Captain Newman (1963)

Captain Newman: Directed by David Miller. With Gregory Peck, Tony Curtis, Angie Dickinson, Eddie Albert. In 1944, an Army doctor is in charge of a neuropsychiatric ward at an Army Air Corps hospital in Arizona, and he must deal with a variety of tough cases.

“For reasons I donu0026#39;t understand Captain Newman MD has always been singled out for criticism, most particularly directed at Gregory Peck saying heu0026#39;s too stiff for comedy. I donu0026#39;t agree on a number of levels and this is one of my favorite films with him.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eFirst and foremost Pecku0026#39;s role is not one of comedy. What he does in the film is serve as Tony Curtisu0026#39;s straight man. Now his role is a comic one and very funny indeed.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003ePeck runs the psychiatric ward in an Army Air Corps Hospital out in the Arizona desert during World War II. Thereu0026#39;s no way a man like Peck would be in the command of George S. Patton who just didnu0026#39;t believe in Pecku0026#39;s whole profession. And in Patton like fashion if someone isnu0026#39;t shipped back to command in twelve weeks, Peck hears about it.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eCaptain Newman, MD is a serious film about such people and they are at the heart of the story with Peck trying his best to fix the broken minds and psyches in our Armed Forces. Three of his cases are the drunken, guitar playing corporal Bobby Darin, the catatonic flier Robert Duvall, and Eddie Albert the colonel who has gone psychotic. Peck has a mixed record of success with these three and with others in his ward.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBobby Darin got an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor, itu0026#39;s a fine performance but he lost that year to Melvyn Douglas for Hud. But personally I feel that Eddie Albert stole Captain Newman, MD from the rest of the cast. Itu0026#39;s a tossup between this role and Attack for the best performances of Albertu0026#39;s carer.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eRobert Duvall always credited Peck with giving him a good start to his long career with key roles in To Kill A Mockingbird and Captain Newman, MD. Funny thing is that Duvall has little dialog here and none in To Kill A Mockingbird. Far from the well spoken attorney who was consigliere to The Godfather. Heu0026#39;s matched in his performance by his wife played by Bethel Leslie who is apparently much influenced by Grace Kelly in her performance. Sheu0026#39;s his prim and proper wife who tries to stir his interest in an attempt at an unusual kind of shock therapy.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAiding Peck in his treatment of his patients are nurses Angie Dickinson and Jane Withers and orderlies Tony Curtis and Larry Storch. In his memoirs Tony Curtis says that he got along very well with Gregory Peck who he says was one of the best class acts in Hollywood. He didnu0026#39;t get along all that well with director David Miller who wanted Curtis to be more ethnic in his interpretation of Corporal Jackson Leibowitz. Curtis won out and I think he was right in this case. A friend of Tony Curtisu0026#39;s since childhood is Larry Storch and because of that Storch appears in a few films with Curtis. As Peck was Tonyu0026#39;s straight man, Storch becomes his comic foil in a couple of scenes and they work well together.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eCaptain Newman, MD is a classic film, both entertaining and thought provoking, about the treatment of mental breakdowns among our military. As we certainly now are a country at war, Captain Newman, MD has a relevancy today that is timely. Absolutely do not miss it when it is broadcast.”