The spoiled rich son of a wealthy Southerner is changed by his experiences in the Pacific during World War II.The spoiled rich son of a wealthy Southerner is changed by his experiences in the Pacific during World War II.The spoiled rich son of a wealthy Southerner is changed by his experiences in the Pacific during World War II.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 1 nomination total
- The Rakers' Younger Daughter
- (uncredited)
- George
- (uncredited)
- Soames
- (uncredited)
- Mrs. Raker
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhen Twentieth Century-Fox bought the rights to the Francis Gwaltney novel "The Day the Century Ended", it hired The Twilight Zone (1959) television-playwright and Philippines war veteran Rod Serling to write the script. During World War II, Serling was a paratrooper in the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 11th Airborne Division. However, his draft script was deemed too long and rejected. Other writers were then assigned script duties. He does not receive a writer's credit, so it's not known how much of his work wound up in the final script. He once told of his involvement on this movie, "My first screen job was at Fox on a war flick called 'Between Heaven and Hell'. I turned in a script that would have run for nine hours on the screen. As I recall, it was over 500 pages. I didn't know what the hell I was doing. They just said ''Here's 1500 bucks a week--write!" So I wrote. They eventually took the thing away from me and handed it over to six other writers, but I lay claim to the fact that my version had some wonderful moments in it. In nine hours of script, by God, there HAVE to be a couple of wonderful moments!"
- GoofsNone of the ribbons on Waco's khaki shirt really exist.
- Quotes
Capt. 'Waco' Grimes - 'G' Co. CO: I've heard about you Gifford. First you go get yourself a Silver Star, then you get busted to Private. Oh it's a rough war, innit?
Pvt. Sam Francis Gifford: Yes sir.
Capt. 'Waco' Grimes - 'G' Co. CO: Didn't you hear what I said about calling me sir?
Pvt. Sam Francis Gifford: I'm sorry, uh, Waco.
Capt. 'Waco' Grimes - 'G' Co. CO: I don't want snipers taking potshots at me every time one of you guys call me sir.
- Crazy creditsOpening credits prologue: An Island in the Pacific 1945
- ConnectionsReferenced in Broadway by Light (1958)
He is given a very sympathetic character to play, and gives in return one of his best performances.
Buddy Ebsen started show biz life as a minor, but pleasant, song and dance man, but, as shown here, he became one of the finest dramatic actors of the century (despite such obstacles as "The Beverly Hillbillies").
"Between Heaven and Hell" is a very generic title, and seems to have very little to do with this movie. It has been used dozens of times, and maybe once or twice, somewhere, it was appropriate. Maybe.
Richard Fleischer's directing and Leo Tover's photography, though, overcome the trite title and well complement the excellent acting in presenting a dramatic war story.
From the opening shot, there is fluidity in the camera work that awed me, that left me admiring Mr. Fleischer more than I ever had before. If you don't like war movies -- and I don't -- you will want to watch this one for the photography, including the scenery.
One complaint: The protagonist, played well by Robert Wagner, goes through the mandatory (made so by "the rules of drama") change, but there is no good explanation of his motives, of why he changes.
Perhaps it is plain, right before our eyes, in a manner of speaking only because it is never explicated. But there really should have been some motivational explanations.
Still, it was plausible and reasonable, and, again, the acting and camera work are so good -- no, excellent -- "Between Heaven and Hell" is definitely worth watching.
By the way, do not miss a chance to see this just because the On Demand description is so disgustingly PC. There is no "racism" even though that PC description implies there is.
I found it via the Time Warner Cable system's On Demand. And free!
- morrisonhimself
- Jul 21, 2015
- How long is Between Heaven and Hell?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- The Day the Century Ended
- Filming locations
- Malibu Creek State Park - 1925 Las Virgenes Road, Calabasas, California, USA(Pacific Island locations)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $1,520,000 (estimated)
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1