Battle at Bloody Beach (1961)

Perhaps in an attempt to get away from the Western roles into which he had been typecast, Audie Murphy starred in the little-known, low-budget 1961 World War II flick, Battle at Bloody Beach.  Set in the Philippines during the time of the Japanese occupation, this Herbert Coleman film also stars Gary Crosby and Dolores Michaels and introduces Alejandro Rey.

Having been in the Philippines at the time of the Japanese invasion, American civilian, Craig Benson (Audie Murphy), and his new bride, Ruth (Dolores Michaels), were separated in the resulting chaos. Craig was evacuated with other Americans to Australia, and now, two years later, feeling sure that his wife was not killed or taken prisoner but is hiding out somewhere, he has returned to the islands to search for her.  With Craig's knowledge of the islands, the U.S. Army has given him authority to arm Filipino resistance leaders, one of whom is Julio Fontana (Alejandro Rey).

Before providing Julio with the guns and ammunition, Craig insists that Julio bring to him any Americans he has been hiding, so that they may be evacuated to Australia.  Seven people are brought forth, one of whom is Ruth, who had been rescued and taken in by some kindly Filipinos.  Since her rescue, she has been working for the resistance efforts, and also, believing Craig to have been killed in the air raid, she became romantically involved with Julio. Although Craig's plan is to gather his wife and the other Americans and return to the States, Ruth isn't ready to leave the resistance fighting...and maybe not Julio either.

While at the beach where they will meet up with the U.S. sub which will carry them to safety, the Japanese Army approaches.  Will any of the Americans survive the onslaught?  And if they do, will Ruth choose to stay behind with Julio and the resistance?  Or will she choose to travel home with her husband?  These are the questions which play out in the balance of the film.

This film has many horrible reviews, yet I am actually going to recommend it---but not without a caveat and an explanation of my movie-viewing habits.  When it comes to movies, I often march to the beat of my own drum.  Many films that critics (and movie viewers) love do nothing for me; similarly, many films trashed by others are quite acceptable to me.  I suppose that's because I'm just a (classic) film enthusiast, not a film critic, and, therefore, I don't put on a critic's hat when I sit down to watch a movie.  I'm not looking to pick it apart or to point out all that's wrong with it; in fact, if the film's storyline interests me, I may not even notice its imperfections, and even if I do, I can easily overlook them and focus, instead, on the positive. Thus, while Battle at Bloody Beach is a flawed film and has many horrible reviews on IMDB, I was able to look past the flaws and enjoy it (unlike most of the reviewers).

Some pluses:  Interesting storyline---and one not covered a great deal in WWII films.  Also, Mr. Murphy gives a good performance and is very believable in his role.  His character is extremely likable---you can't help caring about him.

Another plus (for me) is how Audie looks in this film.  He's 36 here...and gorgeous!  Although he still looks young, gone is the cute little babyface.  Instead, there's a mature, very handsome, man, with a few light lines on his face and a tiny touch of gray in his hair.

Other pluses are Alejandro Rey and Dolores Michaels, both of whom are believable in their roles.  I liked them both.  This is a low-budget film, though, and that is very apparent in some of the scenes. Also, because the film was fairly short (83 minutes), the characters weren't fully developed.  In addition to Ruth, there were 6 other Americans to be evacuated. There was a mother and a young son, a bickering married couple, and an older married couple.  The film's short length precluded an opportunity to get to know enough about those characters to really care about them. Even the love triangle between Ruth, Craig, and Julio wasn't all that intense or passionate.  Still, Battle at Bloody Beach is what it is---an interesting, watchable, low-budget film.

Although nowhere near the caliber of earlier war films, this one may pique the curiosity of those who have interest in WWII's Pacific theatre, especially the occupation of the Philippines.  Also, Murphy completists will undoubtedly want to watch this.  If, however, you're looking for a cinematic masterpiece and can find no enjoyment in a somewhat-flawed, low-budget effort, you will probably want to skip this.  I, though, enjoyed it enough to rate it 3 stars ("good, enjoyable, like it okay")...and to record it to disc, so I can watch it again.

This film is not out on DVD, but, thanks to the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Website's "rerun" page, I discovered that it was being shown on Fox Movie Channel yesterday.  They will be airing it again this Thursday, June 13th, at 10:00 a.m. (ET), so set your DVRs if you'd like to catch it. If, however, you'd like to see it and don't get FMC, shoot me an email.  I still have it in my DVR and would be happy to record you a copy and toss it in the mail.  (After all, we Audie fans have to help each other out when possible!)

Happy viewing!!

All photos used in this post were obtained from the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Website (HERE).

NOTE:  I was born during the production of this film (filming was January 16, 1961 through February 15, 1961).  Maybe that is another reason I have a soft spot for it.