Two years after Hitchcock reported on Nazi's atrocities in the pre-Pearl Harbor days of "Foreign Correspondent", MGM quickly put together this war drama starring their newest "hot" team of Clark Gable and Lana Turner, previously seen in the hit western "Honky Tonk". Having even more chemistry than the advertised "TNT" pairing of Turner with Robert Taylor in the same year's "Johnny Eager", Turner and Gable were dynamic together. The film is notable historically for being the film Gable was making at the time his wife Carole Lombard was killed in a plane crash while selling war bonds.
Gable's a Foreign Correspondent back in New York after five years, and when he meets his brother's (Robert Sterling) fiancée (Turner), sparks fly immediately. Actually, soap suds do, because in this adorably comic scene, Turner is in the midst of taking a shower, and he has to verbally guess what she looks like by analyzing her wardrobe. They share a drink but nothing else as she's not about to betray his brother, even though it's clear it is Gable she fancies. But as a Foreign Correspondent herself, she is soon missing while helping orphaned children get across the border to China. The days of peace are over, as the film notes right after the credits conclude, it is 83 days until Christmas 1941 and about 66 until Pearl Harbor.
Once war is declared, all three foreign correspondents end up in the South Pacific where Sterling and Gable witness a battle lead by a young Van Johnson, with another newcomer, Keenan Wynn, right by his side. This leads into the memorable "Don't Forget Their Names" montage that recaptures the goings-on of the battle and an important war message that was Hollywood propaganda at its finest. Such familiar faces as Sara Haden, Reginald Owen and Lee Patrick have memorable supporting roles, and there is also a delightfully funny battle between Gable and his newspaper boss (Charles Dingle). The combination of romance, comedy and war drama makes this a must, especially for film students studying World War II as seen through the eyes of Hollywood.
Gable's a Foreign Correspondent back in New York after five years, and when he meets his brother's (Robert Sterling) fiancée (Turner), sparks fly immediately. Actually, soap suds do, because in this adorably comic scene, Turner is in the midst of taking a shower, and he has to verbally guess what she looks like by analyzing her wardrobe. They share a drink but nothing else as she's not about to betray his brother, even though it's clear it is Gable she fancies. But as a Foreign Correspondent herself, she is soon missing while helping orphaned children get across the border to China. The days of peace are over, as the film notes right after the credits conclude, it is 83 days until Christmas 1941 and about 66 until Pearl Harbor.
Once war is declared, all three foreign correspondents end up in the South Pacific where Sterling and Gable witness a battle lead by a young Van Johnson, with another newcomer, Keenan Wynn, right by his side. This leads into the memorable "Don't Forget Their Names" montage that recaptures the goings-on of the battle and an important war message that was Hollywood propaganda at its finest. Such familiar faces as Sara Haden, Reginald Owen and Lee Patrick have memorable supporting roles, and there is also a delightfully funny battle between Gable and his newspaper boss (Charles Dingle). The combination of romance, comedy and war drama makes this a must, especially for film students studying World War II as seen through the eyes of Hollywood.