Je suis un nègre

If this curious little drama lived up to its intentions,it might have been one of the important war films. It was great in its premise with its performances and all,but it falls far short and is little more than a footnote in Hollywood's attempts to deal with American racism. Director Mark Robson starts out with two strikes against him. First off,Carl Foreman's script is based on Arthur Laurents's curiously contrived stage play. Second,Laurents's play is about anti-Semitism,and though it is easy to say that all bigotry springs from one source,discrimination against black people is different from discrimination against Jewish people. To claim that they are the same misunderstands both.

The action takes place on a nameless islands in the Pacific during World War II. In the opening scenes,a psychiatrist(Jeff Corey)tries to find out how Peter Moss(James Edwards),a black soldier,came to be paralyzed from the waist down. Moss is also amnesiac and so he can't remember what happened to him on his last mission. Major Robinson(Douglas Dick),and Mingo(Frank Lovejoy)tell the doctor what they know. They say that it was a reconnaissance patrol to an island held by the Japanese. Robinson picked Mingo,Finch(Lloyd Bridges),and T.J. Everett (Steve Brodie) to "volunteer" from his outfit. He had recruited Moss,an engineer from another division,to make maps of the island. Robinson was then surprised to learn that Moss was "colored." T.J. is openly racist,but it turns out that Finch and Moss are old pals from high school,where they played basketball together. Tensions within the group rise to the surface and explodes as soon as they're dropped on the island to face the enemy. And against each other.

Neither the depiction of jungle warfare nor the racial attitudes are remotely believable. Men on sentry duty at night chatter away like schoolchildren and smoke cigarettes constantly. T.J.'s expressions of racism and Moss's reactions are equally simplistic and false. And when,finally,the reasons for the paralysis are revealed,audiences today will groan in disbelief,which shocked audiences who went to see this picture in 1949. The resolution of the conflicts piles improbability upon improbability. That said,the filmmakers to deserve credit for addressing racial issues at a time when the entertainment industry generally ignored them,and when segregation was the law of the land. The year 1949 introduced not only this picture,but also another picture,Elia Kazan's "Pinky" that also address the issue of racism and segregation as well. As with "Home Of The Brave",the active recruitment of black soldiers,sailors,and airmen during World War II played a huge part in changing that,and the stories of that change have yet to be fully told. This movie was a small first step in addressing the issue of racism in America during the 1940's.

Wow, I would've never seen this movie on my own, but a friend invited me over to watch it on his tape, and I was just blown away. Even though it takes place during action in World War II, this is really much more of a character study than a war movie. Although the relationship between James Edwards and his comrades, especially Lloyd Bridges, who is also really good, is the core of this movie, the actor who plays Mingo (Frank Lovejoy) steals the film with a magnificent performance. I liked this a lot more than Saving Private Ryan.

To correct a previous commentary... "The Big Red One" is the 1st Infantry Division. The "Red Ball Express" was the name given to the truck convoys. My own opinions of the film: I think a movie like this needs to be appreciated within the context of the time period it was made. Considering that the country then was barely taking baby steps into the civil rights movement, the subject was handled pretty well. It sent it's message without being preachy or patronizing. A great cast also helps it make a worthwhile movie to watch. It's too bad that James Edwards died several years later while still relatively young. He might've made a real breakthrough to some leading roles.

Decades ahead of its time! Years before the services are integrated, a black soldier is sent on patrol with an all white squad. More than just a story of racial tension in combat, this is a character study, a study of the true inner feelings of men in war, and bigotry that was and has been a way of life for so long. Edwards and Bridges win the acting honors here...however the entire cast deserves kudos for having the guts to participate in a picture that was obviously not received well in all parts of the U.S. This one will have you on the edge of your chair and near tears on occasion-guaranteed.

Home of the Brave, for its time, was considered daring as it brought racism to the big screen in a setting of war. James Edwards gives a sterling performance as Peter Moss, a Black man chosen to go on a dangerous mission with 4 white soldiers. The war becomes secondary to the characters and how they react to one another. Lloyd Bridges as "Finch" is excellent as is Frank Lovejoy as "Mingo". This is a fine effort and will keep you on the edge of your seat just watching the tensions rise and fall.