The true story of Ira Hayes is uncompromisingly brought to life in this arresting movie. You will find no sugary sentiment here, no phony romantic interludes, no box office conclusion. A tragic story, well acted, based on an excellent script by Stewart Stern, which in turn was based on Bradford Huie's book, "The Hero of Iwo Jima". For once, Delbert Mann's direction is quite cinematic. Although, as we might expect from a trained in TV director, there are plenty of close-ups, Mann often goes out of his way to use extreme long-shots. And he has elicited a marvelous performance from Gregory Walcott as the tough boot sergeant. Other great production values lie in Joseph La Shelle's superlative photography and Marjorie Fowler's astute film editing.
Review of The Outsider
