Original subtitles

[bullets whizzing]

He's hit!

Watch out for yourself.

[airplane engines roaring]

Maj. Boyington is missing in action?

We don't even know if he's alive or not.

[grunts]

You're fightin' the wrong war.

[bomb explodes]

(men) J‘ We are poor little lambs J‘

J‘ Who have lost our way J‘

J‘ Baa! Baa! Baa! J‘J‘

[siren wailing]

(newsreel announcer) The war in the Pacific,

a new kind of war,

fought in the skies by a new kind of warrior,

the brave men who pilot our warplanes

from carrier decks and coral islands,

to meet the enemy above the clouds.

Air power is the key to victory against the Japanese.

And the key to Air Power: the fighter plane.

Fast and deadly,

a new kind of weapon for a new kind of war.

Often outnumbered, our planes and the men who fly them

have turned back the enemy time and again.

[speaking Japanese]

lgot one comin' up on my tail!

Don't let him tag you, T.J.! l'm comin' down now!

[gun firing]

He's still comin'!

Don't panic, T.J.!

Break left and bring him around in front of me.

[firing]

Be careful, T.J.! He's right on top of you!

Where are you, Pappy?

[gun continues firing]

(Gutterman) Pappy's got him.

(T. J.) Where? I can't see him!

(Gutterman) T.J., no! You're shooting at Greg!

He's hit! Pappy's hit!

Oh, my God. Pappy!

You flamed him, T.J.! He's flyin' streamers.

I didn't realize it was him!

(T. J.) Pappy, you all right?

No!

Wylie, you stupid amateur, numbskull jackass.

Knock it off, Gutterman! It wasn't his fault.

l was right in front of him.

My God. Pappy, I'm sorry.

Fat lot of good that does now, T.J. Wylie!

(Greg) Jim, you take 'em home!

There's no way this old bird and l are gonna stay together.

Okay, you meatheads!

Watch out for yourself.

[airplane rattling]

(Greg) Who do you blame in a situation like this?

I blame myself.

All the guys in the Black Sheep

had been trouble in the Marine Corps

before I made a squadron out of them. And true to their name,

there had been trouble ever since.

That was one of the things I liked about 'em.

[speaking Japanese]

[speaking Japanese]

(Greg) It looked like

l was going to be out of the picture for a while.

Maybe forever.

Somebody was gonna have to take command of the Black Sheep,

or they'll all go back to being deadbeats and drunks.

I hoped they managed to work it out.

I hoped I managed to stay alive long enough to see if they did.

[guns firing]

[gun firing]

[guns continue firing]

[tyres squealing]

Hutch?

(Hutch) Yep?

You gotta get this crate topped off. Right away!

Hey, look. Your bird's due for an overhaul, Lieutenant.

I mean, it's none of my business,

but haven't you had enough for today?

That's an order, Sergeant!

I wanna fly out of here in 10 minutes.

(Bragg) Hey, T.J., come here. I wanna talk to you.

Hey, since when did you start givin' orders, Wylie?

Now look, Bragg, just lay off.

Can that order, Hutch.

Jim, I gotta go back there.

I can't just leave Pappy on that island.

You just can't stop actin' dumb, can you?

Maybe that's not such a bad idea, Captain.

lfthe Japanese shoot him down,

it'll save us the trouble of havin' to kill him.

A pretty stupid thing to say, wasn't it, Bragg?

Greg said it wasn't T.J.'s fault.

It wasn't his fault?

There was only two of 'em out there in the whole damn sky!

Are we gonna argue or figure out a way to save Pappy?

Look, it was my fault, and I'm--

Shut up, all of you, will you?

What's wrong with you guys?

Pappy's down, and that's all there is to it.

And there ain't no way we're gonna bring him back.

Hey, wait a minute, Jim. I don't get it.

Why do you keep defending Wylie?

He knocked you out ofthe sky twice, and he just shot Pappy down.

Because it wasn't his fault. It was mine.

l'm T.J.'s wingman.

It was myjob to keep that Zero off his tail.

lfl hadn't missed--

(Casey) Okay, it happened.

But Don's right. If we think about it,

we can figure a way to save him.

You don't save one man off an enemy island.

We don't even know if he's alive or not,

or--or where he is on that lousy rock.

(Gutterman) lt'd take a full-scale invasion

just to get on the beach.

