The Gallant Hours 1960

[whitehall]

James Cagney's last film in Black and white depicting Admiral Halsey's role in the 1942 US Military's desperate defense of Guadalcanal in the Pacific. It didn't have the digital action stuff or even color for that matter of Top Gun but it had the dramatic realism of the U.S. in WW2.

 

[Flopper]

James Cagney's last film in Black and white depicting Admiral Halsey's role in the 1942 US Military's desperate defense of Guadalcanal in the Pacific. It didn't have the digital action stuff or even color for that matter of Top Gun but it had the dramatic realism of the U.S. in WW2.

It is a surprisingly engaging film even thou there are a limited number of action scenes. Cagney turns in a good performance. I found the movie to be worth watching, although not the best WWII movie. I believe that are some types of movies that are best done in black white. B&W provides start contrast while allowing for scenes to be pictured in shades of grey. IMHO, this suits battle scenes better than the beauty of living color.

 

[whitehall]

It was surprisingly engaging without a lot of combat scenes. The long series of radio transmissions while Halsey was pacing around in his cabin were overdone but his time on Guadalcanal when some of the troops didn't recognize him in the dark was great.

 

[whitehall]

A bit of fiddling with the time span of the movie was O.K. for dramatic effect I guess. The Guadalcanal campaign was over in Feb. 1943 which was the span of the movie but Yamamoto's plane was shot down in April of '43 apparently after Halsey left the arena.