The Great Raid

When I was 20, I served 2 years as a missionary in the Philippines. While there, I got learn about World War II history in that country. I not only saw many memorials but also ruins of WWII buildings and bunkers. The island where I was living was where the liberation of the Philippines began: where General MacArthur “returned”. Once in university, I took a Cebuano class where I learned more about WWII history in the Philippines and that is when I first learned about Cabanatuan. We watched a documentary and I was so amazed by the story. Months later, “The Great Raid” was released and I went to see it immediately. I relate a lot to the film because I felt like a soldier while living in the Philippines. The film added some elements to the story in order to stretch out the running time to feature length but the climax is worth waiting for. It is well constructed in post-production. I love historical films such as those covering World War II.

“The Great Raid” has a wonderful opening montage that covers some very important events of the era such as the Bataan Death March. We see the American flag lowered on Bataan and that is an important moment for me. From Bataan until the liberation, no official American flag flew on Filipino soil and I have visited the place where the US flag was first raised during the liberation. This movie is an underdog story in that these US rangers have seen very little combat. This is their first chance to prove themselves. I like the initial portrayal of the land around the prison camp. In the real story, there was a lot less grass. I have seen dry rice fields and there is not much to hide in. This decision for the film to have some grass surrounding the camp was done to make the raid a bit more plausible for the audience and that makes sense. Many of the locations in the film do look like the Philippines but others do not. This was because the movie was filmed in Australia. There needed to be a lot more coconut trees in my opinion. I enjoy the subplots in the film such as the story of the underground resistance. That was an important part of the story that needed to be included in some way. One of the great elements to get this movie going was the speech by Mucci to the rangers. It provides exposition and allows the audience to become emotionally invested in the mission. I like how Alridge and Lucas are depicted in the film. It is established at the start of the film that they are inexperienced with the bazooka but they eventually prove themselves in action. We not only have to emotionally connect with the rangers but also with the prisoners. What is the point of the movie if we don’t care about those who need rescuing? I like the shot that shows the storeroom that the prisoners break in to. It is a stark contrast to their current condition. The hope we get from this shot however is taken away upon the arrival of Nagai and the Kempeitai. The execution scene was tough to watch and therefore well done. In contrast, we have the Platero arrival scene. I saw much of this kind of attitude towards Americans as a missionary even though I am Canadian. Little children viewed me as the coolest guy in town and all the Filipinos were very hospitable. In the real life raid, the rangers had to adapt their plans and use the Filipino guerillas more extensively. This is a very important part of the story that had to be included and I am glad it was. I love how in real life and in the film, the rangers use the karabow carts supplied by the guerillas.

Another great scene in terms of exposition and connecting with the audience is in Platero where Captain Prince lays out the entire plan. For me, the long awaited climax begins as Prince and the other rangers prepare to leave the tree line. It ends once the rangers and prisoners make it back to Platero. I love the use of sound and music from the time that the men are approaching the clearing to the first shot. Tension and suspense is genuinely created. I also love the POV shot of Mucci as he looks through his binoculars. That shot shows us just how far the rangers have to crawl to get to the camp without being seen. The airplane's distraction was much more flamboyant in the real raid in that the pilot pretended that his plane was going to crash to great effect. I wish that had been included. My favorite moment of the film is the silence we hear as the sun sets on the camp and the lights turn on. It is a great contrast to the action that is about to take place. It also contributes to the anxiety very effectively. Apparently, the ditch that the rangers hide in was closer to the fence in real life than 30 yards. This was another change made so as to make the raid more plausible on film. Lt. Riley’s delay that happens of the first shot is accurate to the real life raid and once again, this creates suspense considering the bomb that was ticking away. Just before Riley kicks off the action, his fellow ranger says, “It’s your shot.” To me, that seems to have the subtext of “It’s an easy shot”. It is a little reassuring I think for Riley to hear that. After the first shot, the firepower that surprises the Japanese is very impressive. It sure depicts the element of surprise that was achieved. I like the fact that the Filipinos used Japanese pride to their advantage in their attack of the bridge. In real life just as in the film, the Japanese did try to flank but this failed. Even though Mucci did not engage the flankers in real life, I still like how he gets to fire his weapon in the movie. I get such joy seeing Filipinos in straw hats using machine guns against those who invaded their country. I also like Alridge’s look at one point during the raid after he shoots his bazooka because it seems to depict the rookie in him. It is quite powerful watching the rangers carry and help the POWs escape the camp. I like another accurate depiction of the raid in that the prisoners thought the Japanese were attacking them. We get some drama when the rangers proclaim themselves Americans and that they are there to help. A nice touch of the story is that Major Gibson lives long enough to know that he was liberated. There is a deleted scene of the movie where everyone makes it back to the American front lines and I wish that had been included in the final film.

It is fun to hear another language and understand it when no one else watching the movie can. I enjoyed the performances of many actors in “The Great Raid” such as Benjamin Bratt, future Oscar-nominee James Franco and Cesar Montano. I liked seeing Connie Nielson from “Gladiator” and I didn’t even recognize Sam Worthington as Lucas until I wrote this review. I am glad he is in the movie. The film has good music and a great climax. The movie may not be perfect or the greatest war movie but because of my time in the Philippines, I feel a connection to this story.

4 Stars

Below are some pictures of Leyte, Philippines were I served my mission. The first photo is the memorial where MacArthur came ashore and returned to the Philippines. The second is the memorial at the hill where the US flag was first raised during the liberation. The last picture is taken from the top of that hill, looking at the beach where the soldiers came ashore.