Hell's Horizon

Due to adverse weather conditions, a small squadron of bomber pilots and their crews stationed in Okinawa during the Korean War have no choice but to sit in their makeshift barracks while awaiting orders. To that effect, one young, enlisted man named "Buddy Lewis" (Larry Pennell) tries to spend as much time with one of the local women by the name of "Sami" (Marla English), who clearly likes him as well. One particular problem, however, is that an officer he works with named "Captain John Merrill" (John Ireland) also fancies Sammi and thinks nothing of abusing his rank to take advantage of the situation. Another potential situation involves another bomber crew member named "Sergeant Al Trask" (Hugh Beaumont), who is experiencing marital difficulties while stationed overseas, and it's affecting his morale to quite an extent. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that this was an adequate Korean War movie, which started slowly but improved about halfway through. Admittedly, the casting of Marla English as the Japanese love interest wasn't entirely convincing; however, aside from that, this turned out to be an adequate B-movie, and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

I am not the most politically correct person out there, but sometimes you certainly can understand folks being upset at a film. Take "Hell's Horizon", a movie set in the Korean War. The female lead (Marla English) is supposed to be Korean....but she seems about as Korean as a Taco Bell! She's obviously a Caucasian and they made no attempt to get her to look or sound Asian. The same can be said about some of the other 'Koreans'...folks who, in some cases, have painted kin and black wigs! The result of which is just stupid....as well as offensive...but mostly stupid.

So is the movie worth seeing despite all this foolishness? Not especially. The first portion of the film is particularly hard to get past....as the 'soldiers' seemed about as professional as the Three Stooges and it was hard to believe these were America's finest! Terrible writing is the problem with all this. And, sadly, the stupid dialog simply continues until this dopey film reaches the end. The folks who fought in this war deserved better than this drivel.

A. flight crew goes on an unescorted bombing run on the bridges over the Yalu River during the Korean War.

It's an interesting cast, with John Ireland, William Schallert, Hugh Beaumont, and Bill Williams in the crew. One of the problems with it is that it fits neatly into the World War Two Flyer Squadrom genre of the period. Change a few lines of dialogue, and convert Marla English from an Okinawan to a Scottish lassie, and you have a decent movie of the previous war. Since most of it is shot on a stage decorated like a bomber's cockpit, it's clearly a very cheap feature, with little to recommend it.

This time it is the poster that is a bit misleading - it suggests a sultriness that is completely lacking from this documentary style tale of an American bombing crew during the Korean War. John Ireland leads the cast as the rather obnoxious "Capt. Merrill" tasked with a mission to destroy a crucial bridge over a river. The film depicts their efforts and their more perilous and suspenseful return journey with fuel gushing from an hole in the wing. Marla English ("Sami") provides what little glamour this dryly produced wartime drama allows, and though it does feature some interesting actuality footage, this film is all a bit on the flat side with little to distinguish it.

This is not just a B-feature with second rate actors making the best of a dreary story about bombing in bad weather and meeting with disaster, but actually a very interesting drama with many significant ingredients. Perhaps the most interesting thing about this film is the music, as this film introduced Chet Baker, and he plays the trumpet quite a lot in the beginning. John Ireland makes a good job as the "true grit" captain, and all the other actors are excellent as well. This group of fliers are stationed on Okinawa in 1952 and having a dull time, when they get the assignment of bombing a strategic bridge in North Korea, because this is the Korea war. The mission is carried out with looming complications and some unnecessary risk-taking, and there are casualties. So there is a significant tragic element as well. But it's a first class drama, although generally brushed aside and neglected as second rate, but it will hold a position on par with the two John Wayne aircraft disaster films some years earler, but it's Chet Baker and that trumpeter that you will remember.