This film is part of Free
Backdoor to Toyko
Linking India and China in World War II meant taking on tricky terrain, and an even trickier enemy.
Overview
By 1944, the Allies' campaigns in the Pacific were known as the south-east Asian theatre of war, and this issue of March of Time duly aims for high drama with pictures from the front line. Guns and machetes are brandished as the crew follows General Joe 'Vinegar' Stilwell on a bitter mission through the Burmese jungle (now Myanmar) to secure the Ledo Road, and head off the Japanese.
Titled The Back Door to Tokyo, this edition of March of Time diverts its attention from the conflict in Europe to concentrate on the threat posed by the Japanese. This was a very different time, as some of the dated language shows, but the production values still look superb, with aerial shots of the Himalayas and daring footage from the front line lending the propaganda some visual excitement. Note the Academy Award shown off during the title cards: the series had recently been commended for revolutionising the newsreel, which was a rather tired medium by the late 1930s.
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