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lonewadhi
Reviews
They Were Expendable (1945)
Director's choice
Other's on this list have told the plot, so I won't. It is based on a true story. Ford was a serving Naval officer in a special photographic unit of the Office of Strategic Services. During D Day he was in a PT Boat off the Normandy coast with the commander of the PT Boat Squadron depicted in the film. Shortly afterward Ford was released from active duty specifically to make a film to show the sacrifice of the returning veterans to the nation at home. This was the story he chose to make, a defeat.
This film and "Saving Private Ryan" were made for the same reasons, to pay homage to the veterans of WWII, one from a veteran and one from the son of a veteran. Its interesting to consider the differences in what the story they desided to tell and how they told it.