One such bit of almost Kafka-esque craziness is the movie's set piece, a spacious open field surrounded by jungle that is the only way in and out of the Allied camp on a Japanese-occupied island during World War II. Soldiers on missions to rout the Japanese from their stronghold must make broken field runs across this football arena-sized space while under fire from the unseen enemy in the dense underbrush (giving the movie its British release title, Suicide Run). When goldbricking, cowardly U.S. Navy Lt. Sam Lawson is ordered to accompany British soldiers across that field on a mission to destroy the Japanese radio installation, the dire turn of events soon reveals the foolhardiness of gung-ho heroes versus the unexpected bravery of ordinary men.
Aldrich had written the story in 1959 before his runaway box office success with such films as What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) and Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964). After his biggest hit to date, The Dirty Dozen (1967), ABC Pictures came to him looking for a repeat of that success, so he dusted off his 10-year-old script and agreed to hire a big name for marquee value. Cliff Robertson got his first leading role in Aldrich's Autumn Leaves (1956) and at the time of this picture's production was an Oscar contender for Charly (1968). Aldrich said he wanted "anybody but Cliff Robertson. You, me, anybody." But he relented. Perhaps this reluctance was behind the big rift between actor and director during the production of Too Late the Hero - Aldrich's refusal to give Robertson time off from shooting to return to the U.S. for the 1969 Academy Awards ceremony at which he won Best Actor.
Too Late the Hero was filmed in the Philippines, the largest production to be shot in that country at that time. A World War II landing strip was specially constructed and hundreds of Japanese uniforms were made. According to Michael Caine, who labeled it his worst location ever, cast and crew were plagued by insects, thorns and 120 degree temperatures with "the highest humidity that it is possible to measure." Caine was wary of what organisms might be living in the food under the horrendous jungle conditions, so he confined his diet to tins of sardines and Austrian cheese from packets opened in his presence in order to be sure they were fresh and untainted. Because of the dire conditions, Aldrich had everyone work a rotation of 14 days on, then five days off, enough time to leave the country for a break.
Despite his disdain for the location, Caine exhibited an amazing talent in the Philippines. During filming in the thick jungle, he had an unerring sense of direction and always managed to find his way around. On the first day of filming back on a studio lot in Hollywood, however, Caine delayed production by getting himself hopelessly lost.
Look for a sly bit of self-promotion by Aldrich in scenes set in the head nurse's office. A sign there identifies "Sister George" ("sister" being a common British term for nurse). The little joke references Aldrich's previous release The Killing of Sister George (1968).
Director: Robert Aldrich
Producer: Robert Aldrich
Screenplay: Robert Aldrich, Lukas Heller, Robert Sherman
Cinematography: Joseph Biroc
Editing: Michael Luciano
Art Direction: James Dowell Vance
Original Music: Gerald Fried
Cast: Michael Caine (Pvt. Tosh Hearne), Cliff Robertson (Lt. Sam Lawson), Ian Bannen (Pvt. Jock Thornton), Harry Andrews (Col. Thompson), Henry Fonda (Capt. John Nolan). C-144m. Letterboxed.
by Rob Nixon