We have to start thinkin' about some way to save ourselves.

We have a stack of court-martials waiting for us.

Pappy was around,

he used to keep those rear-area commanders off our backs.

Now that he's gone, well,

old Lard's gonna chew us up like a piece of fried chicken.

[birds chirping]

[engines starting]

(Gutterman) Come on, Meatball.

Hey!

[whining]

He ain't comin' back.

[continues whining]

[panting]

Jim...

Colonel--

Not now, Pell. I've got a meeting.

You'd better see this, sir.

Maj. Boyington is missing in action?

[paper rustling]

I suppose that means we lost a plane as well.

I can find out.

Never mind. Call Skyler, tell him I can't make it.

Cancel the meeting.

[speaking Japanese]

[birds twittering]

[in Japanese]

fleep engine starting]

[leaves rustling]

[soldiers speaking Japanese]

[bird calling]

[barking]

[shushing]

(Casey) Hey, what's going on? Where is everybody?

(French) Are we gonna fly this mission or aren't we?

Well, where's Gutterman? Ain't he supposed to be in command?

He'll be here. Let's go.

Hey, don't go givin' me orders, French. You ain't, my mother.

What's wrong with you, Jerry? You losing your nerve?

Maybe you'd like to find out, huh?

I'm just askin' you, are you gonna fly? We got ajob to do.

I never did like cub scouts too much.

[grunts]

Hey, knock it off! Knock it off!

What's the matter with you guys?

Let go.

We take off in five minutes.

I ain't flying this mission.

(Casey) Come on, Jim. We gotta do something.

If we don't fly this mission,

we are gonna get court-martialed.

Fly the mission? Six of us?

We'll wake the others up. We can't just give up.

What do you want me to do?

Jim, you're in command.

Command of what?

Our only hope of stayin' out ofthe brig

is by bein' the best fighter squadron in the South Pacific.

Larry, look at this.

This here's ajoke.

Maybe it always was.

(French) You think we ought to wake the others?

(Bragg) What's the use? I'm goin' back to sleep.

[birds chirping]

[man whistling]

[vessel clanking]

[eggs sizzling]

Name's Hooper, Lieutenant Matthew.

Navy man, myself.

New Zealander?

Aussie.

Go on, have a stretch.

You slept a long time.

Feels like I had some help.

You were the only one who hit me?

I thought you was one ofthem.

Gave me a turn.

l raid their pantry every other night or so.

They ain't caught on, yet.

What did you hit me with, a tree?

[chuckles]

You live on this island?

Not by choice, mate. Here, have some tea.

[grunts]

lt's bloody green,

but it's all those buggers drink.

(Hooper) Must've been your chute I saw yesterday.

[spatula scraping]

You're lucky, and that's not the half of it.

Myself, I came here by sea.

Navy all the way.

We lost a cruiser to a sub off Truk.

l was blown right through the skin into the water,

grabbed a piece of debris.

Happened to be one ofthe mess tables.

Just like a raft, floated on it.

Ended up here. Two days on the ocean.

Off Truk about two months ago?

Three.

That's right, three.

You've been here for three months?

Just like home.

[airplane engines droning]

Eight o'clock.

(Hooper) They'll be back at 10:00.

How far's the airstrip from here?

Oh, a mile and a half.

Last night you carried me

a mile and a half through this jungle?

[scraping]

Didn't have much choice, did I?

You're not that big a bundle, you know, mate.

(Greg) I like mine scrambled, easy.

[birds chirping]

lt's you they're looking for.

Glad as I am ofthe company, and no offence,

but your dropping in could put me up the gum tree.

Next time I'll call for reservations.

You do that next time.

Next war.

Let's go.

(Greg) Looks like they've settled in for the duration.

All the comforts.

Why does this place look vaguely familiar?

(Hooper) There's the mess where we met last night.

Just behind is the ammo dump.

[whispering] Come on.

[birds twittering]

(Hooper) There's the airstrip.

(Greg) Any chance to get to that Zero?

No chance.

They're chained down and heavily guarded.

What's that?

Just a plane.

Just a plane?

I know what you're thinking, mate, but she won't fly.

It's an old torpedo-bomber.

[clattering]

[Hooper shushing]

The control linkage is shot.

Instrument panel looks okay.

You know what probably happened?

This thing got chewed up in a raid,

and they moved it offthe field and forgot about it.

