This short, by all reports directed By John Ford, was produced by the U. S. Government to screen for returning WWII soldiers. Unlike many War Dept. Propaganda films on this era (of which Ford made several), this one is structured as a dramatic film, and could easily have been released as a 'B' picture if it ran another half hour. It's an intriguing mix of genres. The opening minutes play like a film noir, with a lonely Arthur Kennedy walking the dark city streets, narrating his meagre existence. Then he enlists, and the basic training sequences are more like a 30s screwball comedy. Once he finally winds up overseas, things settle into a fairly standard war film of the era, and while you could complain that it's excessively patriotic, if you didn't know it was an overt propaganda piece, you could easily just go along for the ride. Heavy on dialogue, light on action, this is nevertheless a well made short that contains some genuinely entertaining moments. Worth seeing, even if Ford didn't direct it (although it's easy to imagine that he did).
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