Guadalcanal Diary (1943)

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I bought this video for my husband who is an avid war movie fan. I sat down to watch it with him. He and I felt that it took a long time to see any war action. It was an okay movie, but it is very outdated by today's standards. For the life of me, I cannot imagine any soldiers of today - talking as sweet and corny and singing like these actors do. It's a nice war movie for the year 1943 - when I suppose everything was sugar coated.

Guadalcanal Diary
This firm was advertized on Amazon as being in "color." A black and white version was delivered to me, even though I had inquired of Amazon if the film was actually "color" and Amazon had assured me that it was definitely color. I knew the film was originally in black and white, but was swayed to buy the film in the belief, as marketed, that it had been colorized, which is what I was looking for.

For its time, actually pretty accurate
Like most war movies created in the early 40s, their one main purpose was to inspire Americans to buy more war bonds. Therefore, stories of valor, likable characters (many of whom get killed), fluff dialogue, and innaccurate retelling of battles were the mainstay of the films. "Guadalcanal Diary," however, was different than most. Rather than the glorification of battle and the 'good guys always winning with no problem,' there is a good deal of hardship here. Impressively, the movie portrays some of the angst and helplessness of the nighttime navel shelling that both sides participated in.

Also, there is a part early on that tells the true story of one detachment's fate on the far side of the island when they run into a Japanese force. Only one soldier survived to tell the tale. His account is very accurately portrayed. Of course, perhaps the US War Department was more interested in showing the grittier side of the war in order to promote those war bonds. Guadalcanal certainly provided enough true life grit for several movies.

It is definitely a condensed version of the events that took place on that island, but overall it is a well-acted and fascinating movie. For historical accuracy, it stands fairly well the test of time, although it is not as concerned with facts as with emotions. Still, there is great acting and good special effects (again, for the time) and fans of the era and of World War II history should enjoy this period piece regardless of the subtle marketing throughout.