I'm gonna check out the engine.

You remind me of my dad.

[sighs]

(Greg) The prop's pin, the oil lines are gone,

the magneto, most ofthe wiring.

They stripped it.

Let's go, mate, it's 10:00.

There'll be a patrol by here any minute.

You really got this island down, don't you, Hooper?

I plan to be here a long time.

Till the war's over?

Till our side shows up.

My dad was an infantry captain.

Chest full of medals.

He used to tell me, "A soldier's job is to be a hero."

One day he didn't come home.

He was so busy being a hero, he forgot to stay alive.

I plan to survive on this island.

So can you, if you do what I tell you.

[liquid sloshing]

It's got gas in it.

Let's go.

[intercom buzzing]

Yes?

(woman) Col. Lard to see you, sir.

[sighs]

Tell him I'm out.

I tried, sir, but he says it's urgent.

Send him in.

General...

Sir, I've just seen the, uh, morning flight reports from the bomber wings.

And?

808 flew the Slot this morning without fighter escort.

Any damage?

Well, luckily, no.

Well, how the hell did that happen?

Was an escort scheduled?

Yes, sir, it was.

What unit?

214, sir.

see.

General, I don't want to open an old argument,

I know how you feel about the 214,

but, uh, this is gross neglect of duty in combat.

And I don't feel I can overlook it.

Of course you can't overlook it.

I haven't asked you to overlook it.

No, sir, you haven't.

I'll take care ofthe situation.

It won't happen again.

Boyington is missing in action.

It's not surprising that his unit is demoralized.

With all due respect, sir,

lfeel that the 214 can't function any longer

without Maj. Boyington.

lwould like to reassign the unit.

Why do get the feeling that you're enjoying this, Colonel?

General, whatever else Maj. Boyington is,

he's a Marine Corps officer.

The loss of any officer in my command

affects me personally, and I do not enjoy it.

I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that. You're right.

Well, sir, what about the reassignment?

I'll have to give that some thought.

General, we can't continue to assign them escort missions

in the hopes that they're going to be sober enough to fly them.

I'll make that decision.

Thank you, Colonel. That's all.

Yes, sir. Good day, sir.

[door closes]

Looking for this? Yeah.

There you go.

[clears throat]

Where's the clip?

Sit down, mate.

Hey, the sun's goin' down. I got an errand to run.

I wouldn't say that's exactly wise.

What's on your mind?

I don't want you goin' back to that camp.

They've put on extra patrols.

The way I see it, you and me are partners.

If our, uh, Oriental friends should get a hold of you, uh,

you're liable to tell 'em all about me.

Don't worry about it.

I'll save the last bullet for myself, okay?

Why push your luck, mate?

Take a week or so.

Lay low like you Yanks call it.

We've got a duty to try and escape

and return to our units.

You're wrong.

We're not POWs. I'd say we're guerrillas.

Like hell we are.

You're sittin' out here like Lord Nelson in India,

waiting for somebody else to win the damn war for you.

[scoffs] Guerillas.

You got it soft and you don't wanna spoil it.

Who do you think you are, talkin' to me like that?

Forget it.

I won't forget it.

Now I saved your bleedin' life last night.

I know this island, you don't.

Now, who says I don't have the right to survive this war?

You're a bloody maniac, is what you are!

Hooper, what did you do on that Aussie ship of yours?

l was a cook.

No Lieutenant?

I'm not some kill-crazy commando

or a fighter pilot,

and I don't think it'd be fun to die.

Neither do .

The bullets?

No.

I'm goin' without 'em.

lfthey spot you, don't come back.

[exclaims]

[knocking]

[latch clicking]

[guns firing]

[people cheering]

(man) We're about to count. There start the stampedes.

[man screaming]

[soldiers chattering]

[all laughing]

[soldiers exclaiming]

[speaking Japanese]

[soldier continues chattering]

[leaves rustling]

[metallic clinking]

You might as well have left 'em a bloody map.

I never took that much in a week.

If this war's as screwed up on their side as it is on ours,

they'll never even know I was there.

Don't be a bloody idiot.

How long do you think it will take them to find us ifthey really look?

This island's not two miles long and half as wide.

Hooper, how can they find us if we are not here?

Magneto, oil line,

ignition harness.

Tomorrow I'm gonna work on the plane we found.

