From the 1950s: The Bridges at Toko-Ri

1954 War Drama 

From Paramount Pictures

Directed by Mark Robson

Starring

William Holden

Grace Kelly

Fredric March

Mickey Rooney

Charles McGraw

Earl Holliman

Robert Strauss

Keiko Awaji

Here is a sentimental, exciting and grim tale of Navy fighter pilots in the Korean War.  The focus is on a man who fought in WWII and for several years has been a private citizen, an attorney and family man with two young daughters.  He is mad as hell, resentful and cynical that he has been called up to help out in the newest war and he doesn't hide it.

When we first meet Holden he is on his way returning to his aircraft carrier when his jet runs out of fuel and he bails into the Yellow Sea.  A helicopter rescue unit is quickly engaged, piloted by Rooney with Holliman as his ready assistant and good friend.  Holden is discovered unconscious so Holliman jumps into the freezing water to put the harness over Holden so he can be pulled up.  Holliman then has to wait for a second helicopter to retrieve him.

While Holden is in recovery, his admiral, March, has requested a meeting.  After discussing the incident we see that, despite Holden's bitterness at being called up, March has a special affection for him because he reminds him of his son who was killed in the war.  March also chastises Holden because he understands wife Kelly and their children have arrived in Japan, against protocol.  

March and Holden also discuss the next mission which is to navigate a narrow channel while destroying a series of bridges connecting two mountains at various points.  It is a dangerous mission because the enemy has saturated the area.  Holden doesn't think he is up to the task and is clearly afraid.  That is apparent as he fights the heavy winds while alone with his fear on the edge of the flight deck.

The tension breaks when Kelly arrives.  There's a cute segment about communal bathing.  Later, as she and Holden are sitting down to a hotel dinner, March spots them and joins in.  He becomes as enchanted with Kelly as he is with Holden.  

Before they have a chance to order dinner, Holden is pulled away to track down Rooney who, along with Holliman, has largely destroyed a hotel because a Japanese woman he has been seeing has transferred her affections to another Navy man.  Kelly doesn't understand Holden leaving her so soon into a 3-day visit but March explains that Rooney saved Holden's life in the sea and now he needs Holden's help.

Holliman and Rooney

In the meantime, March tells Kelly that she doesn't seem to know much about what her husband does.  He tells her that staying in the dark is a mistake because if Holden should die during his mission, it is much better to be prepared for it.  So he tells her about the bridges and the danger involved.

The Golden Squadron is the name of the group of men, 12 planes in all, that will go on the mission.  It is run by gravelly-voiced McGraw who treats Holden, if not with tough love, then with tough kindness.  

On the day of the mission, Holden is nervous but briefly relieved when McGraw tells his pilots that all the bridges have been destroyed without a loss.  But McGraw has decided the squadron will go on second mission in the area, a much quicker one.  Holden wants to get out while they can but does what he is instructed.  

Holden's jet is then hit.  With McGraw by his side in his own plane, he encourages a worried Holden that they will get back to the ship... just over a couple of mountain ranges.  But Holden's plane is quickly running out of fuel and the decision is he will ditch it in an upcoming valley and if all successful, he will hide until he is rescued.

We don't really need a spoiler alert, do we?  After his crash landing, Holden heads for a ravine to await rescue.  But quickly communist ground troops seem to come from everywhere. Soon U.S. jets are taking many of those troops out but more and more arrive.  At this point Rooney and Holliman arrive in their helicopter and even in my favorite comfy chair all by myself I'm inclined to yell out a warning.

  

Holliman is killed the instant he steps out of the aircraft and Rooney scrambles to the ravine and joins Holden.  Maybe I should grow up a bit more but to this day, on the umpteenth viewing, I am so displeased when William Holden is killed in a movie.  An empty feeling overcomes me... no, no, not handsome, smiling Bill.  

On a condition of him joining the film, Holden insisted that the film was not to have a happy ending, the same as in the novel.  The character is nervous throughout, pessimistic and bitter.  We're being set up the entire film for his demise.  

My ol' pal, Paul B, is right.  This is one of Holden's best performances.  How awful it must be for a soldier to know that he may be killed doing something for which he sees no backing down.  He is forever trying to come to grips with the hand life has dealt him and Holden's gift is opening up for us to understand his character, particularly his pain.  There is an earnestness to Holden that I have always loved.  It's what made him a wildly successful romantic lead and it's what makes us hurt for him when life has taken a bad turn.  

