To Hell and Back (film)
| To Hell and Back | |
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| Directed by | Jesse Hibbs |
| Produced by | Aaron Rosenberg |
| Written by |
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| Based on |
To Hell and Back 1949 book by Audie Murphy |
| Starring | |
| Narrated by | General Walter Bedell Smith |
| Music by |
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| Cinematography | Maury Gertsman |
| Edited by | Edward Curtiss |
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Production
company |
Universal Pictures
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| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
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Release date
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Running time
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106 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $6 million (US / Canada rentals) |
To Hell and Back is a Technicolor and CinemaScope war film released in 1955. It was directed by Jesse Hibbs and starred Audie Murphy as himself. It is based on the 1949 autobiography of the same name and is an account of Murphy's World War II experiences as a soldier in the U.S. Army. The book was ghostwritten by his friend, David "Spec" McClure, who served in the Army's Signal Corps during World War II.
Young Murphy (Gordon Gebert) grows up in a large, poor sharecropper family in Texas. His father deserts them around 1939–40, leaving his mother (Mary Field) barely able to feed her nine children. As the eldest son, Murphy works from an early age to help support his siblings, and when his mother dies in 1941 he becomes head of the family. His brothers and sisters are sent to an elder sister, Corrine, to whom Murphy sends his GI pay allotment.
When the US enters World War II, Murphy is eager to enlist, but he is rejected by the Marines, the Navy, and the Army paratroopers due to his small size and youthful appearance. Finally, the Army accepts him as an ordinary infantryman. After basic training and infantry training, Murphy is shipped to the 3rd Infantry Division in North Africa, as a replacement. Because of his youthful looks, he endures jokes about "infants" being sent into combat.
Murphy soon proves himself in battle, however, and he is steadily promoted, first against his will, and eventually receives a battlefield commission in the rank of second lieutenant. During his many battles in Sicily, Italy and France, he gains the respect of his men and becomes especially close to fellow soldiers Johnson, a man who claims to be a womanizer, Brandon, a man who ran out on his wife and daughter, Kerrigan a man who jokes at unusual times, Kovak a Polish immigrant who wants to become an American citizen, Swope an native American who smokes cigars a lot, and Valentino who has relatives in Naples.
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Wikipedia