Saturday, January 6, 2018
371 - The Thin Red Line, United States, 1998. Dir. Terrence Malick.
Don't worry about water.
Lieutenant Colonel Gordon Tall is talking to Captain John Gaff. They are in Guadalcanal. In the Solomon Islands. World War 2. Pacific Theater. C Company.
We see the war through the eyes of several soldiers.
Private Witt. Who went AWOL among the Melanesians.
First Sergeant Edward Welsh. Who captures Witt and brings him back.
Sergeant Keck. Who accidentally pulls the pin of his grenade rather than the grenade itself. And dies.
Captain James Bugger Staros. Greek. Who refuses to follow Lt. Col. Tall's order to attack a bunker frontally.
Private Bell, who remembers his wife with tender memories. And then receives a letter from her. Dear John.
Second Lieutenant Whyte. Who is killed outright in battle.
Private Train. Who thinks philosophically.
Captain John Gaff. Who leads his men on a flanking run to spy on and take a bunker.
They do. Captain Gaff will be recommended for medals. Which he does not believe he earned.
Meanwhile, Lt. Col. Toll has told Gaff it is time to move on. Whether the men get water or not.
Toll has waited his whole life for war.
Now he is getting it.
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