Johnny Got His Gun

During the Communist witch-hunts from 1950-54, Senator Joe McCarthy was responsible for blacklisting many American citizens for alleged Communist ties. Basically anybody who spoke out against America, the war etc. was considered a traitor. One such man was Dalton Trumbo, and 'Johnny Got His Gun' is fine example of why he landed in hot water. When a young man, Joe, is sent off to fight in World War I, he falls foul of a landmine and comes home without his arms, legs, face, hearing, sight and ability to talk, literally a shell of a human being lying in a hospital bed. However, his mind still works. At first Joe thinks he's stuck in a dream, but when he realises none of it is a dream, that's the when the nightmare really begins. The premise of a man trapped in his own head, never experiencing the world around him, seems difficult to make into an entire movie (almost two hours). But writer turned director, Trumbo, brings it to the screen with so much passion and dedication, coupled with… more »

During the Communist witch-hunts from 1950-54, Senator Joe McCarthy was responsible for blacklisting many American citizens for alleged Communist ties. Basically anybody who spoke out against America, the war etc. was considered a traitor. One such man was Dalton Trumbo, and 'Johnny Got His Gun' is fine example of why he landed in hot water. When a young man, Joe, is sent off to fight in World War I, he falls foul of a landmine and comes home without his arms, legs, face, hearing, sight and ability to talk, literally a shell of a human being lying in a hospital bed. However, his mind still works. At first Joe thinks he's stuck in a dream, but when he realises none of it is a dream, that's the when the nightmare really begins. The premise of a man trapped in his own head, never experiencing the world around him, seems difficult to make into an entire movie (almost two hours). But writer turned director, Trumbo, brings it to the screen with so much passion and dedication, coupled with a terrific performance by Timothy Bottoms as Joe, that it's hard to be anything but gripped and moved by Joe's plight. 'Johnny Got His Gun' wasn't a big success upon its release (despite sharing the Grand Jury Prize at Cannes with Milos Foreman's 'Taking Off' and Trumbo winning the Writers Guild Award), the film gained more notoriety when the band Metallica used it in their first ever music video for the song 'One' (the song itself is based on the film). 'Johnny Got His Gun' is an amazing achievement and a very powerful indictment on the effects of war.