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Powerful

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

When this movie came out in 1951, it was an "untold story" as the promotion for the film said. Most people around the globe hadn't heard of the Japanese American fighting men of World War II. These were the Nisei soldiers – American-born men of Japanese immigrant parents. The first of those to be trained for combat were from the Hawaiian National Guard. They were sent to Camp McCoy in Wisconsin for training in 1942. On June 15, they were formed as the 100th Infantry Battalion. Then, in 1943, the U.S. formed a Japanese American combat unit. The 100th Bn had been relocated to Camp Shelby, Miss. It became the first battalion of the new 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Men joined the unit or were conscripted from Hawaii and the mainland U.S. From June 1944 until the end of the war, the 442nd fought in Europe. It saw action mostly in Italy and southern France. The unit's full strength was 4,500 men. But with the unit's heavy casualties, some 14,000 men served in the 442nd by war's end. It had a nickname as the "Purple Hearth" regiment. Local newspapers gave accounts of the unit's combat successes, mostly in Hawaii and California. But that was amidst much war news and was soon swallowed up by the bigger war reports. So, in 1951, the movie, "Go for Broke," was indeed an eye-opener to most people in the U.S. and around the globe. The title is the slogan of the 442nd regiment – Go for broke! The 442nd distinguished itself everywhere it served. It received eight Presidential Unit citations. No unit has had more awards. Besides 9,486 Purple Hearts, 21 men received the Medal of Honor. (Nineteen of those were awarded in the year 2000. They were upgraded by the Army from the 52 Distinguished Service Crosses given to men during the war). Men of the unit were awarded 52 DSCs, 560 Silver Stars, and 4,000 Bronze Stars, many of latter two with oak leaf clusters. The 442nd men received more than 18,000 total awards for their service in WW II.This movie is a good picture of the 442nd during the war. Some of the 442nd veterans were in the film. Van Johnson's Lt. Michael Grayson, reflects the prejudice that many Americans had at the start of the war. One can understand the suspicion people had right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. But the news media, politicians and some groups fanned hysteria and fear among the populace. President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, which set in motion the internment of Japanese Americans. Most of them lived on the West Coast. The courts supported the government's action in lawsuits. The angst began to clear by the end of 1944, and Pres. Roosevelt ended the internment. Van Johnson's character shows the change in attitude. He goes from dislike and distrust to eventual acceptance of the Nisei soldiers. In time, he begins to admire his men for their loyalty and dedication. Intended or not, Johnson's character seems to portray the reality of the time, even among American GIs. By the end of the film, the Nisei are clearly seen as American GIs themselves. The film doesn't have a great deal of combat action, but it covers most of the major battles the 442nd fought. The film instead gives time to several of the characters, with their backgrounds and personal stories. This is a good war film and look at an aspect of American history that needed to be told and understood.

One can sense the craft from the 1st scene of this graceful and lively movie. Charming, endearing, affectionate vignettes of the life of a Japanese platoon (these Japanese and Hawaiians were Americans who volunteered) in the WW 2, 1st in an American military base, then in Italy, from Naples through Tuscany, to Rome, then Marseille, the European woods …. It has an undeniable freshness and it's inspired, humane and sensible. (It has suddenly occurred to me that Clift made at least three war movies, perhaps more; he's not in this one, but I remembered him.) Johnson got an unflattering role, as an initially misfit officer, whose ambitions differed from the task he was given.The comedy may seem patronizing towards minorities, but its very topic also allowed for ease and leisure, the pace being kept wonderfully. This is thoughtful and sensible craft.Gianna Maria Canale, whose dignified and distinguished beauty suggested a comparison to Ava Gardner, was one of the essential actresses in Italy's attempt not so much to copy, but to offer an European counterpart to Hollywood adventure cinema, hence her roles in the movies about Maciste, Pardaillan, Scaramouche …. Here, Gianna Maria Canale has a funny bit role, as a sociable, open-minded and glamorous girl who earns gifts from her friends; it's a subtle quirk that the two beautiful actors of the cast, her and leading man Johnson, are the targets of irony. Many of the soldiers of the platoon weren't (only) actors, but (also) veterans.The characters are endowed with an endearing decency and dependableness. The script doesn't require much from the players, but the affable take makes the movie a beloved entry in its genre.Someone wrote, elsewhere, about 'the support of documentary inspiration'; we can see here as well its strength of boosting a script.

The clichés in this film - including Van Johnson's wimpy performance - were probably inevitable for the day, so I think they can be readily forgiven.That's important, because the good of this film is so very good. Professionally made, with a very strong story, the film confronts its themes with surprising honesty and maturity.This is a rock-solid war movie, with a straight to the point expose of American racism. Try to imagine having a Japanese American soldier getting killed taking a bullet for you and then hearing some clown say "well, he's a nip, who cares". If this man's life was worthless, then, since he gave it up to save you, yours must be worthless as well.After the Second World War, it at last (however gradually) started to become clear that in a nation of many ethnicities and religions, with a large (and largely volunteer) army of much the same population, this is what such bigotry amounts to, a stone-cold denial of everything American, including Americans themselves.With right-wing Republicans trying subtly, but unmistakeably, to persuade us we are at war with Islam, this is a lesson we had better remember: Muslim soldiers in America's Army fight for America with courage as great as any Christians.If it were any less of a film, relying on "Go for Broke!" to deliver this message would be a mistake; but it's a solid, entertaining film, with tough action scenes, amusing comic relief, and just as much sentiment as it needs to play for middle-of-the-road viewers.Highly recommended, and deserving of a much greater reputation than it has as yet.

Robert Pirosh wrote his own picture and did a wonderful job of directing it, and 'Go for Broke!', his tribute to Japanese-American volunteers fighting in World War II, is deftly executed with a nice blend of pulse-quickening action and more thought-provoking interludes where white Lieutenant Grayson (Van Johnson), originally prejudiced against the people he is assigned to command, gradually learns to come to terms with the fact that bravery and patriotism are irrelevant to your race or the color of your skin.That could all be a little too rhetorical for its own good, but Pirosh never over-stresses his point, and his picture is never holier-than-thou. "You see, Sir, I'm from Texas", Grayson says to his superior, but Pirosh lets it go at that and doesn't lash out against Southern bigotry. I really liked the gentle irony of Pirosh' contrasting the idyllic, outdated guidebooks to Italy and France that Grayson reads with the prosaic reality of war-torn countries.