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Bataan

Play trailer Poster for Bataan 1943 1h 55m War History Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 3 Reviews 67% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
During Japan's invasion of the Philippines in 1942, Capt. Henry Lassiter (Lee Bowman), Sgt. Bill Dane (Robert Taylor) and a diverse group of American soldiers are ordered to destroy and hold a strategic bridge in order to delay the Japanese forces and allow Gen. MacArthur time to secure Bataan. When the Japanese soldiers begin to rebuild the bridge and advance, the group struggles with not only hunger, sickness and gunfire, but also the knowledge that there is likely no relief on the way.
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Bataan

Critics Reviews

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Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com 10/30/2006
B-
Since it was basically a tale of defeat, the nervous producers emphasized heroism, but later, under criticism of fabricating the facts with mechanically packed incidents, MGM was forced to acknowledge "some melodramatic flaws and technical mistakes." Go to Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 06/02/2006
B
An exciting flagwaving big box office Alamo-esque suicide mission World War II film. Go to Full Review Steve Crum Kansas City Kansan 10/25/2004
B+
MGM and the War Department teamed for this flag waving combat drama that influenced a number of future war movies. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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05/22/2022 A classic WWII movie made only a year after the Bataan battle. While a war story not a documentary, it has very good action scenes and also stories of why each of us fight. Definitely worth a watch. See more 04/25/2020 This movie was pure propaganda drivel. Except that there was actually a 31st Infantry Regiment, there was basically no basis of reality in the film at all. No bridge was counterattacked by 31st Infantry, especially with a worn-out bi-plane parked in the jungle. The Japanese did not mount an attack for ten minutes of shootout, then retire to the jungle like whooping Indians on an unsuccessful rush to the fort. While the presentation of white, black, Filipino, army and navy personnel seems cinema's first attempt at "diversity," they were for morale purposes, not for presenting the facts. Anyone interested in the factual events preceding and during the three month Battle of Bataan would be better served reading any of a dozen military accounts, most relevant, perhaps, "Bataan Our Last Ditch," Lt. Col. John Whitman. No other movie has ever been made about this fight. See more 10/08/2019 This movie is a little long, but the outstandingly intense battle scene at the end of the movie is without a doubt the best among all of the wartime films that I have seen. The fate of the of the characters in this movie is very accurate to the situation of the men that fought in Bataan; no hope for getting off the island alive. See more 06/05/2019 One of, if not "the" best of the unabashed Red Blooded American morale boosting/propaganda movies of WW2.. It's amazing what they could do on a sound stage! See more Thomas M @TMProofreader 01/27/2019 The best thrilling and inspiring movie ever made! See more 11/28/2018 Could have been better... but Taylor very good. BTW, the MG had no cooling water It would have jammed very quickly. See more Read all reviews
Bataan

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Cast & Crew

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Tay Garnett

Director

Robert Taylor

Sgt. Bill Dane

George Murphy

Lt. Steve Bentley

Thomas Mitchell

Cpl. Jake Feingold

Lloyd Nolan

Cpl. Barney Todd

Lee Bowman

Capt. Henry Lassiter
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Bataan

Bataan (1943) Bataan (1943) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis During Japan's invasion of the Philippines in 1942, Capt. Henry Lassiter (Lee Bowman), Sgt. Bill Dane (Robert Taylor) and a diverse group of American soldiers are ordered to destroy and hold a strategic bridge in order to delay the Japanese forces and allow Gen. MacArthur time to secure Bataan. When the Japanese soldiers begin to rebuild the bridge and advance, the group struggles with not only hunger, sickness and gunfire, but also the knowledge that there is likely no relief on the way.
Director
Tay Garnett
Producer
Irving Starr
Screenwriter
Robert Hardy Andrews
Production Co
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Genre
War, History, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 3, 1943, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 11, 2008
Runtime
1h 55m
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