Darby's Rangers (1958 film)
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| Darby's Rangers | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | William Wellman |
| Produced by | Martin Rackin |
| Written by | Guy Trosper |
| Starring | James Garner Jack Warden Stuart Whitman |
| Music by | Max Steiner |
| Cinematography | William H. Clothier |
| Editing by | Owen Marks |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Release date(s) | February 12, 1958 |
| Running time | 121 min. |
| Country | U.S.A. |
| Language | English |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Darby's Rangers is a 1958 Warner Brothers black and white war film starring James Garner as William Orlando Darby, World War II commander of the 1st Ranger Battalion.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Major William Darby (Garner) is a staff officer who is placed in command of the volunteer US Army 1st Ranger Battalion based on and trained by the British Commandos. Darby and Sergeant Major Saul Rosen (Jack Warden), who also narrates the film, select a variety of men for training in Scotland. Darby tells his volunteers that the British Commandos are the best soldiers in the world, but in time they will be. The Americans are quartered in Scottish homes. Several of the Rangers pair off with local lassies, such as Rollo Burns (Peter Brown) and Peggy McTavish (Venetia Stevenson), the daughter of the fearsome but humorous Scottish Commando instructor, Sergeant McTavish (Torin Thatcher), and vagabond Hank Bishop (Stuart Whitman) and the proper Wendy Hollister (Joan Elan).
After a very brief "invasion" of French North Africa (the Rangers throw a satchel charge in an apparently unoccupied pillbox), two more Ranger battalions are formed, with Darby promoted to colonel. Joining the Rangers is 2nd Lieutenant Arnold Dittman (Edd Byrnes), a by-the-book West Pointer who is humanized by his encounter with Angelina De Lotta (Etchika Choureau). There are several action scenes in a bombed out Italian village where the men face a sniper, and a running firefight with the Germans.
Darby confides to his sergeant major a recurring dream of being run over by an oncoming train, foreshadowing the climax. His 1st and 2nd Ranger Battalions are ambushed and wiped out by the Germans at the Battle of Cisterna at Anzio. Darby leads his 4th Ranger Battalion in an unsuccessful rescue attempt. Of the 767 men who go in, only seven come back, the majority being captured.
[edit] Production
Warner Brothers had had a major financial and critical hit with Battle Cry and wished to repeat the success after purchasing Major James Altieri's biographical account of Darby's Rangers, The Spearheaders. Altieri had previously worked as technical advisor on Warner's A Force of Arms (1951). William Wellman, had a reputation for the superb war films The Story of G.I. Joe and Battleground. He was hired to direct the film as a condition of Warner Brothers financing his dream project of Lafayette Escadrille concerning Wellman's own World War I Foreign Legion flying squadron. Warner Brothers had emphasised the romantic pairings of most of the leads as a feature of the film to emulate the success of Battle Cry. However, a few problems arose.
Whilst the US Marine Corps were enthusiastic about providing Camp Pendleton, Marine film extras and equipment and color film of the Pacific Island campaigns to stimulate recruiting and the image of the Corps (see The United States Marine Corps on film), the US Army were not keen on the Rangers as they had taken excessively high casualties of excellent soldiers the US Army believed would be better employed leading standard infantry units. The US Army of the 1950's were more interested in training individual officers and NCO's at Ranger School to go back and train their own units in Ranger tactics rather than have separate Ranger companies or battalions. The limit of the US Army's cooperation was training the actors and providing black and white stock footage.
Originally Charlton Heston was cast as Darby. Heston was enthusiastic about playing a recent historical character as he could interview people who knew the real Darby to build his portrayal. However, Heston wanted five percent of the profits that Jack Warner thought was a joke until just before filming.[1] Warner looked at his stock company on contract and fortuiously picked the 30-year-old James Garner who was of the proper appearance and age to play William O. Darby, who died at 34. Garner, a Korean War veteran who had just broken through in the smash hit Warner Brothers Television series Maverick, replaced Charlton Heston at the last minute. Garner's first lead role proved his range as an actor with an integrity and vulnerability that made him believable and likeable in the role. Garner's original role in the film was taken by Stuart Whitman.[2]
In the original role of the Lieutenant was Warner's heart throb Tab Hunter who was unenthusiastic about the film and most of the roles Warner Brothers offered him. Hunter also left the film before filming.[3] Warner searched his stock company and found Edd Byrnes who was soon to be the popular "Kookie" on 77 Sunset Strip. Warner also grabbed up and coming teen idol Peter Brown soon to co star in Lawman (TV series). The two contract stars have a nice scene together where the sensitive but experienced Brown has just killed his first man. The boorish and inexperienced Byrnes does not understand why Brown doesn't feel good about doing his job.
Both Garner and Byrnes successfully eschew their television character personalities. Garner's wry and humorously cynical "Bret Maverick" becomes an earnest and sensitive military leader determined to lead and be one with his men. Byrnes's flippant and cool (aesthetic) 77 Sunset Strip parking lot attendant "Kookie" becomes a heartless and deadly serious young lieutenant who comes off as the ultimate "square".
As opposed to a military base or actual European locations, Warner had Wellman film economically on the Warner Brothers studio backlot with a fine cast of supporting actors including Murray Hamilton, Adam Williams, Corey Allen, and William Wellman Jr. French actress Etchika Choureau (born Françoise Choureau) made her Hollywood debut in this film and in Wellman's Lafeyette Escradille but returned to Europe with no other American film roles. Joan Elan's English lady adventuress character appeared opposite Garner on Maverick (TV series) in The Belcastle Brand episode. The emphasis on romantic subplots and Garner's counselling of Brown's and Byrnes's problems works well for the films limited budget and expands the audience of the war film. William H. Clothier's black and white cinematography is not only cheaper then colour and blends in with the stock footage, but it gives the studio sets a belivability. Though not an epic film in the mass use of extras, the film covers historical events and lasts just over two hours, a rarity for a film of that budget.
The film was reportedly released as The Young Invaders in the United Kingdom.
