Imitation General


Imitation General is a 1958 black-and-white comedy war film in CinemaScope, directed by George Marshall, produced by William B. Hawks, and starring Glenn Ford, Red Buttons, and Taina Elg. The film, distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, is based on a short story of the same name by William Chamberlain.

Plot

In the aftermath of a big battle during World War II, US Brigadier General Charles Lane, Master Sergeant Murphy "Murph" Savage, and Corporal Chan Derby find themselves cut off behind enemy lines. The general takes over a farmhouse belonging to annoyed Frenchwoman Simone. Lane determines that there is a gap in the German lines and decides to organize a defense from whatever stragglers he can gather together. Shortly afterwards, however, he is killed saving Murph's life.
The first American soldier to show up, Corporal Terry Sellers, mistakes Murph for Lane, giving him an idea. Recalling Lane's assessment that leadership is desperately needed to rally the disorganized troops, Murph masquerades as the general, with Derby and Simone's reluctant help. Murph manages to repulse a couple of attacks spearheaded heavy German tanks, all the while avoiding Private Orville Hutchmeyer, who knows Murph and holds a grudge against him.
At the end of the engagement, Murph is knocked out by shrapnel, allowing him to "die" and resume his real identity with no one the wiser of his masquerade as a general.

Cast

According to MGM records, the film earned $1,915,000 in the US and Canada and $1,250,000 elsewhere, resulting in a profit of $1,095,000.