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''The Gallant Hours'' is an American docudrama from 1960 about William F. Halsey, Jr., and his efforts in fighting against Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto and the Imperial Japanese Navy in the Guadalcanal campaign of World War II. This film was directed by Robert Montgomery, who also did uncredited narration, and it stars James Cagney as Admiral Halsey. Featured in the cast are Dennis Weaver, Ward Costello, Vaughn Taylor, Richard Jaeckel, and Les Tremayne. The screenplay was by Frank D. Gilroy and Beirne Lay, Jr., and the unusual a cappella choral score was composed and conducted by Roger Wagner, although the theme song was written by Ward Costello.〔(TCM: Music )〕 The film was produced by Montgomery and Cagney, and it was the only film made by their joint production company. It was released by the United Artists company on June 22, 1960. ==Description== The film starts and ends with these words from the score's song performed by the Roger Wagner chorale Group, which sums up the story of the film: :I knew a lad who went to sea and left the shore behind him; :I knew him well; the lad was me and now I cannot find him. ::– ''from the opening chorale'' ''The Gallant Hours'' depicts the crucial five-week period in October–November 1942 after Admiral Halsey (James Cagney) took command of the beleaguered American forces in the South Pacific Area. That period of combat became a turning point in the struggle against the Japanese Empire during the World War II. The story is told in flashback, framed by Halsey's ceremony of going on inactive duty in 1947. (Note that officers of five-star rank never retire. American five-star rank is a lifetime appointment with full pay and benefits.) Unusual for a war film, ''The Gallant Hours'' has no battle scenes. All the fighting takes place off-screen, and there is an emphasis throughout the film on logistics and strategy rather than the tactics and combat. Fundamentally, the film becomes a battle of wills and wits between the dogged Halsey and his brilliant Japanese counterpart, Admiral Yamamoto (James T. Goto, who was also Technical Advisor for the film). For dramatic effect, the mission to kill Yamamoto is made contemporaneous with the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. In fact, Yamamoto was killed over Bougainville five months later in April 1943. Also somewhat unorthodox is that scenes depicting Japanese staff officers were performed in Japanese, with only summary translations provided by the narrator. This narration was remarkably evenhanded in its characterization of the enemy for an American feature film of this period. The film's coda is a quote from Admiral Halsey: :"There are no great men, only great challenges that ordinary men are forced by circumstances to meet." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Gallant Hours」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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