Battleground

Released Jan 20, 1950

1h 58m

War

List

78%

9 Reviews

Tomatometer

83%

2,500+ Ratings

Audience Score

Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley (Van Johnson) and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues (Ricardo Montalban), perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.

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Bob Thomas

Associated Press

It depicts a handful of men in the Battle of the Bulge with as much realism as Hollywood can muster.

Jul 25, 2019

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

This is an ensemble piece, the proper approach to take for a story that keeps its focus on the troubles (both petty and paramount) faced by grunts on the frontline.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 29, 2023

Full Review

Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

If it weren't for its narrative weaknesses, it would have been a great war movie. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 4/10

Jul 20, 2020

Full Review

Robert Ellis

California Eagle

This is movie Jim Crow.

Feb 22, 2020

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Though shot on the back lot, William Wellman's Oscar-nominated recreation of Battle of the Bulge is one of the better WWII movies, serving as blueprint for later Vietnam War films.

Rated: A-

Feb 12, 2008

Full Review

Steve Crum

Video-Reviewmaster.com

Sterling, memorable WWII classic directed by Wellman.

Rated: 5/5

Apr 30, 2007

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Audience Member

One of the better war films from this era. Like another adaptation of the "Battered Bastards of Bastogne", Band of Brothers. Battleground really helps develop the bond of the men in the 101st Airborne Division. The action is solid and it's shot tremendously, and the direction by William Wellman is also superb.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

One of the first films depicting WW2 which was made just four after the war ended. The biggest problem with this film is the script, which has a lot of cliched and stereotypical lines found in many films from that era. The film also forces a lot of humour in the film, which for the most part doesn't work. The characters are pretty forgettable in the film. I can remember some of the names, the actors who played them and the quirks each character had, but I can't remember anything else significant. This resulted in a problem that when a character died, it didn't feel that significant because many of the characters in the film didn't stand out. The cinematography of the fighting scenes were well done, especially the last fifteen minutes where the horrors of war was effectively displayed. James Whitmore was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role. However, I thought his role was not near as notable as Kennedy, Richardson and Jagger in their nominated roles. I could've seen any number of actors easily play the role of Kinnie. Overall, a well-constructed film that sufficiently displays the terrible impact of war but is severely dated due to its underwhelming script.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

william d

The usual WWII movie stereotypes, this time in the Battle of the Bulge. I'd say this one is a little better than most from that era.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

steve d

Ok war film with little use for its characters.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The grit of actual war is shown and the ugly side. This is unusual considering the time period it was made in. I found it slow and boring at times/hard to keep track of who was who. That being said it was well done overall-good acting, conversations, characters were realistic, battle scenes were realistic, scenery...It just seemed very believable and honest for a war movie. It was less about battles than day to day life of WWII soldiers/soldiers in general which was its strong point. Surprising for an old movie like this not to be filled with war propaganda, but I guess the big mgm producers or whatever tried to block it from theatres-good thing they didn't succeed.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/15/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I thought it was great for an old movie. Very entertaining

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/15/23

Full Review

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William A. Wellman

Director

Van Johnson

Holley

John Hodiak

Jarvess

Ricardo Montalban

Roderigues

George Murphy

"Pop" Stazak

Marshall Thompson

Jim Layton

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Synopsis

Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley (Van Johnson) and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues (Ricardo Montalban), perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.

Director: William A. Wellman
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Genre: War
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 20, 1950, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 18, 2008
Runtime: 1h 58m

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