Inchon (film)

{{Short description|1981 film directed by Terence Young}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Good article}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2016}} {{Infobox film | name = Inchon | image = Inchon Movie poster.jpg | alt = | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = Terence Young | screenplay = {{Plainlist| * Laird Koenig * Robin Moore }} | story = {{Plainlist| * Robin Moore * Paul Savage }} | producer = Mitsuharu Ishii | starring = {{Plainlist| * Laurence Olivier * Jacqueline Bisset * Ben Gazzara * Toshiro Mifune * Richard Roundtree }} | cinematography = Bruce Surtees | editing = {{Plainlist| * John W. Holmes * Dallas Sunday Puett * Michael Sheridan * Peter Taylor }} | music = Jerry Goldsmith | studio = {{Plainlist| * Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer * One Way Productions * News World Communications }} | distributor = MGM/UA Entertainment Co. | released = {{Film date|1981|05|04|Washington, D.C.|1982|09|17|United States}} | runtime = 140 minutes (Premiere cut)<ref name="canby" /> 105 minutes (Theatrical) | country = {{ubl|South Korea|United States}} | language = {{ubl|English|Korean}} | budget = $46 million | gross = $5.2 million<ref name="boxofficemojo" /> }}

'''''Inchon''''' (also stylized as '''''Inchon!''''') is a 1981 war film about the Battle of Inchon, considered to be the turning point of the Korean War. Directed by Terence Young and financed by Unification movement founder Sun Myung Moon, the film stars Laurence Olivier as General Douglas MacArthur, who planned the surprise amphibious landing at Incheon, South Korea, in 1950, with Jacqueline Bisset, Ben Gazzara, Toshiro Mifune and Richard Roundtree.

''Inchon''{{'}}s plot includes both military action and human drama. The film concludes with the United Nations victory over North Korean forces in the Battle of Inchon, which is considered to have saved South Korea.

Costing $46 million, with filming taking place in South Korea, California, Italy, Ireland and Japan, the production encountered many problems, including a typhoon and the death of cast member David Janssen. Both the Unification movement and the United States military provided extras during the filming.

After premiering in May 1981, the film was not released theatrically in the United States and Canada until September 1982, and was quickly withdrawn due to its critical and box office failure. It never received a home video release, but has occasionally been broadcast on television. It incurred the greatest financial loss of any film released in 1982, earning less than $2 million against its lofty budget, resulting in a deficit of around $41 million. Reviews at the time were consistently negative, and later commentators, including ''Newsweek'', ''TV Guide'' and The Canadian Press, have classed ''Inchon'' among the worst films of all time.

==Plot== The film depicts the Battle of Inchon during the Korean War, which took place from September 15 to 19, 1950, and is considered the turning point of the war. The protagonist of the film is General Douglas MacArthur, who led the United States surprise amphibious landing at Incheon in 1950.

North Korean soldiers are moving past the 38th parallel north into South Korea in June 1950. People flee to Seoul. One of the displaced people is Barbara Hallsworth, a U.S. Army major's wife who lives in a village on the 38th parallel. She is chauffeured to Seoul in a limousine, picking up five South Korean children along the way. After her chauffeur is killed, she drives them to a safe location called the Inn of the Sixth Happiness. Along the way, she shoots a North Korean soldier.

Meanwhile, Barbara's husband, Frank Hallsworth, is attempting to break off an affair with a young South Korean woman, Lim. Her father Saito is aware of his daughter's affair with Frank and does not disapprove. Frank receives word of the invasion by the North Koreans, and he travels north in an attempt to locate Barbara with the assistance of army sergeant August Henderson. August encounters Barbara and fixes her vehicle's battery, and then reunites her with Frank.

Journalists David Feld, Park, and Longfellow are attending a press conference held by MacArthur in Tokyo. MacArthur, however, does not show. He agrees with his wife Jean MacArthur that he is the only person who can rescue South Korea from the invasion by the North Koreans.

