Attack! The Battle for New Britain
Cast & Crew
Capt. Louis B. Appleton Jr.
T/5 Oscar Birkhofer
Pfc. Ralph Bolio
Pfc. Gaetano Faillace
Pfc. Ralph W. Feldman
2d Lieut. Adrian Geoffroy
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Photographed between 5 December 1943 and 19 January 1944, this film documents the story of General Douglas MacArthur's military capture of the island of New Britain, in the Bismarck Archipelago, from the Japanese army. The film features many scenes detailing the preparation for the attack on Arawe, including the soldiers' training maneuvers in New Guinea. The specifics of the operation, which was carried out as part of combined land, air and sea force, are discussed in great detail. Combat between American and Japanese soldiers is shown, as are military officers explaining the amphibious attack strategy through the use of charts and maps. Natives of nearby New Guinea are seen instructing American soldiers in the art of jungle survival. On the day of the attack, American troops are filmed making their dawn landing at Arawe, which is followed by a second landing at Cape Gloucester. Footage of the landing shows B-25 bombers strafing the coastline and clearing out enemy soldiers. The film concludes with a reminder that even the most successful offensives exact a heavy toll. Many injured are seen receiving medical care, while the dead are paid tribute during a burial ceremony.
Crew
Capt. Louis B. Appleton Jr.
T/5 Oscar Birkhofer
Pfc. Ralph Bolio
Pfc. Gaetano Faillace
Pfc. Ralph W. Feldman
2d Lieut. Adrian Geoffroy
2d Lieut. Adrian Geoffroy
Pvt. Joseph D. Herda
2d Lieut. Harry Hillock
Capt. Jack Hively
Jack Hively
Sgt. Francis Hoffman
1st Lieut. Paul F. Husserl
1st Lieut. Peter Keane
1st Lieut. Jesse Lasky Jr.
1st Lieut. Jesse Lasky Jr.
Pfc. Ernest B. Marjoram
Pfc. Christopher Mauriello
S/sgt William S. Mehring
Sgt. Allen H. Miner
M/sgt. Russell Neis
2d Lieut. Frank Payne
Lieut. Col. Robert R. Presnell
S/sgt. Michael Rayhack
T/sgt. Daniel Rocklin
2d Lieut. Kent R. Rooks
2d Lieut. Kent R. Rooks
Pvt. Ira Rosenberg
Pfc. David Silver
Pfc. Edward Smalie
Bernard Small
T/3 Stanley T. Swed
Pvt. Byron Tower
Pfc. Rodney Whitney
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
Production notes contained in the AMPAS files state that the initial title of this film was Dexterity, the code name given to the amphibious operation. The notes also indicate that the film's air shots were made by the 5th Combat Photographic Unit, 5th Air Force, under the command of Capt. Milton Krims. Some contemporary sources reviewed the film as Attack!
The New York Times review notes that Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Gen. Brehon Somervell were responsible for the advance planning of this film. According to a May 1944 New York Times article, Attack! was "the first pre-invasion planned motion picture account of a major amphibious operation in the South Pacific theatre of war to be made available to the public." The article also relates the following production information: Lt. Col. Robert R. Presnell, who supervised the production, assembled a group of twenty photographers to film the picture and trained them at a school especially designed for New Guinea combat photography. The group was divided into four five-man units, each consisting of two still photographers, two cameramen and one officer. While the operation at New Britain was in its planning phase, MacArthur permitted Presnell to sit in on military staff meetings. Privy to the details of the attack before it was executed, Presnell was able to assign his camera crews to advantageous positions. During filming, the cameramen, who were loaded with the same rations and weapons given to the soldiers they were accompanying, were forced on several occasions to "drop their cameras hurriedly and shoot." Despite the many dangers on the battlefront, shooting on the ground was completed with only one injury reported. The injured crew member, 2d Lieut. Harry Hillock, later recovered in New Guinea. Two Air Force cameramen, however, were killed while filming the aerial phase of the operation.
Film taken of the assault on Arawe was also used to show Gen. MacArthur the daily progression of the attack. Fifty-five thousand of feet of film was shot for the picture, then was edited in Australia. Film editor Sgt. Bernard Small was the son of producer Edward Small, and Lieut. Jesse Lasky, Jr. was a screenwriter and the son of producer Jesse Lasky.
