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It is an all too common stereotype that portrays soldiers as
emotionless, gun-wielding macho men whose only passions are drinking
and killing. Unfortunately, enough movies portray soldiers that way
to convince the public that anyone can be broken down and rebuilt
into a killing machine with the right drill sergeant. However, after
watching a few movies focused more on the characters than the process
of war, I was able to gain new insights and lessons I could apply to
myself from the characters on the screen. Credit must be given to the
film-makers, and often the authors before them, for adding valuable
lessons to the all-too-often flat characters in war films. Bridge
on the River Kwai, Saving Private Ryan, Run Silent, Run Deep,
A Bridge to Far, and Hell is for Heroes all managed to
portray the soldiers as real people with real experiences, and real
lessons to teach. |
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Determination |
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Of all of the lessons in these films, determination was displayed
more often than any other. Determination is the ability to achieve
goals against either internal or external difficulties. Whether at
war or at the office, perseverance is often the only answer when
dealing with a difficult problem, as it is human nature to shy away
from difficult situations. Due to it's equal applicability to war and
to home, I suggest that taking out an enemy machine gun nest and
writing a large essay are equivalent in their need for determination
to 'get the job done'. A good example of determination was the main
plot of the movie Saving Private Ryan. Captain Miller (Tom
Hanks) had to push his squad forward through all sorts of
difficulties in order to reach the goal that had been given to them,
for which the movie is named. In this example, both external
pressures, in the form of enemy soldiers, and internal pressures, his
squad's failing morale and disapproval of the mission, plagued
Miller's ability to achieve his objective. However, it was his job to
accomplish the orders that had been given to him, and he knew how
important it was to 'get the job done'. His determination to carry
out his orders is what pushed him and his men forward, and eventually
saved the life of their target. |
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Part of what made Miller's job easier was his ability to forget about
his personal problems with his mission and instead focus on
completing it. However, Commander Richardson (Clark Gable) in Run
Silent, Run Deep did the exact opposite. The very focus of his
determination in fact was a target that he pursued out of past
frustrations. He let his emotions control his judgment, and was thus
directing his men to achieve his own goal, rather than an order that
had been passed down for strategic importance like the other movies.
The captain was motivated by his previous loss in the Bongo Straits
to acquire an almost zealous determination to, against orders, return
to the straits and sink the mighty battleship that had destroyed his
and countless other American submarines. Although the Commander's
obsession was of questionable judgment, his men were still able to
determinedly fight in their commander's private war. Hell is for Heroes
and A Bridge to Far both shared the 'get the job done' type of
attitude with Saving Private Ryan, the leaders in both movies
being forced to deal with dire situations while surrounded by enemy
troops and failing morale. The mentality those movies share is
effective not only in the dangerous scenario of war, but at the
pressure-filled offices and schools as well. Bridge on the River Kwai
was also full of determination, but the type of determination it
displayed falls better under the category of conviction. |
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Conviction |
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Conviction is similar to determination, but differs in respect to the
fact that conviction is based on moral code rather than orders or
necessity. Conviction is about pursuing what you believe to be fair
and just, and the dogged effort of trying to change situations that
compromise what you know to be right. Bridge on the River Kwai
was a good example of conviction over determination, as the very idea
of a POW camp is to crush the spirit. Col. Nicholson (Alec Guinness)
in particular was a great source of conviction. He fought the
Japanese General running the camp, demanding the treatment promised
in the Geneva Convention. Even though the General was cruel, putting
Nicholson and his officers through atrocities that took their bodies
to the edge, Nicholson eventually won his promised rights thanks to
his conviction. He knew what the General was doing was wrong, and he
was not willing to just go along with it. He took it a step further
and made sure never to compromise his own moral obligations while
fighting back, the same obligations the General was dismissing in his
unlawful treatment of the prisoners. Conviction tends to be a
stronger push than determination, as it is the very essence of the
person that is being challenged, a type of attack that gets noticed
very quickly by people who value their morale code. It is when you
are being put through the worst situations, whether doubting your
ability to handle a situation, or something like Nicholson's
adventure with 'the box', that conviction is the most important. Even
though that is the point where it is easiest to waiver, knowing you
are the only one who can continue your fight is a very powerful
incentive to keep at it. |
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Self-Confidence |
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Another lesson contained within these movies was the importance of
trusting your own intelligence and judgment, also known as
self-confidence. Self-confidence is the knowledge that you can handle
what comes your way, and that you will be able to handle the
consequences of whatever decisions you make. Saving Private Ryan
had a scene which depicted this trait very well. While following the
trail of Pvt. Ryan, the squad came across a machine gun nest that had
caught a number of other soldiers by surprise. The men, not wanting
to take an extra risk, suggested that they just go around the waiting
enemies. Cap. Miller, however, decided that it was their job to take
out the nest before some other men stumbled into it and were caught
in it's fire. In the process of destroying the nest, the squad's
medic was hit and killed. While the rest of the men saw this as a
reason they should have just left the nest alone, Miller knew that if
anyone else had stumbled in, they would have lost a lot more than one
medic. When he had made the decision to attack the nest, he had known
that some of his men might die, but he had weighed the options and
decided it was important enough to attempt anyway. Although he was
certainly saddened by the loss of his man, he knew that taking out
the nest was the right thing to do, and that his previous
calculations had proved the risk was worth it. |
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Hell is for Heroes had a similar situation involving a pillbox
covering the squad's position, but the outcome was wholly different.
