Jóvenes y valientes

20 years after Guadalcanal Diary, Bendix and Jaeckel are reunited for one of the most tired and cliched war movie scripts I've ever been unfortunate enough to have to sit through, The pacing is glacial. The cliches are ridiculous and the three main footsoldiers range between about 42 and 55 years in age -- in Korea! Why even make a Korean War movie in 1963 if you have nothing new to say? If this film had anything to say, it would be hard to find it amidst all the cliches. Manuel Padilla Jr. does a decent enough job keeping Han from being too syrupy. And, Bendix, Calhoun, and Jaeckel are all certainly earnest enough. The production values are shoddy, and Jaeckel looks embarrasses in every scene in which he appears.

I nominate this hideous fiasco for the IMDB bottom 100.

A.C. Lyles who is primarily known as a producer of B westerns utilizing players past their prime years decided to go in for B Korean War film which combines escaping GI POWS with a good old fashioned boy and his dog story in The Young And The Brave. The results are less than gratifying.

The trio of escaping GIs are Rory Calhoun, William Bendix and Robert Ivers. Bendix is really looking way too old to be a convincing combat soldier and in fact he was in his middle Fifties. A friendly Korean farmer and wife help them out which causes their deaths, but their son played by Manuel Padilla and his adopted German Shepherd dog escape with the soldiers. The kid and the dog prove most useful like Rusty and Rin Tin Tin.

The location for the film looks a whole lot like many a western was shot there and I suspect A.C. Lyles went to familiar turf to shoot this film. All the players look like they've really got no conviction in this project.

Maybe A.C. should have stuck to westerns.

What can you say about a movie that has a Mexican playing a Korean kid, that looks as if it were shot on somebody's farm somewhere, and that dredges up every cliche out of every mediocre war movie ever made. Amazingly, this cheap junk has a pretty good cast (Rory Calhoun, William Bendix, Richard Jaekal, Richard Arlen and John Agar). However, a movie that has Calhoun yelling, "Our planes are coming in," and diving to the ground, without ever LOOKING at the sky, is pretty bad, by just about anybody's standards.

Movie isn't anything fantastic but it does contain many many scenes of Rory Calhoun standing and walking as if his life depends on it--and given that he's being chased by North Koreans who are ready and eager to kill him at the drop of a hat--it certainly does.

I can't really fault anything that happens in the film--its literally something that came on TCM when i wasn't really paying attention, looked up the synopsis of the film and who was in it and ended up watching it mainly because it looked like it was Rory Calhoun Standing and Walking The Motion Picture--which it kind of was.

Would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to see Rory Calhoun in all his standing and walking glory. (but to be honest with you i'm positive he's stood and walked in better films then this before..he must have right?)

In the 1960s, producer A. C. Lyles had a terrific track record with making westerns. While few had big budgets or made tons of money, they were very successful and filled a niche. They also usually also rehabilitated the image of otherwise forgotten old-time actors he hired for his 'Geezer westerns' (not my term), such as Richard Arlen, Barry Sullivan, Wendell Corey, John Ireland, Dana Andrews, and Pat O'Brian. These guys were all good actors but older as well...and apart from the Lyles films, they often had trouble finding work. Now I am not saying these are great or must-see films for most viewers, but they are great films for up-and-coming filmmakers to watch in order to see how to economically make a fine movie.

"The Young and the Brave" is a bit of a departure for Lyles, as it's not a western but a war picture. It features one of his favorite leading men, Rory Calhoun in the lead. It also features a past his prime William Bendix...in one of his last films.

Three American soldiers become stranded behind enemy lines during the Korean War and they are wandering about...trying to find their way home. They come upon a boy and his dog who are also lost and the five join forces. But they must evade the enemy and keep that dog quiet in order to have any chance.

At the outset, I saw two problems with the movie. First, the Korean kid is obviously a Hispanic kid...and you wonder why they didn't find an Asian child for the role. Second, while I like Lyles hiring older actors past their prime, William Bendix looked way too old to be a G. I.! Rory Calhoun isn't young but is believable in his role as a sergeant.

So despite these problems is the film any good? Well, there are a few more problems I noticed as the film progressed. For example, they are supposed to be behind enemy lines but when they find a baby pig, they have a cookout. Wouldn't they want to NOT light a fire in such a situation?? Also, the dog keeps barking and barking...and you can't help but wonder why they kept this animal with them if they are trying to sneak back undetected. So, logic isn't a strongpoint in this movie!

Overall, if you ignore the logical errors and poor casting in a couple cases, the film isn't bad...more of an inconsequential time-passer for the most part. There are certainly better Korean War movies, such as "The Steel Helmet" or "Pork Chop Hill".