Hallsworth and Lim succeed in turning on a lighthouse to signal 261 U.S. ships, and Saito activates mines in the channel. Lim dies during the ensuing battle. The U.S. troops drive out the North Korean forces and the cheering people wave South Korean and American flags. The film proper ends with MacArthur reciting the Lord's Prayer; after this scene, a newsreel of MacArthur is shown.

==Cast== *Laurence Olivier as General Douglas MacArthur *Jacqueline Bisset as Barbara Hallsworth *Ben Gazzara as Major Frank Hallsworth *Toshiro Mifune as Saito *Richard Roundtree as Sergeant Augustus Henderson *David Janssen as David Feld *Namkoong Won as Park *Karen Kahn as Lim *Rex Reed as Longfellow *Gabriele Ferzetti as Turkish Brigadier *Sabine Sun as Marguerite *Dorothy James as Jean MacArthur

==Production== ===Financing=== Sun Myung Moon formed One Way Productions in 1974, with Japanese newspaper publisher Mitsuharu Ishii as its head.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=188}} Before deciding on making a war film, Moon and Ishii considered making biopics of Jesus or Elvis Presley.<ref name="niemi" /><ref name="TV Guide" /> In 1978, psychic Jeane Dixon was consulted to communicate with the spirit of General Douglas MacArthur, and Dixon said that MacArthur's spirit endorsed the production of the film.<ref name="suid" /><ref name="niemi" /><ref name="TV Guide" /> Dixon also helped choose Terence Young, known for the James Bond films ''Dr. No'', ''From Russia with Love'' and ''Thunderball'' to direct the film.<ref name="niemi" /><ref name="TV Guide" />

''Inchon'' was financed by Moon and Ishii.<ref name="vermilye" /><ref name="niemi">{{cite book | last =Niemi | first =Robert | title =History in the Media: Film and Television | url =https://archive.org/details/historymediafilm00niem | url-access =limited | publisher =ABC-CLIO | year =2006 | page =[https://archive.org/details/historymediafilm00niem/page/n174 151] | isbn = 978-1-57607-952-2}}</ref><ref name="TV Guide">{{cite news|url=https://www.tvguide.com/movies/inchon/review/102041/|title=Inchon - Movie Reviews and Movie Ratings|last=TV Guide staff|work=TV Guide|access-date=April 20, 2019}}</ref> Moon was involved with the film's production from the very beginning.<ref name="suid" /> Ishii, a member of the Unification movement in Japan and a friend of Moon, served as the film's producer; and Moon, although credited as "Special Advisor on Korean Matters", contributed $30 million to One Way Productions.<ref name="suid" /><ref name="kelleher">{{cite news | last =Kelleher | first =Terry | title ='Inchon reflects only the cult of bad moviemaking | work =The Miami Herald | page =5C | date =September 20, 1982}}</ref><ref name="allen" /> Moon initially did not want the public to know that he was behind the financing of the film and its production;<ref name="niemi" /> however, upon the film's U.S. release, Moon was identified in newspaper ads as the film's "special advisor".<ref>{{cite news |title=Advertisement for ''Inchon'' |work=The New York Times |date=September 17, 1982 |page=C7}}</ref> Ishii said he was instructed by God to make the film.<ref name="kelleher" /> Additional funding was provided by Robert Standard, the associate producer and a member of the Unification Church of the United States.<ref name="suid" /><ref>{{cite magazine|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|magazine=Filmink|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/ten-billionaires-stung-hollywood/|title=Ten Billionaires Who Were Stung by Hollywood|date=March 10, 2020}}</ref>

Ishii said he was a member of the Unification movement "just like a Catholic is a member of the Catholic Church and I believe Rev. Moon is very sincere about doing the Lord's work". Ishii was president of the ''World Daily News'', which is published by Moon's media conglomerate News World Communications which also published other newspapers, including ''The Washington Times'' in the United States.