Contrary to the popular opinion, Sergeant Larkin (Harry Guardino)
felt that his squad shouldn't attack the pillbox, seeing the danger
and judging it not worth the risk when compared to the possible gain.
He was able to explicitly order his men to leave the pillbox alone
based on the decisiveness he received from being confident about his
own judgment. However, he was killed soon after he gave the order,
and the attack was made. The operation was a costly failure, as
Larkin had predicted. Unlike Larkin's decision, which was based on
weighing the situation, the decision to attack was based on the
feeling of dire necessity. In truth, what matters isn't the decision,
but rather the confidence that you can handle whatever repercussions
there are for the decision. |
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Individuality |
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Individuality was another commonly displayed trait among the
characters in these movies. Individuality refers to a person's
ability to come up with his own ideas, original plans, and designs,
rather than just reusing skills that were previously learned.
Historically, American soldiers are trained to be individuals,
inventing new plans in new situations, and using their own cunning
and intellect to defuse difficulties. As compared to the armies of
some other cultures, where everyday soldiers are trained only to
follow orders. When a situation arises where a leader is not present,
those who have not been trained to act as individuals become lost and
disarrayed. Saving Private Ryan's Cap. Miller was once
again a prime example of the importance of this trait. After Miller's
squad had found Pvt. Ryan, they were caught in a an abandoned town on
a bridge that was soon to be overrun by German soldiers and tanks.
With very little ammunition and only his few men, it was up to Miller
to come up with a plan to get as many of his men, and specifically
Ryan, back home alive. He remembered "sticky bombs", a
tactic found somewhere in the field soldier's handbook. He soon
devised a plan with his general knowledge of tactics, and was able to
hold off the German attack until help could arrive. Individuality is
a trait common to all successful entrepreneurs, along with
determination. Proving yourself to be different, better in some way,
is the cornerstone of competitive business. |
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Although Commander Richardson in Run Silent, Run Deep was full
of individuality, he never attempted to reinforce that trait in his
men. The commander put his men through drills form the very day the
ship went to sea, demanding speed and accuracy that was unprecedented
at the time. He secretly practiced maneuvers, never letting on to his
men what he was doing. It wasn't until they reached the Bongo
Straits, against orders that the captain dismissed, that the crew
started to understand what was going on. The captain had secretly
been training them to do what others would consider a suicide mission
against a destroyer. He never told the crew his plan, and never asked
for opinions on it. He did not want individuals working together to
promote all of their skills, but rather everyone working under him so
he alone could achieve his own goal, rather than a goal that everyone
commonly shared. The furthering of his plan ran into a problem,
however, when an accident put the commander into unconsciousness.
Since he had never shared his plans or his motives with the men under
his command, there was no one left to continue the attempt. Lt. Jim
Bledsoe (Burt Lancaster), the second in command, was quite ready to
turn the ship around and speed away from what he considered to be a
crazed vendetta. Only after a miraculous recovery, the captain was
able to explain his motive to the Lieutenant, and convince him to
continue with the attack. However, if the captain had not been as
fortunate, the mission would have been called off immediately.
Although he was certainly not required to explain his plan to anyone,
it would have aided his situation immensely if he had. In truth, his
men did not even have to agree with the plan, for they only had to
have known what their orders were. The fact that some might have
bought in to his ideas would have only increased his chances for the
mission's success after his untimely incapacitation. |
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Conclusion |
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All of the lessons I picked up from these character based movies are
applicable not only on the battlefield, but on the home front as
well. The stress of the battlefield provides a great chance for the
positive traits and lessons of the characters to flourish, and for us
to gain insight from them. The deep characters in these movies
provided excellent lessons that were marvelously entwined with plots
that kept us watching. The film makers succeeded in not only
entertaining us, but enriching us as human beings as well.
Copyright, 2002, all rights reserved |
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Original Web Upload February 2002
Last Update: February 8, 2002 |
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