blanche-2 Gary Cooper plays the title role in "The Court Martial of Billy Mitchell," a 1955 film based on the real-life court martial of former Brigadier General William Mitchell, who was demoted in rank after violating orders and later court-martialed for criticizing the Armed Forces in the press.Besides also starring Ralph Bellamy, Charles Bickford, and Rod Steiger, the film also features some later TV stars - Elizabeth Montgomery, Jack Lord, John Daly, Darren McGavin and Peter Graves.Apparently the film takes some liberties with the true facts, but Mitchell believed in the power of the airplane in war and wanted an upgrade in air power for the U.S. as well as the creation of an Air Force. Much of what he said about air power came to pass, and eventually the Air Force was formed, of which he is considered the father. However, at the time, the services were faced with budget cuts and narrow thinking. They weren't convinced of Mitchell's arguments. Mitchell (in the film) disobeys orders about the size of the bomb he's carrying, using one-ton bombs to destroy the Ostfriesland, which was an World War I prize from Germany. He is demoted in rank and sent to work in Texas. When a friend of his is killed in a "death trap" flier called The Shenendoah, Billy sets himself up for a court martial so that he can bring his cause to the American public.This is a good movie which holds one's interest. I have a confession, which is that I am not always impressed with the acting of Gary Cooper, though I do love him, and this was one of those times. One of the posters suggested that James Cagney would have been a better choice given the real-life character of Mitchell. Possibly. Cooper is passionate in a quiet way but a little too one-dimensional in his performance. There are strong performances from everyone, most especially Rod Steiger. He doesn't chew up the scenery; instead, he uses his voice like a knife. He's very effective.Definitely recommended though it's not Cooper's best work.

Robert J. Maxwell I find it kind of enjoyable in a smooth, Hollywood kind of way. Billy Mitchell did go through the various experiences we see on screen, only not in the particular details shown. The deck is stacked in favor of Gary Cooper as the hero, Billy Mitchell.I read a reasonably balanced biography of Mitchell some years ago and he didn't come across as the idealistic firebrand we see on screen. Rather, as I remember it, he had married well and was something of a social aristocrat, which isn't bad in itself.The story's probably familiar. Mitchell is an advocate of air power and, against orders, blows a test battleship out of the water with out-sized 2,000 pound bombs. For this he's sent to Siberia in Texas. When his friend in killed in an airship accident and other friends expire in a cross-country flight, he makes a public announcement accusing the War Department of being "criminally negligent" and "almost treasonable." For this he gets a court martial, found guilty, and is cashiered.He was evidently correct about a number of things. The day of the battleship was limited. The majority lost by all sides in World War II were sunk by airplanes. No air force ever used 2,000 pound bombs though, with one exception (the Tirpitz) to sink them. Nor did air supremacy ever win a war by itself. Not in World War II -- and not since then.The best scene -- both the most dramatic and the most unintentionally comic -- is the court martial scene. Every participant in the trial has a single dimension. There are the good guys and the bad guys. The bad guys are winning at the start but the tide turns and they lose. The last witness is Mitchell himself. He not only has to undergo the agonizing ordeal of being cross-examined by a particularly slimy and sarcastic Rod Steiger but he must be suffering from an attack of malaria at the same time. Man, does he suffer. He keeps a handkerchief to his face, patting away the sweat.I don't recall from his biography whether Mitchell actually made the predictions attributed to him by the film. They include a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor by planes from aircraft carriers 150 miles off the Hawaiian coast. The enemy will be the Japanese. He also calls for the Air Force as an independent branch of the armed forces. This is, like, 1927, mind you. Steiger keeps making snotty references to Mitchell's "crystal ball." A friend and I made up outrageous Mitchell predictions that might have been cut from the script. The Finns will build an undersea tunnel and fly airplanes that will come out of a Washington sewer and bomb the White House, and so forth. Well -- who knows? Anyway I get a kick out of it. Worth catching if you don't care much about historical accuracy.Oh -- and Kids, in 1941 the Japanese actually DID do what Billy Mitchell said they would. It began what we call "World War II." PS: We won.

Eric I first saw this movie at a young age and it had a great impression on me. In this movie I saw where a man was willing to sacrifice himself for the common good, and the laws of democracy eventually prevailed. Also, years later, this one man's stand and dire predictions for the future all proved true. There was one time in the movie where the Army's top brass retired to the briefing room. In this room, it was discussed about whether or not to exclude certain testimony given in this trial. One of the commanding officers spoke up and declared that our legal system, even our society, is based on the fundamental right of a man to have the ability to prove his innocence.I am sure that there are some in the military that would challenge this movie because of the "going against orders" thinking. I have been in law enforcement for twenty (21) years and I know the importance of taking and giving orders. However, there is a time and place where questioning or going against orders to save someone else's life, or many lives, is appropriate. In closing, this movie hits this topic head on, deals with sacrifice and honor, and I think that any youngster twelve (12) and older needs to watch it.

Stamp-3 I have always found this picture fascinating, perhaps, unwittingly, almost a milestone. The other contributors on this page have got quite worked up about the historical context and accuracy of the movie. What they have to say is very interesting and I am sure very valid. I confess I was content to enjoy the film as an involving, and at times quite compelling, drama.What has always interested me however about this movie is the acting. And the real sense of, in this one film, the baton as it were, being passed.For about the first three quarters of the movie the acting is exactly as one would expect from almost any "stiff upper lip" Hollywood military drama of the time. Dear old Gary Cooper (getting a bit long in the tooth) hitting his one note and doing it very well. And a few old stalwarts like Ralph Bellamy dutifully plowing the same furrow. And even the younger actors content to mimic the same stodgy expository style of their elders.And then...in comes Steiger. Fluid, fluent, naturalistic, delivering his lines twice as fast as everyone else. In short a real character, as opposed to a cut-out, hits the screen.I guess what you could call it is new acting mets the old. Now by the time this movie had come out, "The Method" had already had lots of screen time...Clift, Brando, Shelley Winters, Steiger himself. But they were in their own movies. Well perhaps "Red River" might be another example (Wayne and Clift); but this movie is the best example of all.When I saw the movie I knew nothing of the actual events portrayed, and I suppose, as I was watching it, I assumed that we would plod through in a totally acceptable way to Mitchell's certain triumph. And then wham! Rod blows the whole film out of the water.In the actual story Mitchell was "beaten" by Gullion (and historians I know that statement is a travesty...but allow me my soundbite point.) In the movie Cooper is knocked cold by Steiger.