This Paul Newman movie doesn't get very good reviews .. perhaps because of its subject matter. Even with his passing there has been very little mention of his portrayal of General Groves. Nevertheless, General Groves presided over one of the most monumental projects of human endeavor and I believe Mr Newman played that role well.
--- CHAS
I think Newman was excellent and that the film suffered as it didn't have enough of him in it.
shareHe was fine but was a bit dashing for a somewhat portly and pompous Groves. That Groves was not quite so dashing and yet so effective would have been an interesting irony to explore.
shareWhile it's true that Newman looks nothing like Groves himself, he still was extremely well in the role. I like how in his later years got to stretch his acting talent and play guys like this.
"I know you're in there, Fagerstrom!"-Conan O'Brien
Another movie on the same subject has Brian Dennehy playing Groves. I think that was better casting. Dennehy was more believable in his portrayal.
Help stamp out and do away with redundancy
The movie "Hiroshima" had Richard Mazur as Groves, and he did a fine job, even looking like him to a great extent. This movie deals mostly with the ethical implications of whether or not to use the bomb, while also showing the Japanese leadership and their mindset regarding surrender. It shows that had the bomb not been used, it would have taken a huge invasion and many years to defeat the Japanese, who were prepared to fight a national guerilla war to achieve a settlement much more favorable to them than the unconditional surrender the Allies were demanding. Who knows how many would have died if we hadn't dropped the bomb and had to invade Japan and fight that war.
shareNot only was he miscast , but it was the first time I saw Newman overact a role. "Hiroshima" is a much better film on the subject.
shareThe film was plagued by production problems and Executive meddling. Its no surprise that the performances are off.
Its that man again!!
Paul Newman overacted in many of his roles, especially early in his career. He got better as he got older, though he still had that tendency now and then.
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