Holden had to learn how to taxi a plane on the deck for closeup shots.  He exhibited a certain edginess, perhaps because his Navy brother, a flier, was killed in WWII.  Rooney walked into his room one morning to see if he wanted to join him for breakfast and Holden was pouring himself a martini.  Little early, isn't it, Rooney said.  Man, I need this to get my eyes open, countered Holden.  They palled around together on location and Holden enjoyed watching Rooney perform in the evenings for those in the company and naval personnel.  He was very popular.

Here is one of the few films Kelly made where the action is not surrounding her.  She is just fine, thank you, in her couple of scenes but anyone could have taken such a part.  I suppose that technically her entire part could have been excised from the final script with a little tightening in other scenes.  She was certainly hired for name value.

March is excellent as the paternalistic admiral.  Rooney, too, shines in his role, somewhat reminiscent of Sinatra's role in From Here to Eternity, the year before.  He loves to fight and love and clown around and show as much disrespect for the Navy as he can get by with.  McGraw, usually a heavy, has a rather touching role as the head of the squadron who is trying to keep things manageable for his crew while at the same time trying to please the admiral.

Reliable character actor Charles McGraw

Valentine Davies provided a well-structured translation of James Michener's 1953 novel.  Famous for writing Tales of the South Pacific, Sayonara and Hawaii and others, he knew a thing or two about the Pacific islands and their people, soldiers and war.

The movie received an Oscar for special effects and a nomination for editing.  Hats off to the photography which, of course, includes some nice aerial photography.  The sea rescues (probably partly done in a large tank on the Paramount lot) held my attention.  Most of all, perhaps, were the takeoffs and particularly the landings of the jets on the giant carrier.  The tension is movie perfection. 

Holden experienced some movie magic when he teamed up with director-writer-producer George Seaton.  They first worked together in 1948 when Seaton directed the actor in Apartment for Peggy.  Then came The Country Girl (1954), The Proud and Profane (1956) and The Counterfeit Traitor (1962).  Seaton only produced Toko-Ri due to post-production work on The Country Girl.  Mark Robson handled the director's chores probably because he'd made I Want You in 1951, also centering on the Korean War.  He would go on to direct Return to Paradise, based on another Michener work.

Holden was also encouraged with the casting of March.  The pair had just finished making Executive Suite and Holden considered March one of his two acting mentors (Spencer Tracy was the other). 

Holden was also looking forward to working with Kelly whom he had never met.  He had seen High Noon and Mogambo and her many photographs and found her to be stunningly beautiful.  He also knew she had a reputation similar to his in that she became involved in many Hollywood romances.  The only difference, as he saw it, was that she wasn't married as he was.  She had just finished making Dial M for Murder and the brouhaha that was caused by her in the Ray Milland marriage was in all the papers and on Hollywood lips.  Holden could hardly wait to start filming at the studio.  Kelly and March would film all of their scenes at the studio.

Kelly said that when they filmed a scene in bed she knew she was terribly attracted to him.  It's unknown who put the moves on whom but neither suffered from horizontal shyness.  However, they met so late in the production that their affair was brief.

But luck prevailed and they were both signed to appear in The Country Girl, also filming at Paramount.  It would be an acting stretch for both Kelly and Bing Crosby but by most standards they nailed it and she won an Oscar.  After Kelly ended an affair with Crosby, she and Holden carried on for the remainder of the shoot.  Both professed they'd fallen in love and he wanted to marry her but her Catholicism prevented it.

There's an interesting story concerning Toko-Ri and Country Girl.  The war drama was filmed first but Country Girl was released to theaters first.   While Toko-Ri is an excellent war film, it's not a good Grace Kelly film.  It's also been noted that had Country Girl been made first with everyone falling all over themselves for her, she wouldn't have even considered making the other.  And as it turned out, Toko-Ri became perhaps an even bigger hit because Kelly was in it and everyone was talking about her.

Filming took place in Korea, Japan, aboard the USS Oriskany and the USS Kearsarge, at a ranch in Thousand Oaks, California and at Paramount's Hollywood studios.  Holden was very excited about filming in Japan.  He had little idea he would fall so in love with the country and he would return there many times.

The Navy cooperated fully with Paramount, apparently enthusiastically so.  That doesn't always happen especially, of course, if it isn't portrayed favorably on the screen.  They provided, among other things, 19 ships, dozens of jets and expert technical advise.  

There has been a fair share of Korean War movies and this is one of the very best.  If the point of the story is to shed a light on the sacrifices military people make, I think it succeeds very well.  The film was a great success with the public and critics alike.

Here's a trailer:

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Youth serum in the water cooler