Tonight, rice wine.

You must be daft.

If you don't want it, give it back.

You're not gonna get me killed.

If you don't want it, give it back.

[exclaims]

[plane engine droning]

[door bangs] Hey!

(General) On your feet, Captain.

[crashing]

I said, on your feet!

You're the sorriest bunch ofjerks I've ever seen

in the Marine Corps.

How Boyington ever made a squadron out of you,

I'll never know.

Begging the General's pardon, sir. --

Shut up!

I've been flying high cover for this outfit

for over a month.

When I think of all the strings l've pulled

to keep you bums out ofthe stockade,

it's really a shame.

Every one of you could do with a good, solid year

of military discipline.

If I didn't like Greg Boyington,

if I didn't know the love and the sweat

he put into this unit,

l'd cut everybody loose right now.

I am ashamed of myself.

I let a fast-talking con artist buffalo me

into believing in you--you worthless blockheads.

You've let me down.

You've let Greg down.

You make me sick.

Any comments?

I didn't come here to belabor the obvious.

Gutterman!

Yes, sir.

The 214 flies bomber escort at 0730

tomorrow morning.

You'll rendezvous with 803 over Pelatua.

Now, I cut these orders,

and lam not going to change them.

I think Boyington was wrong about all of you,

and I'm gonna find out.

Now, you fly that mission,

or I'll get men in here who can.

[door slams]

Would you gentlemen like to tell the General

what he can do with his orders?

[Gutterman sighing]

(Greg) Hooper,

you wanna get off this island?

Come with me. I need your help.

I told you, I don't want you goin' back there tonight.

I'm not goin' tonight. I'm goin' now.

ln daylight?

If I go back tonight, they could be waiting for me

with extra guards, lights, maybe even a trap.

I'm gonna fool 'em.

No.

I hope you remembered to put bullets in it.

l'm warning you.

Hooper, you can sit here and grow roots for all I care,

or you can fly off this island with me.

But you are not gonna stand in my way.

No!

[Hooper grunts]

[grunting]

You haven't done much ofthis, have you?

You're fighting the wrong war.

You got a glass jaw, too.

[Hooper panting]

Come on.

What are you tryin' to prove?

You called me a coward because I want to stay alive.

I've been called that before. This time I've had it.

I don't know what you are talkin' about, mate.

I never called you a coward,

and I don't care whether or not you are a coward.

But I'll tell you one thing. I'm a boxer.

Now, if you want to get off this island,

you'd be here when get back.

[grunting]

[exclaims]

[speaking Japanese]

[gun firing]

[firing continues]

[Hooper grunting]

Hooper.

[birds chirping]

It was you, wasn't it?

[soldiers clamoring]

[footsteps approaching]

[speaking Japanese]

(Hooper) J‘ Waltzing Matilda J‘

J‘ Waltzing Matilda J‘

J‘ You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me J‘J‘

[Hooper screaming]

Hey, Jim? Could we talk to you for a minute?

We?

If we are having a party,

I hope you all have brought some booze.

[sighing]

Jim, uh,

the fellas and l were just thinking about

what Gen. Moore said this afternoon, uh,

well, about Pappy being wrong about us.

Yeah, he wasn't wrong about us.

He said we're a bunch of drunken screw-ups.

Ain't that what we are?

Well, ain't it?

You know, it's funny, Jim. I never figured

on spending a whole career as screw-up.

Now, each to his own calling, right?

You all want a drink?

No, thanks.

(French) Forget it.

So we're all on the wagon now?

Oh, well, maybe if we tried, you know,

may be if we try to pull ourselves-- Who is stopping you?

Who's stoppin' any of you?

You wanna wake up tomorrow morning and play fly-boy

you go right ahead.

Don't come around here belly-aching

because I didn't ask to be in command ofthis unit,

and I don't want to be in command ofthis unit.

[panting]

-- cannot take Pappy's place.

If you ask me, nobody can.

We are not asking you to be Pappy,

we are asking you to be yourself.

We have confidence in you, Jim.

Great. Look what happened to them.

If you don't mind, would you get the hell out of here?

Let me go back to being myself.

[door opens]

[sighing]

Jim.

I'll have to get a lock on this tent.

[T.J. sighing]

Jim, -- wanna ask for reassignment

uh, back to a deskjob in Pearl Harbor.

