. Henry Nakamura played Tommy who adopted a pet pig in Italy and bought him to France and he was the comic relief. He made quite a hit and then was in the Robert Taylor western, Westward the Women. I guess he had limited typecasting potential because he disappeared after that.This is a story of World War II that bears constant retelling and MGM made a fine film to do it with.

akiume Being a third generation Japanese-American (Sansei), and having my parents interned in the camps, this movie has a special place in my heart. Robert Pirosh did an incredible job in getting so much information about the Japanese- American situation: the camps, the differences between the Hawaiian and State- side Japanese (Kotonks and Kanakas), the different views of the war and even using a Japanese curse word as a password! I was so impressed and pleased with the results.The movie follows the exploits of the 442, the first all-Nisei (Japanese- American) Regimental combat team in WWII. In early 1942, all the Japanese- Americans in California, Seattle, Oregon and Hawaii were uprooted from their homes and put into camps. All the volunteers were from the 10 internment camps throughout the western states. They felt that this was the only way to prove to the U. S. that they were as patriotic as anybody else, in fact most of them were American Citizens! Since they had nothing to lose, but their lives, their motto was "GO FOR BROKE!" and that's what they did. They are today the most decorated battalion in the history of the U.S. military and proved something that they shouldn't have to be proved, that they were Americans!Van Johnson is used as the "white man" foil, to show how the rest of the country looked at the Japanese-American, and he does a great job. He starts off as a bigot, but as he begins to understand and respect his troops, he becomes one of them. There's a funny scene where one of his men call him "BAKATARE",which is a curse word close to "Damn, stupid...." and tells him that the soldier is being very polite, he's bowing as he says this. This film has everything: humor, action, great characters and... truth!