244 PATTON
Plot Summary
Gen. George S. Patton (George C. Scott), in full military regalia, strides on to a stage
at some undisclosed location in Eu rope during World War II. With a giant Ameri-
can flag behind him, he addresses an unseen group of American troops to rally
them in support of the war, zeroing in on the importance of “winning” American
style. The film proper begins with the humiliating American defeat at the Battle of
the Kasserine Pass (19 February 1943–25 February 1943). Replacing Major Gen-
eral Lloyd Fredendall, Patton is put in charge of the U.S. Army’s II Corps in North
Africa. Upon his arrival, he cracks down on the soldiers and enforces rules, for
example, demanding that soldiers wear ties and fining a cook for not wearing his
Army- issue uniform. At a meeting with RAF Air Vice- Marshal Sir Arthur Coning-
ham ( John Barrie), Patton takes issue with Coningham for having discredited the
notion that lack of air cover contributed to the American defeat. Coningham apol-
ogizes and promises Patton that he will see no more German planes. Seconds later
Luftwaffe planes bomb and strafe the area, and Patton emerges from cover to fire
his .45 at them. In the next scene, Patton defeats a German attack at the Battle of
El Guettar in Tunisia (23 March–3 April 1943), but his aide- de- camp, Major Rich-
ard N. Jenson (Morgan Paull), is killed in the battle. Lt. Col. Charles R. Codman
(Paul Stevens) replaces him. Patton is disappointed to learn that Field Marshall
Erwin Rommel, Commander of the Afrika Korps, was on medical leave with diph-
theria. Codman reassures him that “If you’ve defeated Rommel’s plan, you’ve
defeated Rommel.” After victory in the North Africa campaign, Patton and Sir Ber-
nard Montgomery (Michael Bates) formulate competing plans for the Allied inva-
sion of Sicily. Patton’s plan is to lead his Seventh Army to the northwest sending
Montgomery to the southeast area of the island in an attempt to trap German and
Italian units. Their superior officer, Gen. Alexander ( Jack Gwillim), likes Patton’s
plan, but Gen. Dwight Eisenhower (not portrayed on screen) opts for Montgom-
ery’s conservative approach. As a result, Patton’s army heads southeast to cover
Montgomery’s troops. All land without a hitch, but the Allied advance is sluggish,
and Patton takes matters into his own hands. Going against his superiors, Patton
leads his men to Palermo in the northwest, then continues on to Messina, outpacing
Montgomery to their objective (17 August 1943). Patton states that his contention
with Montgomery stems from Montgomery’s inability to admit his own vanity and
glory- seeking ambitions. However, Patton’s methods do not go over well with the
men he commands, Major Gen. Omar Bradley (Karl Malden) and Major Gen. Lucian
Truscott ( John Doucette). While on a visit to a field hospital (early August 1943)
crowded with battle casualties, Patton sees a shaken soldier weeping (Tim Consi-
dine). Angrily labeling the soldier a coward, Patton assaults him and threatens
to kill him, then concludes the interaction by insisting that the soldier return to
the frontline. When Eisenhower learns of the incident, he relieves Patton of his
command and orders him to offer apologies to the wronged soldier, to all occu-
pants of the field hospital, and to his command, one unit at a time. Eisenhower
also sidelines Patton during the D- Day landings (6 June 1944), placing him in
command of the phantom First U.S. Army Group in southeast England as a