The Red Badge of Courage is a 1951 war film made by MGM. It was directed by John Huston and produced by Gottfried Reinhardt with Dore Schary as executive producer. The screenplay is by John Huston, adapted by Albert Band from the Stephen Crane novel of the same name. The cinematography is by Harold Rosson and the music score by Bronislau Kaper. The making of the film is the subject of Lillian Ross's 1952 book Picture. The film is a sparse but faithful retelling of the story, incorporating narration from the text to move the plot forward. Audie Murphy, a hero of World War II who later went into acting, played the lead role of Henry Fleming. Other actors include cartoonist Bill Mauldin, Andy Devine, Arthur Hunnicutt, and Royal Dano.
Although this was reportedly one of Huston's favorite films, he left the editing to his staff so that he could be on the set of his next project, The African Queen.
One scene shows a section of US infantry wading a creek, and a soldier armed with a Springfield (1903) bolt action rifle.
The film is available on DVD.
Plot centers around how a young recruit (Audie Murphy) faces the horrors of war. Character vascilates between wanting to fight and doubting his own courage. In midst of first bloody encounter, Youth runs away. After seeing dead and wounded, sense of shame leads him back to his unit, where he distinguishes himself in the next battle. Having overcome his fear of "the great Death" he knows e can face whatever comes. Somewhat sentimental "coming of age" tale was pet project of John Huston, who fought MGM over casting of Murphy and Bill Mauldin in lead roles. Written by Rita Richardson
