Review of Sergeant York (1941) by Jens T — 11 Jan 2011

Sergeant York is shameless propaganda, but that's not necessarily a bad thing; several films made solely as propaganda can be excellent and moving viewing experiences (Mrs. Miniver, A Matter of Life and Death, etc.

). Sergeant York is the shaky biopic about Alvin York, a "hillbilly" from rural Tennessee who (according to the film) saw the error of his drunkard ways by falling in love with the beautiful Gracie (Joan Leslie), goes down a path of religious enlightenment (spearheaded by his pastor, played by the ever-reliable Walter Brennan), and eventually gets drafted for the army.

He protests: how can he go to kill people if the Good Book says not to? But, sooner or later, he ends up in service, and his superiors quickly realize that this hick from Tennessee is an incredibly gifted shooter.

The film's climax, the historic battle in which York killed up to twenty German soldiers, took some 130 prisoner, and saved seven of his partners, is probably the tamest war sequence I have ever seen.

Gary Cooper is serviceable as Alvin York, but the problem with this film is that it falls into the holes laid by earlier bad war biopics. Rugged, uneducated friends begin to die and suddenly speak poetic phrases that echo in York's mind forever, and, unfortunately, probably the biggest problem the film has is that it actually almost demeans the figure of Alvin York.

The film portrays York as a bumbling, almost stupid hick whose world is moving a bit faster than he is. It almost felt, disturbingly enough, like Forrest Gump in some parts--through no fault of Cooper--and the American hero York deserves better than that.

What York did in battle was miraculous; I just wish his legacy was featured in a better movie.