He who shoots from the best position and brings the most fire to bear, he's the winner. It may come out of a few other movies, ironically all of them German. But more vividly, it has clearly been informed by a close study of as much archival footage of The Real Thing as can be had. It's mean, terrifying, exhausting and quipless. There's no spunk and very little humor.
Morale is nonexistent.
It's Bill Mauldin's Willie and Joe without the punch lines, but with a lot of dead GIs and a crushing melancholy hanging over everything like smoke. But this will become evident only in time. Mrs. Ryan, of Every Farm, U.S.A., will get three letters on the same day. In a spirit of decency and in accordance with what seems to be his career-long recognition of benevolent authority, he makes us see on what basis Marshall makes his decision, and how, no matter how it plays out, it represents the best of the American spirit, not the worst. Or bring back his dog tags.