They were Expendable (1945): Music and Excerpts from the Classic, John Ford WWII Picture about the Men Who Served on the PT Boats in the War’s Darkest Days

Re-posted by Nicholas Stix

The first time I saw this picture, I missed the first half, and found it hokey. I figured it hadn’t aged well.

A year or two ago, not planning to watch it, it came on and I watched the beginning. Over two hours later, I realized I’d just seen a classic.

If you see what these men went through, the later scenes aren’t at all hokey.

The title has a double meaning—the boats were expendable, and so were the men.



They were Expendable: Original Theatrical Trailer



Warner Bros.
Published on Aug 21, 2014

Supplies are dwindling. Troops are hopelessly outnumbered. But even in defeat there is victory. The defenders of the Philippines -- including PT-boat skippers John Brickley (Robert Montgomery) and Rusty Ryan (John Wayne) -- will give the U.S. war effort time to regroup after the devastation of Pearl Harbor. Director John Ford's World War II tale knows its battle-scarred topic firsthand. Montgomery was himself a Pacific PT-boat commander and a valorous Bronze Star recipient. Ford filmed the Academy Award-winning* documentary Battle of Midway. And Wayne creates a portrait of patriotic resolve as only he can. They Were Expendable salutes all who expended themselves during some of the war's bleakest hours.

They were Expendable: Opening



Steve Gorek
Published on Mar 11, 2011

Dedicated to all those who were EXPENDED and to one of the few movies that told the story of our dark days of World War II.


Excerpt from the Beginning of They Were Expendable





“Marcheta”: An Exquisite Musical Montage Showing the Emotional Power of a Piece of Music from One Scene to Another, within They Were Expendable




veiledchamber
Published on Oct 13, 2009

"Marchéta" (pronounced Mar-KEE-ta) is a 1913 "love song of Old Mexico" written by the American composer Victor Schertzinger when he was but 25 years old. These days all of the versions to be found on modern CD are either overwrought ballads by male vocalists like Al Jolson and Mario Lanza, or else corny "cha-cha" dance instrumentals. However, when played in waltz-time, as a serious orchestral love song, it becomes an achingly beautiful theme.

Director John Ford made "Marchéta" one of the emotional linchpins of his 1945 film THEY WERE EXPENDABLE. It is first played when Rusty Ryan (John Wayne) attends a hospital dance on Corregidor in the Philippines, and falls in love with a nurse there. Much later in the film, as Bataan falls and Corregidor (where his lover is stationed) is being bombed and starved into submission by the Japanese, a poignant reprise of the song appears on the radio as Wayne is getting drunk in an island bar, reminding him of his night of dancing with her in the darkness, as he realizes he'll never see her again.

The song is utilized expertly by Ford in THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, and would stick with John Wayne for the rest of his life. Ford always had an accordionist on his set named Danny Borzage, who would often play mood music during scenes to help the actors find the right tone. Borzage would also create an intimate sense of family among the cast and crew by playing favorite themes whenever John Ford or a member of his stock company appeared on set. Everyone had their own tune, and after THEY WERE EXPENDABLE, "Marchéta" became John Wayne's theme. I think it's a beautiful melody, and deserves to be remembered far better than it has been. Have a listen to it here in a pair of clips from THEY WERE EXPENDABLE and see if you agree.
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John Wayne in the Memorial Service Scene in They were Expendable





Requiem
By Robert Louis Stevenson