May 15 - Cast a Giant Shadow

Today’s movie is a biographical drama with a scene set on May 15. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

CAST A GIANT SHADOW        

At Christmastime 1947 the Haganah underground group, approaches the Jewish Mickey Marcus, former American military lawyer to assist the future Israeli army. He finally agrees and tells his wife, who is upset, as she thinks the Israelis can’t win. She thinks back to when he served during World War II. Marcus finagles his way across the Channel into France after D-Day, without orders and is arrested by his commanding general. Back in 1947, the Pentagon says he can only go to Palestine if he goes incognito. When he arrives in Palestine, the bus he travels on is ambushed by the Arabs.  He is greeted with  suspicion by the Haganah, but after he assists in helping some illegal refugees land, he earns some respect. Marcus goes on a tour of Haganah positions and reflects back on when he helped in the liberation of Dachau concentration camp. Marcus leads a raid to destroy an illegal Arab arms dump. Marcus keeps pushing to unify the different Jewish forces into a united army. He continues observing, writes manuals for the Israeli army and runs the Arab gauntlet into Jerusalem.  His wife miscarries their child.   In Jerusalem, Mickey resists temptation from his female Haganah handler, Magdha. Marcus returns to New York for a time and thinks back to when he was awarded the OBE. He returns to Palestine with a planeload of arms. The Haganah and Palmach agree to serve under a unified command. Israel declares its independence and Marcus succumbs to a night with Maghda. The next day, May 15, 1948, Marcus, Gen. Asher and David Ben-Gurion meet  and discuss the overwhelming Arab advantage. [1:27:14 to 1:28:56] Israel is attacked on all fronts, but they fight back with everything they’ve got. Marcus leads an attack with improvised weapons that stops an Egyptian armored attack. He is recalled to help save Jerusalem and is put in charge of all forces in the area.  He helps organize an attack on Latrun, where the Arab Legion has cut off the supply line to the city.  The attack is repulsed due to overwhelming Arab strength and lack of Israeli training. Marcus proposes building a new supply road through a narrow valley. Working 24 hours a day the new road is built and the supplies start flowing again to feed Jerusalem. Marcus decides to end the affair with Maghda.  On the night before the cease fire takes effect, Marcus is killed by an Israeli sentry because he didn’t know how to respond to a challenge in Hebrew.  . 

A good, if somewhat sentimentalized biopic. Marcus is presented as the American “saviour’ of Israel, which is certainly an exaggeration. The film also tacks on domestic quarrels and a love affair to what is essentially a war movie.

This scene is after the proclamation of the state of Israel, which was on May14, 1948 as per Historic Palestine, Israel and the Emerging Palestinian Autonomous Areas ed. by Laura S. Etheredge (Britanica Publishing, New York, 2011) at page 69. The next scene after this at 1:29:00 says May 16

Director - Melville Shavelson

Producer - Melville Shavelson

Screenplay - Melville Shavelson                             

Released - March 30,  1966

Runtime - 2 hours 26 minutes.

Starring -

Kirk Douglas as “Mickey” Marcus

Angie Dickinson as Emma Marcus

Senta Berger as Magda

Yul Brynner as Asher

Stathis Giallelis as Ram Oren

John Wayne as The General

Frank Sinatra as Vince

Gordon Jackson as McAffee

James Donald as Saphir

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.