The climactic battle in the movie was a part of the Battle of P'ohang-Dong, from August 5-20, 1950. Savage fighting broke out as the North Koreans attacked the U.N. forces, consisting of American and South Korean soldiers, in an attempt to take the town of P'ohang-Dong on the northeast corner of the Pusan perimeter. Despite being pushed back initially, the U.N. forces regrouped and eventually defeated the North Koreans, forcing their retreat. It was a turning point in that it effectively broke the back of the North Korean offensive, which was beginning to suffer from superior U.N. support and a lack of manpower and supplies.
The American troops seen in the film are from the 25th Infantry Division "Tropic Lightning." This is evidenced by the distinctive unit insignia worn on the soldiers' left shoulders, in that of a strawberry-like taro leaf with a bolt of lightning in the center.