Two movies were made during World War II that focused on the service of nurses in that war. A third movie was made for TV in 2010 by an Australian company. It was based on diaries, written by Australian nurses, that were discovered more than 50 years after the war. The nurses were serving with Australian forces in Papua New Guinea. They were captured, along with several nuns and clergy of a Catholic mission near Rabaul. The mission group was later moved inland to escape repeated bombing by the Allies at Rabaul which was a major Japanese naval base. And the nurses were separated and taken to Japan. This latest movie is called "Sisters of War," and it's mostly about the internment of the nurses and mission group as Japanese prisoners. Many American nurses from Bataan and Corregidor were also captured and interned by the Japanese. They could not be evacuated in time, but their ordeal is not part of the American films. The two American films that came out in 1943 and 1944, respectively, were "So Proudly We Hail," and "Cry Havoc."All three of these films are excellent and of historical value for the time and events. The plots and stories are different, based on the experiences they cover (with some Hollywood touches in the American films). But they all show the courage, caring and stamina of the women who served as nurses in the thick of battle. The late American historian and author Stephen Ambrose ("Band of Brothers" and many other works), called the nurses who served in the Pacific theater heroes. "They were the bravest of the brave, who endured unspeakable pain and torture.""So Proudly We Hail," is the best of these three outstanding films and stories. It's based on a book by Army nurse, Lt. Juanita Redmond, who was in the small group of nurses that was evacuated from Corregidor just before it fell to the Japanese in May, 1942. The book, "I Served on Bataan," covered the five months from the Japanese attack of the Philippines on Dec.8, 1941, to the fall of Corregidor. It didn't take Hollywood long to make a movie on the book and to get it out during the war. The book and this movie are about the ordeal of the nurses over those five months, first on Bataan and then on Corregidor. Although no nurses were killed, some were wounded as the Japanese continually shelled and bombed the Allied positions.Another Army nurse among those who were evacuated was tabbed by the military to be an adviser for this Paramount movie. But, Lt. Eunice Hatchitt wanted to dissociate herself from the film because she didn't like some of the Hollywood touches to the story, especially two romances. So, her name doesn't appear in the film credits. Even with the Hollywood touches, "So Proudly We Hail" is an outstanding movie, in all respects. The re-creation of the Malinta Tunnel on Corregidor was most impressive and gave a very real feel to the film. The story is told and seen in a nearly continuous flashback from several of the nurse evacuees on board a ship as they are returning to the States. The romances aren't distractions and are believable for the time and place. They offer a little respite for the movie audience from the drudgery, constant shelling, and endless work the nurses endure. One can only imagine the hell they must have lived without such short respites as we movie-goers get."So Proudly We Hail" has an impressive cast of women actors of that time -- Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, Veronica Lake and many more. And all delivered outstanding performances in their roles. The film received four Academy Award nominations in a year of strong competition. Among other wartime flicks that took many awards for 1943 were: "Casablanca," "Watch on the Rhine," "For Whom the Bell Tolls," "Crash Dive," "Air Force," and "This is the Army." The film has occasional humorous dialog, along the lines of cynical remarks one might hear or make in the military. One such is when a bell sounds. Unidentified nurse, "I don't know if that's an air raid warning or mess." Janet (Claudette Colbert), "Either way, it's a warning." This movie – for its subject matter, script, performances, and quality of production, ranks among the very best of war films of all time. It's one of the few I score a 10+.

So Proudly We Hail was Paramount Pictures tribute to the nurses who were tending the casualties at Bataan. The film got four Oscar nominations and great roles for some of Paramout's female stars like Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard, and Veronica Lake, all playing nurses and also joined by Barbara Britton, Mary Treen, Dorothy Adams, Ann Doran and so many others.Claudette is in charge of this group which sets out from San Francisco for assignment at Pearl Harbor. But the Japanese attack diverts the ship for the Phillipines where the nurses are rushed into tending the casualties on Bataan and Corregidor.Having gone to the Phillipines as a tourist and having seen both places I thought Paramount did a remarkable job in re-creating both areas. The battle and evacuation scenes were very well done, one of the nominations that So Proudly We Hail got was for Special Effects.Colbert gets herself involved with George Reeves and this was probably his best big screen performance. What an incredible tragedy that he went in the service and could not get his career momentum back as so many others did. Of course we all know he went on to be television's Superman and the tragedy that came out of that.The military's no fraternization policy got a second wink when Goddard gets herself involved with Sonny Tufts in the film that got him his first notice. He plays a former football star from Kansas and appropriately named same in the film with a kind of goofball charm that was his trademark. Now wartime audiences either didn't notice or didn't care, but his New England accent stood out all over for a guy who was supposed to be from Kansas. Tufts was from the old New England WASP family that among other things endowed Tufts University. Why didn't they just call him Boston for the film? The other Oscar nominations that So Proudly We Hail got was for Best Supporting Actress for Paulette Goddard, for Screenplay, and for Original Story. The film has held up remarkably well over the past several generations and it's a great tribute still to our army nurses in any war.

Let's get the ending of the film over with first. Janet is catatonic because she thinks that John has died. But we really do not know that he has. Now, this, as an ending works fine, as it leaves the viewer wondering as well. I like endings that you just do not know what's what. But it's her reaction when the doctor reads the letter from John, and we do not know when he wrote it, other than he was not at the front and fighting, but sitting in some bar drinking that just ruins this movie. She hears his words, and the doctor's voice becomes John's voice, and she comes out of her trance, so we know that she will be okay" Whether John is alive or not. So we are to assume that she will go straight to the farm and either he is there, or not, but whatever, she will wait for him. My main problem with this movie was the age of the actresses portrayed to play the nurses. Colbert was 40 and Goddard 38, but at least Goddard could pull off being a nurse in her 20s. Colbert, though, looked every one of her years. And what really got me was that Reeves was 11 years younger than Colbert, and looked at least 5 years younger than he was when this film was made. She looked like she could have been his mother in some of those scenes. And then we have all the makeup she wore as well. I know they were trying to make her look younger, but it did not work. And in the middle of a war, there they all are, especially Colbert and Goddard, all dolled up. I had read that the studio was trying to make this movie as believable as possible, and there are some actresses, even now, who refuse to go bare-faced, but come on. Colbert was beautiful and probably could have pulled it off sans all that makeup. Most of the others seemed to do without too much. Overall, a decent representation from a nurse's point of view, but otherwise, not worth the time.

Without some of the sappy romances, I would have rated this powerful movie a couple of stars higher. That's only my tastes in films. For the ladies, they might like this "war movie," a lot more because it pays tribute mainly nurses and all the romances are probably just the ticket.But for 126 minutes, I would have liked to see a bit less courtship scenes, which included some corny dialog. I realize they needed to break up the action scenes and give something for the females to watch, but they often made no sense. For example, near the end Colbert marries George Reeves (yes, Superman) even though she admits she knows almost nothing about the man!!. I did enjoy watching Claudette Colbert, Paulette Goddard and Vernoica Lake, however. All of them looked very pretty. Lake was missing her peek-a-boo long blonde hair but probably - at least facially - looked better than I've ever seen her. Her role was the most interesting.The movie succeeds in paying tribute to unsung heroes of any war: the nurses. They were an extremely hard-worked, under-appreciated group during World War II, so this tribute is well- earned and I'm glad to have seen it. God bless those ladies who made such sacrifices.