Bataan (1943)
Director: Tay Garnett.
Cast: Robert Taylor, George Murphy, Thomas Mitchell, Lloyd Nolan, Lee Bowman,
Robert Walker, Desi Arnaz Sr., Desi Arnaz, Barry Nelson, Philip Terry.
The Japanese attack the Philippines and a group of Americans and a Filipino volunteer to blow up a key bridge and then to prevent any rebuilding of the bridge.
Spoiler warning:
The movie begins with the Allied forces already having been pushed half way down the Bataan Peninsula.
Knowing the outcome of the battle, I knew this was not going to have a happy ending. The movie is like the Alamo in that respect. You figure that all the guys are going to be killed and all you can hope for is that they take a lot of Japanese soldiers with them. And that they do accomplish.
Robert Taylor is good as the tough sergeant, while Lloyd Nolan also does well at being the one bad apple in the bushel. There is no comic relief in this movie; it is serious all the way. Instead of comic relief, we get incidents of coarse, insensitive behavior from the bad apple.
The movie is no more than o.k. Patrick L. Cooney, Ph. D.
Historical Background:
1941-1942 -- the Battle of the Philippines begins with the invasion of the Philippines by the Japanese.
The Japanese took the Philippines, but the American and Filipino defenders delayed the Japanese attacks on other areas.
See MacArthur (1979) for more history.
Gen. MacArthur ordered a fighting retreat by all USAFFE units to the Bataan peninsula.
1942 (January 1-5) -- delaying actions fought to allow the withdrawal to Bataan.
The bloodiest delaying action occurred at the Porac-Guagua line. The 11th and 21st Divisions (led respectively by Brig. Generals William E. Brougher and Mateo Capinpin) with the 26th Cavalry Regiment (led by Col. Clinton A. Pierce) in reserve, held the line. They fought against massive aerial and artillery bombardment, tank assaults, and infantry banzai attacks (by the Takahashi and Tanaka Detachments).
1942 (January 6) -- action at the first defensive line (set up from Dinalupihan to Layac Junction) that blocked the only approach to Bataan. The Allied forcers were pushed back to the Abucay-Mauban line, the Allies main battle position. The position was manned by Maj. Gen. Jonathan M. Wainwright's I Philippine Corps (in the east) and the II Philippine Corps of Maj. Gen. George M. Parker (in the west).
1942 (January 9) -- troops under Lt. Gen. Susumu Morioka assaulted the eastern flank. They were repulsed by the 91st Division of Brig. Gen. Luther Stevens and Col. George S. Clark's 57th Infantry.
1942 (January 14) -- the Japanese attacked the western flank; the line was held by the 41st and 51st Divisions, along with some help by units of the 21st Division (which repulsed the enemy at the Salian River.
The Japanese routed the 53rd Infantry of Col. John R. Boatwright, penetrating deep behind the Abucay-Mauban line. They were delayed at the Bani-Guirol forest area.
1942 (January 15) -- the Japanese pushed through a huge gap in the Silangan-Natib area.
1942 (January 24) -- the Abucay-Mauban line had to be abandoned.
1942 (January 26) -- the Allies formed the Orion-Bagac line; the Japanese broke through; the Japanese pushed back, with some of their troops remaining behind the Allied lines.
1942 (January 23-February 17) -- Battles of the Pockets eliminated the pockets of resistance behind the Orion-Bagac line.
Battles of the Points:
1942 (January 23) -- the Japanese landed on the west coast of southern Bataan.
1942 (January 22-February 8) -- battles fought at the Quinawan-Aglaloma points.
1942 (January 23-29) -- battles fought at the Lapay-Longoskawayan points.
1942 (January 27-February 13) -- battles fought at the Silalim-Anyasan points.
1942 (February 8) -- Gen. Homma ordered a general withdrawal from the frontline to regroup and wait for reinforcements.
1942 (March 12) -- General MacArthur left Corregidor for Australia.
1942 (March 22) -- the defending army renamed United States Forces in the Philippines (USFIP); Lt. Gen. Jonathan Wainwright IV was the commander.
1942 (April 3) -- the entire Orion-Bagac line was bombarded. The following attack of Japanese tanks and infantry pushed the defenders back.
1942 (April 6) -- Mt. Samat captured. In the following days, the Allied forces crumbled, then disintegrated and collapsed.
1942 (April 8) -- the senior US commander on Bataan, Maj. Gen. Edward P. King, suggested surrender.
1942 (April 9) -- King met with Maj. Gen. Kameichiro Nagano and surrendered.
More than 15,000 American and 60,000 Filipino prisoners of war were forced into the infamous Bataan Death March, a week-long journey of about 160 kilometers to the north to prison camp Camp O'Donnell in the Nueva Ecija province. (10,000 of the prisoners of war died on the march.)
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