Propaganda Crap

Wow. Seems as though you have all the bases covered here. Let's see:
Any morale-booster during a time of world war is propaganda? Check!
The requisite racist issues? Check!
White guilt? Check!
A script not on par with War and Peace? Check!

Yup. You covered it all.

Now to the facts: There are no soldiers in it because they were all overseas *fighting* for our freedom. This movie was made to boost the morale of those that stayed at home *and* the soldiers overseas where it was sent for them to enjoy. The plot was thin because it was for enjoyment, not person journeys or story arcs; a little ditty to forget about the horrors of war.

As to the no black soldiers, well you have me there: were aren't perfect and we've made our mistakes. I just find it hilarious that you only raise the black racist flag- why don't you scream as loudly to have England returned to the Picts? I mean the Angles stole it from them and enslaved the Picts, and then the Angles were conquered and (for the most part) enslaved by the Saxons, (hence Anglo-Saxon) who took over England. I find your argument specious that you only want to raise a hue and cry for blacks: Raise it for all displaced and subjugated people of all time, and then people won't think you a moron.

..Joe

I grew up in the 1930s/40s and I want to make a couple of comments. While you "youngsters" are probably not aware of it, in 1943 we were in real danger of losing the war. Things were going badly on all fronts and thousands of men were dying every day. Movies like this were put out to try and tell everyone, but especially the men on the lines, that "yes, we are getting the crap kicked out of us, but we still have to keep fighting so keep your courage up." Many of the actors who appeared in this film either went into the service later or were considered "4F" (physically or mentally unfit) or, like Ben Blue, were too old and could not serve.
I hate to say it but, yes, racial prejudice was alive and well during this time and there were few black enlisted personnel in the services. Those that were were usually in menial positions, such as stewards on naval ships. Was it right? Absolutely not, but it was an accepted way of life. There were also very few black actors/performers because many theaters refused to show films with them. In fact, look at any musical with Lena Horne and you will see that her performance was a "stand alone" number that could be edited out without harming the overall film. This was done for showing in the south.
As for the stars feeling used, quite the opposite. They volunteered for this duty, even traveling at their own expense to entertain the troops. Unlike today's stars, they had pride in the US and loved the country. Today's stars, like the aforementioned Sean Penn or Susan Sarandon, lean very far to the left and consider being an American as something to be ashamed of. During WW2 we were glad to be Americans and were proud of our country.
The end of the movie, which you find so offensive, was geared toward the hope that the men going to fight might, possibly, come home alive so keep your hope alive. Unless you lived in those times you cannot possibly understand what life was like then and, since most of you have been taught by Liberal teachers in a very left-leaning educational system, you have a skewed idea of what America and Americans stood for back then.

So, what exactly is the point of your post? Are you sorry the war turned out the way it did? Sorry that more African-Americans subject to ongoing discrimination at home were not engaged in the fighting, sharing the fun of risking life and limb? Complaining because you didn't understand that the limitations on studios required them to make morale-booster films if they wanted to make films at all, given the competition for resources also needed in the defense industry?

You clearly don't understand propaganda. Gung-ho morale booster films are straightforward cheerleader productions. Their content is completely expected. There's nothing subtle or subliminal happening. Is it propaganda when the crowd sings along with the national anthem at a ball game, or when little kids wave flags along the parade route on July 4th?

Are you sad that films made during the war weren't about everyone dying, or tributes to the politics of the Axis? Do you suppose the families on the home front or the troops anywhere wanted to sit in the dark for a couple of hours to watch something dismal and depressing to inspire them to work harder at the plant or feel more uplifted about the next engagement with the enemy? Do you think your vision of the perfect WWII film would have soothed their hearts when the telegram arrived that a loved one was KIA, or when a skirmish took out part of their band of brothers?

What exactly do you hope to see when you watch talent showcase types of films made during WWII? Why do you even bother to watch them?

~If you go through enough doors, sooner or later you're gonna find a dog on the other side.~

Just a quick observation of the original post. It always makes me laugh when I see someone give a horrible review of a movie from the beginning to the end. Why didn't you find someone to play Scrabble or Monopoly with you once you saw that for a number of reasons this movie was crap (in your humble - uh huh - opinion)?
If the intention was to cause other people who are more educated, intelligent, who lived this time in history, and who know intimately more about the movie, etc., then Mission Accomplished!

I'm just thinking how refreshing it would be if we could read reviews and discussions on IMDb without being subjected to these tiresome hangups about every BAD thing that is retrospectively diagnosed in movies of past eras. Wouldn't it be nice if political correctness, moral exhibitionism, sanctimonious judgmentalism, and historical revisionism were banned from this site? Anyone who felt impelled to voice his or her hangups about old movies would of course be perfectly free (as they are now) to create their own blogs or whatever where they can indulge in vicarious wrist-slashing to their hearts' content without burdening others with their insufferable pontifications.