Long before Saving Private Ryan and the notice taken of the rather graphic combat sequences, Cornel Wilde produced, directed, and starred in Beach Red which was 30 years before Saving Private Ryan. Wilde got the same knocks and criticism for his film. And he also received a lot of deserved acclaim.

The plot such as it is a study of a campaign on some forgotten Pacific island that the US Marines are trying to take from the Japanese. Wilde plays the captain of a platoon and his gunnery sergeant is Rip Torn. Wilde also narrates the film from flashback and within the film itself are flashbacks into civilian life both the Marines and the defending Japanese soldiers have. Also in Wilde's own flashback is his wife Jean Wallace whom he always tried to have parts for in his films.

The marines land and the Japanese retreat as per usual in Pacific war films and the war itself. However the Japanese captain, Wilde's opposite number Dale Ishimoto has a rather clever idea for a counterattack. I won't reveal what it is you have to see Beach Red for that.

Wilde himself plays a tough, but fair commanding officer. Two marine privates Patrick Wolfe and Burr DeBenning present an interesting contrast in enlistees. Their good natured rivalry carries a lot of the film.

As a harbinger of Saving Private Ryan, Beach Red was years ahead of its time. If you are a fan of war films, you cannot go wrong with Beach Red.

BEACH RED is an intriguing war picture, directed by and starring Cornel Wilde, who is a bit long in the tooth for his role but otherwise sound. This is a mildly experimental bit of film-making that takes a psychological approach to a battle, depicting the frightened wits of the young soldiers involved, plonking them into a brutal beach landing and then some claustrophobic jungle combat.

What I particularly liked about this film is its stylistic approach, courtesy of Wilde. Most American '60s Pacific War-themed movies simply depict the Japanese enemy as faceless aggressors or even worse as evil demons. Here, they're no different to their American counterparts, frightened and thinking of their family members back home. This film parallels the two sides throughout and builds to a moving climax which really hits home the similarities between the troops.

The rest of the film is a little slow and repetitive in places although it holds together quite nicely overall. The action is well depicted at the outset, with a lengthy beach landing which surely must have inspired Spielberg to make the opening bit of SAVING PRIVATE RYAN; the two are photographed in almost identical ways and BEACH RED's action is almost as brutal. The young cast give good turns, particularly Rip Torn, and the photography is fine. The only thing I would change is the use of still photography in the flashback scenes, which dates it a bit.

A platoon of American soldiers lead by the rugged, but humane Captain MacDonald (superbly played by Cornel Wilde) and the mean, bloodthirsty Gunnery Sergeant Honeywell (a chilling performance by the always excellent Rip Torn) embark on a dangerous mission to find a Japanese base on a remote island in the Pacific. Wilde's steady, assured, if rather ragged direction and the gritty, incisive script by Wilde, Don Peters and Clint Johnston astutely nails the chaos, horror and brutality of war: the movie opens on a gripping note with a fierce and harrowing protracted battle sequence, the violence is shockingly gory and graphic (arms are blown off, severed limbs litter the ground, mangled bodies are strewn about, and so on),the characters' thoughts serve as philosophical narration, the tone remains stark, frank and unflinching throughout, and there are poignant flashbacks for both the American and Japanese soldiers alike in order to show how everyone is basically the same. This picture further benefits from strong and convincing acting by a tip-top cast, with especially praiseworthy work by Burr DeBenning as hearty country boy Private Egan, Patrick Wayne as the naive, amiable Private Joseph Joshua Cliff, Jean Wallace as McDonald's sweet, bubbly wife Julie (Wallace also sings the hauntingly melancholy theme song),and Jaime Sanchez as easygoing smartaleck Private Columbo. Cecil R. Cooney's plain, no-frills cinematography really throws the viewer into the thick of the bloody combat and frightening carnage. Moreover, this movie earns extra points for its even treatment of the Japanese, who are shown as being just as scared and human as the American soldiers. It's this latter admirable component of compassion for all humanity which in turn makes this film so incredibly powerful and provocative.