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Battleground

Battleground

Action · Drama · War · 1949

Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues, perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.

Movie details

Battleground

“The First Great Picture Of The Second World War!”

1949 Action · Drama · War 1h 58m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.7 / 10

Community rating

Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues, perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Battleground?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

William A. Wellman

Written by

Robert Pirosh

Van Johnson

Van Johnson

Holley

John Hodiak

John Hodiak

Jarvess

Ricardo Montalban

Ricardo Montalban

Roderigues

George Murphy

George Murphy

'Pop' Stazak

Marshall Thompson

Marshall Thompson

Jim Layton

Jerome Courtland

Jerome Courtland

Abner Spudler

Don Taylor

Don Taylor

Standiferd

Court is in session

Put Battleground on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Momentum is a formal choice.”

The velocity sharpens instinct and tension, making every beat land before self-importance can settle in.

The prosecution The Cool Ironist

“Speed as an alibi.”

The film races past its weak spots and hopes acceleration will keep the audience from inspecting the evidence.