The Battle of San Pietro (1945)

★★★★★ · A very fine piece of work by Huston. · John-boy · 2005-08-26

Those who would evaluate this documentary solely on its entertainment value are completely missing the point. This work portrays the battle using setup detail description and filming methods that take you right into the action. The ending, when the people of San Pietro come out of hiding and show their gratitude even in the midst of suffering casualties themselves by falling victim to enemy laid booby traps, leaves no doubt in the viewer's mind that this battle had to be fought. It's a shame that the Army chose not to show it to the public but the truth is that it's easy to understand why…

★★★★★ · still disturbs and shocks because it is real · goonsquad4 · 2006-06-09

I am actually writing my MA dissertation on this film and the two other war documentaries Huston did for the Army--Report from the Aleutians (1943) and Let There Be LIght (1946). I have viewed San Pietro a dozen times now, and still learn more with each viewing. My research tells me this film is considered to be the best war documentary ever. That is a large claim but it is indeed the best I have ever seen. The film is vastly different than any newsreel-style, cheerleading documentary of the era, as the voice-over is sober, ironic, and poignant at times. The battle scenes are brutal as we see…

★★★★★ · A War Correspondents view of San Pietro · racerbill27 · 2011-06-15

My father was an AP War correspondent (Photographer(. This is a letter he sent to my mother On Dec 18, 1943. The "Willie" referred to in the letter is me. I would have included a photo of the rose and the envelope, however I guess that this forum won't accept photos. I hope you enjoy...William C. Allen, Jr. Letter to Rene The Battle for San Pietro. December 18, 1943 Dearest Renee, I am going to tell you a story. I can write about it because I am a War Correspondent, not assigned to any particular outfit and therefore I am not giving any military secrets away. Today the town of San Pietro fell…

★★★★★ · once again.. · LovelyLaura1313 · 2006-07-18

maybe you all should do a little back round check before you watch this movie and make assumptions. i wrote a review earlier. none of the footage is fake folks. its all real. once again, there is a lot of my family in this movie. we own the movie at home, and my family members remember it happening. theres a scene of a lady laying above a gutter with flowers in her hand and she is dead. that would be my great aunt. and that would be where and when she died. when i visited san pietro i stood in that spot. once again, the footage isn't fake. thanks for reading ! :)

★★★★★ · It was real footage. · truestory · 2011-04-28

The cameraman on The Battle of San Pietro was the photographer, and later producer, Jules Buck. James Agee wrote at length about his heroic and priceless collaboration with John Huston , and Eric Ambler gives some of the back story in his memoir. I was present when the great documentarian Ricky Leacock watched The Battle Of San Pietro with Jules Buck in Paris in 1999, and Buck carefully showed Leacock what had been staged: Only the soldiers walking. Period. Buck explained that the interstitial material is always staged in any documentary, after the important moments have been recorded.…

★★★★★ · 46 minutes in 2 pictures · Gunter · 2005-12-05

There is no need to say something about John Huston because he was probably one of the most appreciated movie man in the 40s and the 50s in America. I saw the Battle of San Pietro for the first time when I bought the video in London by After The Battle in the late 1970s. Since this day they are 2 pictures in the movie I will nerver forget : le little "man" wearing a beannie (jeep cap) and that sweet little girl behind her mother and sared like hell. These two pictures are making this whole movie being one of the best ever made on world war two. The Military part itself is one of the best. No…