You're the commanding officer now.

So you got to sign the orders.

You're a pilot, T.J.

You'll never make it as a deskjockey.

I ain't up in the brig, anyway.

Maybe, maybe not.

just don't feel right about being here anymore.

The Black Sheep are falling apart.

It's my fault.

It's all over for us anyway.

You said so yourself.

Talk about it in the morning, T.J.

What's the point?

We both know I don't belong in the air.

I said we'll talk about it in the morning, T.J.

[footsteps leaving]

[panting]

Casey!

Get 'em up.

We're on the flight line in 15 minutes. Let's go.

Yes, sir!

(Casey) Hey, you guys.

Up, Up. Up. Up. Up!

All right!

Let's get up. We're gonna make a move! Let's go.

What the hell's goin' on here anyway?

We're gonna fly some airplanes, Bragg. All of us.

So the little conversation with the General there

got to you, huh?

Bragg, you have five minutes to be dressed

and on that flight line. That's an order.

You hear me, Bragg? Yeah, sure.

[Meatball barking]

(men) Let's go!

Where's Wylie?

Wylie, are you crazy, Jim?

Why don't you leave T.J. on the ground where he belongs?

'Cause he's a member ofthis unit.

What happened with Greg was an accident, that's the end ofthat.

He flies with us. T.J.!

T.J.! Where is T.J.?

T.J.!

Come on, T.J., we ain't got all day.

Come on.

All right.

I've only got one thing to say to you guys.

Any man who doesn't follow orders in the air,

I'm gonna flame him personally and that's a promise.

I want every member in this squadron

to come back with a kill

or don't come back at all. Let's go.

(all) All right! Here we go!

[plane engines starting]

[revving]

[roaring]

[speaking Japanese]

[explosion]

[soldiers clamoring]

[explosions continue]

[scoffs] You bloody fool.

I told you, you'd get us both killed.

Hasn't happened yet, has it?

[bombs exploding]

[exhales]

[bombs continue exploding]

[sputtering]

Hey, Boyle, pull it in and keep it tight.

(Gutterman) Tired bunch of drunks up here.

Ain't enough we can shoot straight,

we gotta fly straight, too.

Hey, hey, bogey at 6 o'clock.

Who gets it?

(Boyle) I'll take it. He's a sitting duck.

Hey, Boyle, let T.J. have him.

Somebody get it.

Looks like he's mine.

[droning]

Will you look at that monkey fly?

Hey, T.J., you need any help?

(Gutterman) Leave him alone, man.

That guy really can fly that bird!

[plane exploding]

lgot him! I got him!

Good.

[buzzing]

Go ahead. I'm coming down to take a look.

Oh, no!

You guys better come down and check this out.

Looks like Pappy's come home.

Peppy?

Congratulations, T.J. You've gone and you've done it again.

ldon't believe it.

That's my unit up there.

Huh, small war, isn't it?

(Greg) You know all that talk

back there about you being a coward?

[clears throat]

I wonder if we could forget about that, matey?

No use for a thing like that gettin' around, is there?

What's wrong with being a coward?

lt's guys who're afraid of being a coward

that turn out to be heroes.

They think they got something to prove.

I'll tell ya.

Guys like that make this work very dangerous.

[panting]

We're ready. Where is he?

He's on his way, uh, we had to...

I mean, he had to get dressed.

The Navy brought him in last night by boat,

and we sort of had a time of it

if you know what I mean.

Yeah, I know.

Here he comes. Look.

(man) Attention!

[Greg and Gutterman clearing throat]

(Greg) Phew.

Can't a man die in peace?

Hey, Meatball!

Come on, Meatball. Come on.

[Meatball whining]

(Greg) That's a good dog. Yes. Here's a good dog!

Hey.

(Greg) Hey, Meatball.

He didn't even miss me.

(Greg) Hey, T.J.

[grunting]

You had a lot of good practice on me.

I'm really sorry, Pappy.

Some day,

you will do an even betterjob than the enemy.

Thanks, Pappy.

Sure you're ready for this?

Pappy's ready for anything, aren't you, Pappy?

(Greg) Hmm.

(Casey) He's ready.

Okay.

(director) Roll the camera.

(newsreel announcer) Good news for the men

of the fighting 214.

Ace Greg ”Pappy” Boyington returns to action

in the South Pacific.