The One Hundred Best War Movies: #94 The Missiles of October

 

        The Missiles of October  

            The war movie genre can cover a lot of subgenres.  I am a bit expansive in my determination of what movies are war movies.  For instance, I do accept sci-fi movies if they have combat in them.  This is why I consider “Aliens” to be a war movie. It features combat between Colonial Marines and Xenomorphs.  I am actually stricter when it comes to Cold War movies.  Although it has the word “war” in the name, I don’t include most war movies with Cold War settings to be war movies.  Most of the contenders are espionage related.  While I include espionage movies from WWII, I don’t usually include ones that are in the Cold War.  It’s not a shooting war, after all.  I made an exception for “The Missiles of October”.  It is clearly a Cold War movie and it has no combat.  Thank goodness.  But it is the best war movie when it comes to showing how a crisis can escalate into war.

            “The Missiles of October” was a television movie directed by Anthony Page (“Pueblo”).  It was based on Robert Kennedy’s book “Thirteen Days”.  The original showing in 1974 was popular and it was critically acclaimed.  It was nominated for eight Emmys.   Technical director Ernie Buttelman won for Outstanding Achievement in a Drama or Comedy Special.  It was nominated for Best Drama or Comedy Special, Supporting Actor (Ralph Bellamy as Adlai Stevenson), and Outstanding Writing in an Original Teleplay (Stanley Greenberg).  The title is a reference to Barbara Tuchman’s landmark book “The Guns of August”.  In the movie, Kennedy mentions the  book as an example of how nations can careen to war in spite of no government desiring it. 

            The movie begins with Kennedy (William Devane) giving a speech promising no aggression by Cuba will be allowed.  This throws down the gauntlet that tells the audience that if anything was to occur, JFK will have to wimp out or go to the brink of war or beyond.  He gets his chance to man up when it is discovered that the Soviets are secretly installing offensive nukes in Cuba.  They will be only minutes away from most of the U.S.  We then cross the globe to see Nikita Khrushchev (Howard Da Silva) claim to the Politburo that the missiles are purely defensive.  This establishes the format of intercutting between the White House and the Kremlin.  (Except in the case of the Kremlin, only Khruschev is ever seen, appropriate for a dictator.)  Kennedy, on the other hand, interacts with ExComm consisting of valued advisors.  What follows is a master’s class on weighing the pros and cons of actions.  In the Kremlin, the thankfully sane Soviet leader is faced with determining how far the President, who he humiliated at a previous conference, will be willing to go.  His is a gamble that could lead to nuclear war.  Kennedy, seemingly the leader less likely to fire the first shot, is pressured by the realities of American politics. Plus, he has to deal with a hawk/dove divide in ExComm.  Not surprisingly, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the CIA are pushing for a military solution whereas the politicians are pushing diplomacy.  Obviously, if you have any historical literacy, you know how this ends.  What the movie does is show you how we got there. 

ACTING:  A                         

ACTION:  N/A                     

ACCURACY:  A     

PLOT:   A                 

REALISM:  A+                    

CINEMATOGRAPHY:  B

SCORE:  none                      

BEST SCENE:  the first meeting of Kennedy with his advisers

BEST QUOTE:  General:  You’re in a pretty bad fix.  JFK:  You’re in it with me.

            “The Missiles of October” has the look of a play taped for television.  A modern remake might even do it live.  It is very dialogue driven.  And most of the dialogue is actual quotes.  The cast is full of recognizable television veterans and the acting is excellent.  The standouts are Devane and Da Silva.  Devane is one of the best Kennedy portrayers and he gets the personality and accent right.  (Contrast this with Martin Sheen as Bobby who took a lot of grief for his inconsistent accent.)  I must mention that no actress has a significant role and only one woman speaks (Kennedy’s secretary Lincoln.)  But this is an accurate reflection of the government in the 1960s.

