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John Huston's Landmark World War II Documentary
"The Battle of San Pietro" is John Huston's landmark 1945 documentary covering a pivotal battle in Italy during World War II. This 40-minute film features some of the most riveting film footage of the war that you have ever seen. If you have never heard of either this documentary or this particular battle, I would not be surprised. One of the things that makes Huston's film remarkable is that this was not an important battle; despite the prologue by General Mark Clark, San Pietro was one of countless battles that really never made it into the history books. In many ways this is a true film, more given towards manipulation of the audience than a straight-forward documentary: Huston flips several shots in order to have the American troops always moving in the correct direction (right to left) towards the enemy. He also apparently restaged more footage than the end title suggests, but clearly this is out of a sense of narrative completeness rather than a blatant attempt to manufacture a false story. After all, combat photography was still pretty much in its infancy and Huston was a Hollywood director who was never going to really be satisfied with the gaps in his "story." If you think this might make "The Battle of San Pietro" something like the "Saving Private Ryan" of its day, then you will not be surprised to learn the National Film Registry agrees; they added this film to their list in 1991. This videotape also includes a wartime recruitment film, "The Marines Have Landed." Very appropriate for history classes covering the war interested in contemporary combat footage.

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The Facts of War
This movie set out to look war in the face and tell the truth, and that's what it does. It captures the human and psychological costs of war to the men who fight it, which is why, although the film was initially shelved because commanders thought it was too depressing for wartime audiences, Chief of Staff George Marshall believed it should be shown to all Americans. Marshall wanted Americans to know the costs of victory, and the depth of the contributions made by fighting men. He believed that a society which understands war will work harder to support its fighting men. This film is still moving and powerful in a low-key but deeply affecting way.

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John Huston's landmark WWII documentary
"The Battle of San Pietro" is John Huston's landmark 1945 documentary covering a pivotal battle in Italy during World War II. This 40-minute film features some of the most riveting film footage of the war that you have ever seen. If you think this might make "The Battle of San Pietro" something like the "Saving Private Ryan" of its day, then you will not be surprised to learn the National Film Registry agrees; they added this film to their list in 1991. This videotape also includes a wartime recruitment film, "The Marines Have Landed." Very appropriate for history classes covering the war interested in contemporary combat footage.