55 Years Later, This Drama Is Still One of the Best Antiwar Movies Everyone Forgot About
It's a must-see for anyone who considers themselves a pacifist.
In 1971, Dalton Trumbo, a renowned Hollywood screenwriter who had endured imprisonment and blacklisting over accusations of un-American activities, directed his only film that won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
Johnny Got His Gun is an anti-war drama that has been undeservedly forgotten today. It's one of the most harrowing and brutal films depicting the emotional and physical suffering of people sent to their deaths as cannon fodder to serve politicians' greedy interests.
What Is 'Johnny Got His Gun' About?
Joe is a young American soldier who is wounded by a mortar shell on the last day of World War I. When he wakes up in the hospital, he discovers that he has lost his arms and legs and has become blind, deaf, and unable to speak.
To the doctors, he is now a lifeless lump of flesh, a body devoid of purpose or meaning. Yet Joe retains the ability to think – he relives his life through strange dreams and memories, no longer distinguishing between sleep and reality.
He replays scenes from his happy past in his mind – the faces of his girlfriend, father, and friends. Reality, however, is unrelenting. He lies in darkness, feeling only the touch of nurses and doctors. Gradually, he learns to communicate with the outside world using Morse code.
'Johnny Got His Gun' Is a Pacifist Manifesto in Its Purest Form
Johnny Got His Gun is a cry from the darkness – a true pacifist manifesto. Trumbo doesn't need battle scenes to convey the horror of war, a single hospital room and one motionless body suffice.
The camera lingers on the face of the main character, played by Timothy Bottoms, forcing us to gaze into eyes that see nothing and imagine what is going on inside his mind.
Flashbacks to his happy life before the war create an unbearable contrast when you realize that the young man who once laughed, loved, and dreamed now lies in the hospital, a mere stump of a human being, unable to even call for help.
Yes, the film depicts an extraordinary medical case, but realism is not the main point. Johnny Got His Gun serves as a metaphor for all soldiers left disabled by war and all those who never returned home alive.
'Johnny Got His Gun' Was Overlooked by Audiences, but It Found Fame Elsewhere
Remarkably, a movie that won the top prize at Cannes largely bypassed mainstream audiences yet exerted a profound influence elsewhere. Legendary metal band Metallica wrote the song "One" after being deeply affected by the Dalton Trumbo novel on which the film was based.
The music video incorporates footage from the movie, and the lyrics capture the horror experienced by the protagonist: the inability to die and eternal imprisonment within one's own body.
Johnny Got His Gun is a shattering cinematic experience that stays with you long after the credits roll.
What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Johnny Got His Gun'?
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Johnny Got His Gun has 67% from critics and 86% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.
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On IMDb, the movie has a score of 7.8/10.
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On Letterboxd, Johnny Got His Gun scored 4.0/5.0.
Where to Watch 'Johnny Got His Gun'?
Johnny Got His Gun is available to buy or rent on Prime Video and Apple TV.
