DVD Review: Pathfinders: In the Company of Strangers

For 60 years, the Pathfinder mission has remained an obscure one. It took place the night before the biggest landing in military history, the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944. The 58 men who took part in Pathfinder set up the crucial lighting and radio transmitter locations. Without these contacts, the invasion could not have taken place. Pathfinders: In the Company of Strangers (2011) tells the story of this incredible operation, and has just been released on DVD by Inception Media.

The events unfold through the eyes of Captain Neal McRoberts (Christopher Serrone). The young Captain has a fiance in England, who we see during phone calls and flashbacks by McRoberts. The film opens with McRoberts’ Unit 508 being assigned to join forces with Unit 504 for the top secret assignment. The two are groups are wary of each other, and do not have time to develop much  camraderie before embarking on this life and death task.

Although the film makes the claim that Pathfinder has never discussed before, that is not really true. This may be the first movie devoted solely to the subject, but the Pathfinder mission has always been part of the bigger story of the invasion. The specific task of the Pathfinders was for them to land 30 minutes before the first huge paratrooper wave, to set up radio transmitters and light beacons. In the The Longest Day (1962), Lt. Col. Benjamin Vandervoort (John Wayne) briefs his men about Pathfinder, because his men are set to follow.

When the paratroopers land, they are in a sticky situation. The area is bordered on three sides by water, with the fourth being guarded by the occupying 91st German Infantry. During the mission, there are a number of encounters in which the American soldiers are forced to kill the German soldiers. Since the whole operation is supposed to be conducted as quietly as possible, most of this is accomplished in hand-to-hand combat.

The 96-minute film is basically a two-part affair. The first half is set in camp, and is a character study of the troops. The men of the somewhat staid 508 are wary of those of the crazy, gung-ho 504. One interesting feature of this section is the use of color and black and white. In the same way that Steven Spielberg did in his classic World War II films, Saving Private Ryan (1998) and Schindler’s List (1993), the war is presented in black and white. The only scenes shot in color are those set on the homefront, primarily of McRoberts’ fiance, who patiently waits for her intended to return.

Article Author: Greg Barbrick

Greg Barbrick is a Seattle native who was first published in 1988, in his hometown music magazine, The Rocket. Since then his work has appeared in print and online for numerous sources. He Googles himself so often that his mother told him it would make him go blind.
…

Visit Greg Barbrick's author page — Greg Barbrick's Blog