Johnny Got His Gun (film)
| Johnny Got His Gun | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Dalton Trumbo |
| Produced by | Bruce Campbell |
| Written by | Dalton Trumbo |
| Starring | Timothy Bottoms Jason Robards Donald Sutherland Diane Varsi Kathy Fields |
| Music by | Jerry Fielding |
| Cinematography | Jules Brenner |
| Distributed by | Cinemation Industries |
| Release date(s) | 1971 |
| Running time | 111 min. |
| Country | United States |
Johnny Got His Gun is a 1971 anti-war film based on the novel of the same name written and directed by Dalton Trumbo and starring Timothy Bottoms, Jason Robards and Donald Sutherland with Diane Varsi. The film was released on DVD in the U.S on April 28, 2009 via Shout! Factory with special features.
Contents |
[edit] Synopsis
Joe Bonham (Bottoms), a young American soldier hit by an artillery shell during World War I, lies in a hospital bed. He is a quadruple amputee who has also lost his eyes, ears, mouth and nose. He remains conscious and able to reason, however, rendering him a prisoner in his own body. As he drifts between reality and fantasy, he remembers his old life with his family and girlfriend (Kathy Fields). He also forms a bond, of sorts, with a young nurse (Diane Varsi) who senses his plight.
At the end of the film, Joe tries to communicate to his doctors, via Morse code, and wishes for the Army to either put him in a glass coffin in a freak show as a demonstration of the horrors of war, or kill him. In the end, however, he realizes that the Army will grant neither wish, and will leave him in a state of living death.
In the film's climax, his nurse attempts to euthanize him by clamping his breathing tube, but her supervisor stops her before Joe can succumb. This does not occur in the novel. The film ends with Joe weakly chanting "S.O.S. Help me."
[edit] Cast
Timothy Bottoms ... Joe Bonham
Kathy Fields ... Kareen
Marsha Hunt ... Joe's Mother
Jason Robards ... Joe's Father
Donald Sutherland ... Christ
Charles McGraw ... Mike Burkeman
Sandy Brown Wyeth ... Lucky
Don 'Red' Barry ... Jody Simmons (billed as Donald Barry)
[edit] Production
The film is well known for distinguishing between Joe's reality and fantasy with black and white for the hospital, and color for his dreams and memories. His dreams are drug induced, as when he talks to his dead father and Christ, with the color being saturated. His memories are in a clearer color, such as the fishing trip and his last night with Kareen. Joe's face is never seen in the hospital scenes, and his missing limbs are covered by hospital sheets.
[edit] Reception
The film was entered into the 1971 Cannes Film Festival where it won the Grand Prix Spécial du Jury and the FIPRESCI Prize.[1]
[edit] Popular culture
The music video for Metallica's 1988 song "One", featured excerpts from the film.
[edit] References
- ^ "Festival de Cannes: Johnny Got His Gun". festival-cannes.com. http://www.festival-cannes.com/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/2402/year/1971.html. Retrieved 2009-04-12.
[edit] External links
- Johnny Got His Gun at the Internet Movie Database
- Johnny Got His Gun (2008 version) at the Internet Movie Database
- Review of the 2008 version 'Johnny Got His Gun'
- The cinematographer's page on the movie
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion |
Grand Prix Spécial du Jury, Cannes 1970 tied with Taking Off |
Succeeded by Solaris |
