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Kings Go Forth

So I just finished watching Kings Go Forth...recorded it when TCM aired it as part of their month-long tribute to Ol' Blue Eyes. I can't stand it when I get invested in a movie and then I don't get ENOUGH CLOSURE!!!

Here's part of the summary of the film from TCM:

The first of two films Sinatra made in 1958, Kings Go Forth might be seen as an attempt to capture some of the glory of From Here to Eternity (1953). Both are set during World War II and feature some morally dubious characters, but beyond that, there's not much to link the two.

Sinatra isn't playing a supporting character in Kings Go Forth. Instead he's front and center as Sam Loggins, a lieutenant fighting the Germans in southern France late in the war. With his radio operator buddy Britt Harris (played by Tony Curtis), Loggins makes time for a little high life along the Riviera where he meets and falls in love with French resident Monique (Natalie Wood). Loggins is surprised to learn that Monique is actually a mulatto, even more surprised when she falls in love with Britt. Of course Loggins isn't going to give up so easily, even for a buddy.

Sinatra turns in a nicely nuanced performance as Loggins. He plays tortured, angst-ridden souls really well.  Not a war film per se...more of a romance with a war story thread to it if that makes sense. The pace is kind of slow but I found the film absorbing. It's an interesting look at views of interracial relationships and how those dynamics were changing in the mid-20th century. Since this was a changing dynamic, that probably explains the film's frustratingly ambiguous ending...the production code or producers or something couldn't let the movie commit 100% to showing the Sinatra-Woods relationship play out on film. Not one of Sinatra's best films overall, but definitely on of his most solid, understated performances.