Review of The Red Badge of Courage (1951) by R.a. L — 25 Nov 2008
The poetry of Crane is so powerful, and even though I am not as big a fan of his novels and short stories, The Red Badge of Courage painted a very vivid image in my mind. I saw very boldy the way things were supposed to look.
Huston's film is filled with some very impressive cinematography and photography, but they are not the right images in my mind. Also, Red Badge of Courage is a film that works best if it is true to the original novel, but the narrator's reading of the text seemed a poor choice to hold true to Crane's original work.
Overall I did not find myself impressed with the film, the depth seemed lost, and the story did not hold the original spirit of the novel. I will give the film credit for using cinematography similar to that of Dovzhenko's Zemlya (Earth), and for having a look that Kurosawa could have used while filming Seven Samurai.
This review of The Red Badge of Courage (1951) was written by R.a. L on 25 Nov 2008.
The Red Badge of Courage has generally received positive reviews.
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