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Fixed Bayonets! is a 1951 American war film written and directed by Samuel Fuller and produced by Twentieth Century-Fox during the Korean War. It is Fuller's second film about the Korean War.
| Fixed Bayonets! | |
|---|---|
 Original film poster | |
| Directed by | Samuel Fuller |
| Screenplay by | Samuel Fuller |
| Story by | Lamar Trotti |
| Based on | Immortal Sergeant by John Brophy |
| Produced by | Jules Buck |
| Starring | Richard Basehart Gene Evans Michael O'Shea Richard Hylton Craig Hill Skip Homeier |
| Cinematography | Lucien Ballard |
| Edited by | Nick DeMaggio |
| Music by | Roy Webb |
| Color process | Black and white |
Production company | 20th Century Fox |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release date |
|
Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $1.45 million (US rentals)[1] |
In the first winter of the Korean War, during the Red Chinese intervention, a 48-man platoon is left to defend a choke point while covering the withdrawal of their division over an exposed bridge.
Frostbite is as big a problem as enemy fire. The platoon’s first duty as a rear guard is to lay a minefield, which they do a poor job of memorizing. Sgt.Lonergan becomes trapped in it while wounded and one soldier is blown up attempting to rescue him. Corporal Denno manages to bring Lonergan back, only to have him die minutes later.
Sgt. Rock, whom everyone was depending on to get them through alive, is killed by a freak ricochet bullet. Cpl. Denno, who has an innate aversion to responsibility for the lives of others, must take over command. The final scene has the weary survivors of the rear guard action slowly file across the river.
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- Richard Basehart as Cpl. Denno
- Gene Evans as Sgt. Rock
- Michael O'Shea as Sgt. Lonergan
- Richard Hylton as Medic John Wheeler
- Craig Hill as Lt. Gibbs
- Skip Homeier as Whitey
- John Doucette as the Colonel
- Pat Hogan as Jones
- Henry Kulky as Vogl
- David Wolfson as Bigmouth
- Herbert Lytton as Army Doctor
Fixed Bayonets! was the first film of a seven-picture deal between Twentieth Century-Fox and writer/director Samuel Fuller. Fox had been impressed with Fuller's The Steel Helmet and sought to make another film about the contemporary subject of the Korean War.[2]
After having problems with The Steel Helmet, the army assigned Medal of Honor recipient Raymond Harvey as the film's technical advisor. Fuller, himself a decorated World War II veteran, forged a lasting bond with Harvey, who again served as technical adviser in the 1958 film Verboten!. Fixed Bayonets! also included the first appearance, albeit uncredited, of James Dean in a feature film.
Though the film's script is an original screenplay, Darryl F. Zanuck felt that the story of a reluctant corporal's unwillingness to take command was reminiscent of Fox's Immortal Sergeant, so Fox ordered a screen credit for the writer of that film, Lamar Trotti.[2]
According to Fuller, it was difficult to find extras for the opening retreat sequence, as many action films were also in production at the time. A production assistant was able to find some dancers from a musical and Fuller convincingly simulated the soldiers' fatigue and depression by loading the extras' uniforms and packs with heavy weights.[2]
Though the US 1st Infantry Division did not serve in Korea, Fuller named the general and regimental commander after the men under whom he had served in World War II and the regiment after his own.
Roy Webb composed the film's score using two songs, American Flag and Indiana, composed by James F. Hanley with lyrics by Ballard MacDonald.
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