Unrelenting and absolutely unsentimental, Robert Aldrich’s Attack! fixes its sights on the moral compromises and outright failures that sometimes occur behind the lines during combat. In this regard, Stanley Kubrick’s similarly outraged Paths of Glory, which came out a year later, can be seen as an ideal companion piece. Where Kubrick focuses on the contempt for the lives of the enlisted men felt by some of the officers, Aldrich’s film explores the causes and consequences of cowardice as exhibited by a single officer, while also taking aim at the kind of calculating manipulation that doesn’t stick at using that weakness for its own ends.
The officer in question here is Capt. Erskine Cooney (Eddie Albert), and the first of his many failures is that he doesn’t come to the aid of a platoon pinned down by enemy fire, resulting in the loss of the entire platoon, which incurs the immediate antagonism of Lt. Joe Costa (Jack Palance). The film quickly and tidily juxtaposes these two men by way of their very different private pursuits: Cooney is a gladhanding Southern “good ole boy” with a penchant for card games and black-market whiskey, while Costa is a sturdy blue-collar type who spends his downtime blacksmithing and woodworking.
When it comes to psychological delineation, the film evinces more interest in Cooney’s fraught relationship with his father, a judge and local powerbroker. Pulling Cooney’s strings behind the scenes is Lt. Col. Bartlett (Lee Marvin), who hails from the same hometown and maneuvers Cooney so he can win favor with Cooney’s father. Costa, for his part, reveals a rather tortured religiosity, not to mention a hair trigger when it comes to authority. So when Cooney sends Costa and his platoon on what just might be a suicide mission, Costa vows to come back looking for revenge if Cooney fails to back him up, as he had done previously.
If the triangulation between Cooney, Costa, and Bartlett seems overtly theatrical, that’s probably because Attack! is based on a stage play, which Aldrich does an admirable job of opening up. He displays a fondness for unusual shot compositions, using a number of high- and low-angle shots that pin characters against their environments like prize butterflies, and often framing characters through some sort of opening, in order to emphasize how exposed they can be. Aldrich also favors sinuous camera movement, moving laterally across battlefields and other shell-pocked landscapes. And Joseph Biroc’s evocative black-and-white cinematography imbues indoor scenes with a noir-inflected sense of paranoia and unease.
Although the film takes great pains at several junctures to make plain that its condign judgments don’t apply to the Army as a whole, it’s easy to see why the military balked upon reading the script, opting to withhold support in the way of both materiel and personnel. Not only does the film end with a group of soldiers fragging their commanding officer, but it goes even further in showing how Bartlett plans to manipulate the situation, papering over the truth with unearned commendations and medals. There’s also some pretty blunt talk about how a court martial would handle the situation if the truth were ever to come out. Only the moral courage of Lt. Woodruff (William Smithers) sees that it does, though it will surely mean his ruin. Taken altogether, it’s hardly a flattering portrait of this man’s army.
Image/Sound
Kino’s 1080p transfer of Attack! admirably preserves the high-contrast sheen of Joseph Biroc’s moody monochrome cinematography. While image density and the clarity of fine details can fluctuate a bit in some of the more brightly lit and outdoors scenes, grain levels appear well-resolved throughout. The English LPCM two-channel mono track solidly supports the dialogue, ambient artillery effects, as well as Frank De Vol’s rousingly martial score.
Extras
The only extra on this disc is the film’s original theatrical trailer.
Overall
Robert Aldrich’s Attack! is a relentless investigation into moral compromise.
Since 2001, we've brought you uncompromising, candid takes on the world of film, music, television, video games, theater, and more. Independently owned and operated publications like Slant have been hit hard in recent years, but we’re committed to keeping our content free and accessible—meaning no paywalls or fees.
If you like what we do, please consider subscribing to our Patreon or making a donation.
