Film - Back to Bataan
Have recently been given this film on DVD - war films are not my favourite genre but I thought I would give it a look this evening.
I found it irritating in the extreme. It opens with the liberating of prisoners from a Japanese POW camp somewhere in the Philippines. A camp with a 'look out' high up in a tower who failed to notice 50 or 60 american soldiers sneaking up on him? I don't think so!
I appreciate that in Philippines at that time the americans were the 'good' guys and the Japanese the 'bad' guys - but - whatever else the Japanese may have been - they were not stupid!
Later -enter John Wayne - leading a troop of Philippine guerrillas to do a 'surprise' raid on a Japanese fuel dump. They were moving through the jungle as quietly as a herd of rogue elephants on the rampage. Please!!
The film makers prefaced the film by saying the events portrayed were based on fact - and I do not wish to disrespect the memory of the many who fought and died out there - but - come on film makers - if you are going to do it - do it properly!!
Had to switch off and make a cup of tea.