"Dead man's nothin' but a corpse. No one cares what he is now." Upon its release in 1951, The Steel Helmet was literally the first feature film to come out about the ongoing war in Korea. Directed by combat veteran and cult director Sam Fuller, this film is gritty, violent, realistic, and, most importantly, moving. The premise is simple enough: an American prisoner of war, Sergeant Zack (Gene Evans) escapes from the North Koreans, and is found by a young South Korean boy who decides to follow Zack as he attempts to return to American lines. Along the way, Zack grows fond of the boy and nicknames him "Short Round." The two eventually meet up with an American medic who has also been separated from his unit. Like Zack, he also fought in World War II (albeit in a segregated unit). The trio eventually meet up with a squad of lost American soldiers (including yet another veteran and friend of Zack's). The squad rests for a time in a Buddhist temple, where trouble soon finds them. Although made on a low budget, this is arguably one of the greatest war films ever made, and is engaging and unpredictable from start to finish.
Rating: 98/100
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