Barnes & Noble

Two years in the making -- and 35 years in the head of writer-director Samuel Fuller -- this World War II epic redefined an entire genre when it finally hit theaters in 1980. The Big Red One has great scope and a narrative drive best described as relentless, but it also captures scenes of intimacy and poignancy. Based on Fuller’s own experiences as a G.I., the film follows the First Infantry Division’s incursions into North Africa and Europe; in a sense it presents the land war through the eyes of five foot soldiers who have one thing on their minds: survival. Lee Marvin, in what is surely the best performance of his waning years as a star, plays the intrepid sergeant determined to bring his squad through, intact. Mark Hamill, in his first post-Star Wars role of substance, is terrific as one of the soldiers -- so much so that his typecasting as Luke Skywalker now seems all the more regrettable. Robert Carradine has a nice turn as another dogface, the film’s narrator and Fuller’s alter ego. The action is intense, and the Nazis make despicable villains, but the film never falls back on the jingoism that typifies most war movies: Fuller refuses to rely on such facile conceits. Clearly, he wanted to tell a different kind of war story, and his insistence on maintaining certain scenes, viewpoints, and characterizations put him at loggerheads with the producers, who wanted various cuts and changes. This 25th anniversary DVD edition, overseen by film historian and critic Richard Schickel, restores 40 minutes of subplots, character development, and grit to the film. This is the Big Red One Fuller wanted us to see, and it’s even more powerful than the version that played theatrically. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Iconoclastic film director Samuel Fuller spent decades nurturing his dream project, a movie about his experiences in the Army's First Infantry Division during World War II, but it wasn't until 1979 that he was able to finally bring the picture before the cameras. Unfortunately, Fuller was forced by his producers to work with a scaled-down budget, and he did not have final cut on the film; after his first rough cut ran nearly four-and-a-half hours, the studio took over editing on the project, and Fuller was vocally unhappy with the final results. In 2003, critic and film historian Richard Schickel initiated an effort to restore The Big Red One to a form that more closely resembled Fuller's original vision; using a large cache of newly discovered footage and the director's shooting script as a guide, the 113-minute theatrical version was expanded to 158 minutes, adding depth and detail to Fuller's sweeping and episodic tale of a hard-as-nails sergeant (Lee Marvin) and four inexperienced recruits under his command (Mark Hamill, Robert Carradine, Bobby Di Cicco, and Kelly Ward) as they battle their way across Africa to Europe between 1942 and 1945. Schickel's reconstruction received enthusiastic reviews when it went into limited release in the fall of 2004. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 012569705906
• Source: WARNER HOME VIDEO
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Sound: Dolby AC-3 Surround Sound
• Editions: Special Edition, Subtitled, Dubbed
• Time: 2:42:00
• Sales Rank: 9,711

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• World War II Collection: Battlefront Europe

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