MacArthur
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Movie Reviews of MacArthur
Movie Review: I am proud to be the best general and I am right
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie about the military carreer of General Douglas MacArthur from 1941 to 1953 is a very good one. You may like him or not but it not important. You may agree or disagree with his decisions but he has taken them. He was a great general and he was sure that he was always right. So, look at one of the mightest general of the U.S. Army. Is is a very good movie.Movie Review: McArthur, WW2
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie not only depicts the historical points of WW2, in reference to Gen. McArthur, but includes the emotions of the man, making it a very personal human touch. Outstanding screenwriting and actors make this a "movie to own." I definately recommend this movie to all who love history.Movie Review: DOUGLAS MACARTHUR LIVES ON FOREVER WATCHED!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
THIS MOVIE WAS MORE DOCUMENTARY .... DEALING WITH THE LIFE STORY/HISTORY OF THE GENERAL SHOWING HIS LIFE...I WOULD HAVE LIKED THIS MOVIE SHOWING HIM DOING BATTLES AS A SOLDIER....THIS MOVIE WAS DEALING WITH THE MAN SUCH AS THE MOVIE WITH GENERAL GEORGE S. PATTON AS THE MAN....Movie Review: Gregory Peck tries to make sense of Douglas MacArthur
Summary: 4 Stars
The 1977 film "MacArthur" is well aware that there were two sides to the controversial military leader Douglas MacArthur, and you can almost see the makers of this film flipping a coin to decide which side Gregory Peck gets to show in the next scene. On the one hand there was the brilliant military strategist and leader who directed Allied forces in the Pacific against the Japanese in World War II and for the first half of the Koran War. On the other hand that was the vain and egotistical man who selected official photographs with as much care as he plained invasions and attacks. Most of the credit in this film goes to Peck's performance in making these two diverse sides fit together for the most part.The contrast between the two is probably best captured in two scenes involving Major General Jonathan M. Wainwright (Sandy Kenyon), who was left behind in command of the Philippines when FDR ordered MacArthur to get to safety in Australia. Even though he promises MacArthur he "will be here or I'll be dead," Wainwright is ultimately forced to surrender and MacArthur goes off the deep end, insisting that Wainwright has gone insane and heaping invective on the man's name. Later in the film, on the day the Japanese signed the articles of surrender on the U.S.S. "Missouri," Wainwright arrives, a gaunt figure after years of captivity in a Japanese prison. MacArthur embraces Wainwright warmly, brushing away all apologies and assuring the man he can have his Corps back as soon as he says the word. MacArthur remains the same man, unconcerned by the obvious contradictions of his nature.
Director Joseph Sargent frames this biopic with MacArthur's famous speech to the cadets of West Point, where he extols the virtues of "Duty," "Honor," "Country." Beyond a brief look back at his early life and military career, the story of the film begins with the general and his besieged forces in the Philippines. But throughout the film we are supposed to hear those words "Duty," "Honor," "Country" resonating. MacArthur is forced to leave the Philippines, but he vows to return, and he does. The UN forces are almost forced off the Korean peninsula, but MacArthur retakes it all before the Chinese get involved. MacArthur is able to force FDR to go with his plans, but finds Harry Truman unwilling to go along, thereby ending a distinguished military career of over half-a-century.
Which sides comes out ahead? The ways Sargent tries to balance the two sides gets pretty interesting. Both Roosevelt (Dan O'Herlihy) and Truman (Ed Flanders) have their pokes at MacArthur, while it is a pair of his Japanese adversaries who speak to his military ability (scenes that are reminiscent of the Germans doing the same thing in "Patton"). The Presidents give the general credit for his military endeavors, but those accolades are buried beneath the verbal ripostes; on the political side the rebuttal comes from actual film footage of Republican Senators (e.g., Nixon of California) supporting MacArthur and blasting Truman. Even stranger, MacArthur's aides are forced to play it both ways. On the one hand they are doing everything they can for the general's public relations, but then there are also times when they basically roll their eyes at what is coming out of MacArthur's mouth.
In the end, MacArthur is not only redeemed by Peck's performance, but by having the final two scenes of the film be the famous pair of speeches MacArthur delivered when he returned to the United States. The first was the "The Old Soldiers" speech given to the Joint Session of Congress and the other the speech to the cadets. When you have a character who has been saying some pretty stupid things from time to time throughout the film and then allow him to reach such flights of oratorical elegance, it is hard not to end on his side of the ledger. "MacArthur" is not enough to allow anyone to make a reasoned judgment on the man and his career, but it should be enough to inspire those who are interested to go read some books that can provide you better evidence for really making up your mind.
Movie Review: Cincinnatus
Summary: 4 Stars
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was a great figure in American history, a character who has been tarnished by liberals because of his supposed disobedience to President Truman. His story is truly staggering.
If anything, this movie is not long enough nor provides enough connectivity to establish a running narrative. The action (in the film) begins in 1942 as the end is nearing in the Phillipines in the face of an invasion by Imperial Japanese forces. One weakness of the movie is that it doesn't discuss Mac prior to this point in his life. MacArthur was a highly successful field commander in WWI. He was made superintendent of West Point. He was the controversial commander who sent troops to sweep away the "bonus marchers" from Washington D.C. He was made Chief of Staff of the Army. After he retired from the Army he was made Field Marshal of the Phillipine Army, which was just then being organized. All this and more takes place before the curtain is ever raised.
In any case, the movie does follow MacArthur as he is forced to leave the Phillipines and the army under his command to its fate. Once in Australia he discovers that the U.S. government has no intention of attempting to recover the Phillipines. Despite this, MacArthur manages to turn the war in the Pacific around, engineering an offensive which would take him back to the Phillipines, as he promised.
Next is the period in which MacArthur served as the supreme allied leader in Japan, working with the Japanese to liberalize and democratize its society. This is an achievement in itself and one hardly ever recognized.
Finally is Korea, the conflict that would eventually get him removed from command. The back-and-forth tug between the five star general and the President is well-portrayed and I think is fair to both sides.
I thought the acting was done very well and the chemistry of the cast does have its moments. But to really do the subject ustice I think this might have been better as two or three movies.