Despite its intriguing title, this is a very talkie and very dated stage play that is calculated to bore most audiences stiff. And the complete absence of women doesn't help matters at all! With the exceptions of Clark Gable and Walter Pidgeon, the actors walk through their parts without much conviction. In fact, although Pidgeon has to carry the main burden of the circular dialogue, he bears up well. We must also draw attention to John McIntire. In addition to his role as Major Belding Davis, he also provides the off-camera voice of Congressman Malcolm, played and spoken (on camera) by Edward Arnold. The direction by the usually very capable Sam Wood is astonishingly stiff. He died on September 22, 1949, yet is also credited with "The Stratton Stor"y (released June, 1949) and "Ambush" (January 1950). Production values are generally first class, and there are some skillful special effects, but they do little to relieve the overall tedium.

Even in the middle of war, politics can gum up the works. Military people are told to fight a war, and then are second-guessed by the very same people who told them to fight. That is not fair. This movies dramatizes how politics directly influences command decisions. The movie portrays the top brass as being sycophants who are terrified of disappointing those who fund their projects and career, and what happens if one of the generals refuse to kowtow. This has nothing to do with legitimate civilian oversight of military operations. Rather, it is about how the military is rendered subordinate to politicians who are more interested in making political points at the expense of the military than actually winning the war. Edward Arnold gives a command performance as a US senator who uses his position to try to bully the military to the point that it poses a direct threat to military operations already decided upon at the highest levels. Clark Gable gives one his stronger performances as the general who maintains his integrity and belief in the mission. To commission soldiers to fight a war and then rag them for doing exactly what they have been ordered to do is the height of hypocrisy. Yet, sadly, it is all too true.

Consider this movie one of the greats in the realm of WWII films.Draws you right into some huge decisions that had to be made in the European theater in WWII and the difficulties encountered while forming our own air force.Well acted too, especially for a 1948 movie. Not to slam acting in old movies, it was often more 'wooden'. Not in this movie though.There's a discourse among the brass where Walter Pigeon had a large piece of dialog. His delivery was electrifying, had me on the edge of my seat. It's not often dialog can grip you like that.Character development is also at play, where time is taken to identify many types of people and troops, from the heroic to the playboy to the conscientious to the cowardly.The use of a "situation room" proved pivotal in keeping us focused on the war goals, helps the story along from a historical sense.Not only were command decisions explored, but the personal decisions were touched on, where you get to glimpse the human behind the command bravado. Excellent.The use of wartime footage was brief yet appropriate. This is a film about people and decisions, and any further focus on 'action' would detract in my opinion.Wartime perils, where and how our brave men had to die, for the larger goal. This is a view into the commanders who have been through what they're now asking the troops to go through. They understand what they are asking of the crews, and the crews respect them because of it.There's also a study on transfer of command, fascinating. These were reasonable men who knew what had to be done and had the will to give the orders, to make the command decisions that needed to be made. Excellent piece of WWII film making, highly recommended.

This movie is a surprise subject for a war movie. This looks at war from the viewpoint of generals, politics, and the press. It also points out the tremendous loss of life and the heroic actions of unsung heroes, the soldiers. There is a lot of subdued acting by Clark Gable, and the whole cast does an excellent job of presenting their roles. I am not a real Gable fan, but I put this movie on my Blockbuster rental list because of Van Johnson and Cameron Mitchell. Cameron Mitchell is actor that not enough gets said about. Look for him! He is a shooting star. I love his expressive face, and his small role in this movie shows what I mean. Van Johnson is another actor I have always been drawn to. This movie is one of the greatest of the war movie gender, and one that few people know about. My husband and I enjoyed this informative and evocative movie.