Cry Havoc, Richard Thorpe’s version of Allan R. Kenward’s play, Proof Thro’ the Night, depicts the experiences of nurses caught up in the Bataan retreat during WWII.
Grade: B+ (**** out of *****)
Cry Havoc | |
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As the heroine Lieutenant Smith, Margaret Sullavan heads a wonderful female cast, which includes Ann Sothern, Joan Blondell, Fay Bainter, Marsha Hunt and Heather Angel.
Bearing thematic similarities to So Proudly We Hail, which was released before it, Cry Havoc pays tribute to the strong spirit and sacrificial nature of American women’s work during the War.
The tale begins with a voiced narration: “This is the story of thirteen women. Only two of them—Captain Alice Marsh and Lieutenant Mary Smith—were members of the armed forces of the U.S. The others were civilians—American women who, until that fateful day in December, knew no more of war than did you or your nearest neighbor.”
The 13 women included two Army nurses and 11 civilians, who knew nothing of war until “that day in December.”
The feature is set in a field hospital during the Battle of Bataan (January-April 9, 1942) against the advance of Japanese forces down the peninsula.
In the first scene, head nurse Lt. Mary “Smitty” Smith (Margaret Sullavan) and her superior Capt. Alice Marsh (Fay Bainter) express their desperate need for supplies, as the men survive surgery only to die of malaria.
As time goes on, the women master their fear and deals with various challenges, tending the wounded; enduring a diet of horse, mule or monkey meat; picking up pieces of bodies; tallying the personal effects of the dead.
Cast
Margaret Sullavan as Lieutenant Smith
Ann Sothern as Pat
Joan Blondell as Grace
Fay Bainter as Captain Marsh
Marsha Hunt as Flo Norris
Ella Raines as Connie
Frances Gifford as Helen
Diana Lewis as Nydia
Heather Angel as Andra
Dorothy Morris as Sue
Connie Gilchrist as Sadie
Gloria Grafton as Steve
Fely Franquelli as Luisita
Credits
MGM
Produced by Edwin Knopf.
Directed by Richard Thorpe.
Screenplay by Paul Osborn and Jane Murfin (uncredited), based on the play by Allan R. Kenward.
Release date: November 23, 1943
Note
I am grateful to TCM for showing the film on December 19, 2019.