              If it wasn’t a recreation of the Cuban Missile Crisis, one would think a movie that is mostly politicians talking would be boring.  However, the crisis has the tension built in to where it can forego a soundtrack or a variety of sets and still be edge of your seat.  There are no subplots to get non-famous people into the mix.  None of the characters are fictional.  This teleplay is one of the most historically accurate TV movies ever made.  There are few significant examples of historical license.  There are some historical sources that were not available at the time, so the movie does not have some of the more recent scholarship, but even today it is still the best coverage of the crisis aimed at a mass audience.  It is a reflection of current state of historical movies that the movie “Thirteen Days”, which had access to all the records, is less accurate.  That’s because it sacrifices some historical veracity for a more melodramatic presentation.  The main character (Kevin Costner’s Special Assistant to the President) is given a much bigger role than the actual person.  I am a fan of “Thirteen Days”, but I went with “Missiles” for my 100 Best because it is more true to the crisis.  It gives us a look at both sides, so if you want to see how a crisis can escalate, you need to see the decision-making by both sides.    

            If you had seen this movie when it debuted in 1974, you most likely would have come away with the impression that we sure dodged a bullet in 1962.  And we most likely would run out of luck (and sane leaders) by the 21^st Century.  Well, we’re still around and I’d like to think that both American Presidents and Soviet/Russian leaders have studied the Cuban Missile Crisis (and maybe have seen this movie, if they don’t believe in reading).  We may not be in the Cold War anymore, but we’re bound to have more crises.  Let’s elect someone who has seen this movie.

GRADE  =  A

PT-109 (1963)

                Joseph Kennedy had been a Hollywood producer and still had connections to the studios.  He convinced Warner Brothers to buy the rights to Robert Donovan’s PT-109:  John F. Kennedy in World War II.  He saw a film about his son as a political plus.  Jack Warner took a personal interest in the project.  There would be some problems.  Kennedy had input on casting and the script.  He insisted on historical accuracy and that the profits would go to the men and families of PT-109.  (Unfortunately, there were no profits as the movie got a lukewarm reception.)  He sent his good friend and war buddy Alvin Cluster as liaison to the studio.  Cluster had been a PT boat commander during the war and had been Kennedy’s commanding officer for a while.  Several actors were considered for the lead.  Jackie wanted Warren Beatty, but he did not like the script.  The studio suggested teen idol Edd Byrnes, but JFK did not want “Kookie” playing him.  Cliff Robertson got the job, even though he was 40 years old playing a 26 year-old.  Robertson got approval to not attempt the accent, but he did change the part in his hair.  The studio wanted Raoul Walsh to direct, but after the White House screened his “Marines, Let’s Go!” and JFK hated it, he was out.  Lewis Milestone of “All Quiet…” fame landed the job, but he didn’t last either because he did not like the script or the studio did not like his cost overruns.  Leslie Martinson, a career TV director, was a big step down.  However, he was a safe choice who did not make waves about the standard, unchallenging story.  The filming was done in the Florida Keys using Air Sea Rescue boats modified to look like patrol torpedo boats.  They did not bother to paint them the wartime dark green.  The movie was released five months before the assassination and became the first movie about a President to be released while he was in office.

                Narration by Andrew Duggan tells the audience that the setting is the Guadalcanal campaign in the Solomon Islands.  The mission of the PTs is to harass the enemy and buy time for “a navy that was still on the drawing board.”  The craft were fragile wooden boats that were described as “wooden coffins”.  Kennedy (Robertson) pulls strings to get a combat assignment.  He is given a lemon with a motley crew.  It has just survived an attack by Zeros (actually AT-6 Texans, of course) dropping bombs they don’t have.  The boat will need fixing and the crew will need firm leadership.  This will be easy as the crew has no dysfunction and a future President in charge.  Their first mission is to rescue a Marine raiding unit from an island.  It gets hairy with some suspense and plenty of noise.  Later, the boat is buzzed by a Zero that doesn’t bother to strafe them.  I guess it just wanted some screen time.  (In a head scratcher, PT-109 shoots down the plane, but does not fire a torpedo in the whole movie.)  This all leads to the dark night when the boat gets rammed by a Japanese warship.  Two of the crew are killed, but Kennedy helps get the survivors to a nearby island.  Now it’s a matter of maintaining morale and arranging a rescue.  The future President will be up to the tasks.

                Kennedy supposedly enjoyed the movie, but later told Warren Beatty that he had been right about the inadequacies of the script.  Of course, what could he have expected?  A warts and all biopic like “Patton”?  The studio chose well when it tabbed Martinson to direct.  The movie has the vanilla flavor of a 1960’s TV movie.  It is a standard small unit movie with the requisite leadership arc for the main character.  Unfortunately, since JFK obviously had fond memories of his crew, none of the characters rock the boat.  There’s no tension.  There’s some minor grumbling when they are shipwrecked, but nowhere near a mutiny.  Normally, in a picture like this, the leader makes some mistakes to learn from.  But this is Kennedy.  He’s basically a saint in the movie.   And his crew is bland.  With that said, the movie does not lay his story on thick.  Nothing happens that is ridiculous.  Kennedy is no superhero.

                The cast is full of familiar faces.  Ty Hardin is the exec, Robert Culp plays a Ens. Barney Ross.  (The real Ross has a role as a CPO who chews Kennedy out.)  We also get Robert Blake and Norman Fell.  James Gregory plays Kennedy’s a-hole commanding officer because someone had to.  They are all competent and manage to take the dialogue seriously, no mean feat.  Luckily for their thespian efforts, the music was put in during the editing stage.  This movie has some of the most generic, lame war movie music you will ever hear.  It’s not often you can say that a score is the biggest flaw of a movie.  The action scenes are well done, especially the ramming.  That reenactment is fairly close to reality.  Overall, the movie is as accurate as you could expect.  Kennedy was a legit hero and his story was entertaining enough without enhancement.  Speaking of heroes, the movie gives some recognition to the coast watchers.

                I remembered “PT-109” fondly from my childhood.  It is the kind of movie that had an impact on teenage boys in the 1960’s.  It does not hold up well under scrutiny as a war movie, but it is not an embarrassment and I don’t question myself for having liked it.  The more war movies I have seen, the more the generic elements stand out.  Like the music and the dialogue.  Plus since the trend has been to deal with personality flaws in biopics, this movie has the feel of hagiography.  There is not even a hint that Lt. Kennedy screwed up that fateful night.  There’s no irony that a Presidency may have been launched from a mistake.   But then, we would not have had the movie if questions were raised or character was questioned.

GRADE  =  C+

HISTORICAL ACCURACY:  Kennedy’s father pulled strings to get him into the Navy.  His son suffered from a bad back, ulcers, and asthma.  And then he convinced Lt. Commander John Bulkeley (of “They Were Expendable” fame) to take him into PT boats.  He did well, in spite of his health problems.  Next, a senator used his influence to get JFK transferred to combat in the Solomons.  On the transport on the way over, an attack by a number of Japanese planes killed the captain.  Kennedy helped pass shells to an anti-aircraft gun.  When he arrived at Tulagi, he was given PT-109, but it was not a bad boat.  It had been in combat for several months and the crew was veteran.  Kennedy did help with routine repairs.  There was a big attack on the base.  The incident involving the rescue of the Marines actually happened a few months after the sinking of PT-109 when Kennedy was captain of the PT-59.  The boat did run out of gas and had to be towed, but the Japanese firing on it was probably Hollywood.  The mission when the ramming occurred involved more than a dozen boats attempting to intercept four Japanese destroyers.  Although numerous torpedoes were fired, none hit.  PT-109 did not fire any.  The ramming occurred as the Japanese were egressing.  The official version is Kennedy attempted to evade the warship, but the boat did not maneuver quickly enough.  This could have been slow response from Kennedy or possibly a mess-up by a crewman that Kennedy took responsibility for.  The Amagiri probably did not even know it had sliced through the little boat.  PT-109 was cut in two and two crewmen were killed instantly.  They swam four hours to a nearby island with Kennedy towing a badly wounded man.  Unfortunately, the island was devoid of food or water.  The next night, Kennedy swam into the passage to try to contact another PT boat.  Two nights later, the crew swam to another island where they found coconuts, but still no water.  Then JFK and George Ross swam to a third island where they encountered two natives.  Unlike in the movie, the natives were not typical.  They worked with a coast watcher who had been searching for Kennedy’s crew since he had seen the explosion of the boat.  Kennedy sent a note carved on a coconut shell by way of the natives and a PT was sent to pick them up.