''Inchon'' was initially budgeted at $18 million,{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=190}} but cost $46 million to produce.<ref name="boxofficemojo" /><ref name="inchontops" /><ref name="rickey">{{cite news | last =Rickey | first =Carrie (Knight-Ridder Tribune News Service) | title =$44.1 million loss earns 'Inchon' dubious honor | work =Austin American-Statesman | page =G3 | date =December 28, 1989 }}</ref> Attempts to solicit funding from Japanese banks fell through, and so the entire project was funded by Moon and the Unification Church.<ref name="coleman" />

In his book ''Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America'', author and scholar of religion J. Gordon Melton noted that "Moon has attempted to project his ideas into all areas of American society" and cited ''Inchon'' as an example.<ref>{{cite book | last =Melton | first = J. Gordon | author-link = J. Gordon Melton | title =Encyclopedic Handbook of Cults in America | publisher =Routledge | year =1992 | page =298 | isbn = 0-8153-1140-0}}</ref> Moon later said in a talk to movement members: "Why did we put so much effort into the movie ''Inchon''? No matter what the result the motivation was for people to understand about MacArthur. I wanted to show how MacArthur loved God and loved people. MacArthur came to Japan after World War II and put the nation back together. He really respected and loved the people. He also loved God very much and fought with great strength against tyranny and communism. That is what I want the people to understand."<ref>[https://www.unification.net/gwo/820828.html Ocean Church and America] Sun Myung Moon, 1982</ref>

===Writing=== Ishii was inspired to write a film with an international cast after watching a South Korean dramatization of the war. He wanted the film to be an "entertaining action film", but also said he was "very interested in depicting MacArthur as a human being and I want the world to know how miserable the war was for the Korean people."<ref name="suid" />

Moore commented on the writing process: "The theme I had to deal with in ''Inchon'' was too big for a movie that was less than two hours. When Toho was originally involved, they wanted a love story between an American boy and a Korean girl. My technique is to research and then fictionalize, a technique I used successfully in ''French Connection''. But I had to fictionalize the real landing at Inchon, making it seem that a lighthouse was a pivotal factor when in fact it wasn't. I couldn't do that, which is why other writers were brought in."<ref name="mccabe">{{cite news | last =McCabe | first =Bruce | title =Movies Bruce McCabe - Moon and Inchon | work =Boston Globe | publisher =Globe Newspaper Company | date =September 17, 1982 }}</ref>

Ishii instructed Moore to include an emphasis on General MacArthur's spiritualism and faith in divine guidance. He told Moore to include three separate love stories in the film, "one between two Americans, one between two Koreans, and one between an American and a Korean". Moore explained that "the love stories were supposed to tell the story of the tragedy of Korea, the tragedy of the Korean War". Ishii stated to Moore that he did not wish for the movie to turn into an "anti-Communist tract". Before the completion of the film's screenplay, the film's producers encountered difficulties obtaining an affiliation with a movie studio. Ishii said that North Korea placed pressure on Toho Studios through labor unions in Japan, requesting that the studio pulled out of its affiliation with ''Inchon''. The labor unions criticized the film's production, saying that it was influenced by Moon and his Unification movement, in addition to the Korean CIA and was part of an effort to support the president of South Korea. Because of this criticism, Toho Studios canceled its participation in the ''Inchon'' project.<ref name="suid" />

===Casting=== Laurence Olivier was paid $1 million to play General Douglas MacArthur in the film.<ref name="niemi" /> He was contracted for six weeks of filming, and received a payment of $250,000 upon signing the contract and the remainder was given in four subsequent installments.<ref name="coleman" /> His salary came out to $50,000 per day.<ref name="mccabe" /> In addition to this fee, Olivier also received $2,500 per week for his expenses.<ref name="coleman" /> Olivier was interviewed during the film's production and explained why he agreed to be part of its cast: "People ask me why I'm playing in this picture. The answer is simple. Money, dear boy. I'm like a vintage wine. You have to drink me quickly before I turn sour. I'm almost used up now and I can feel the end coming. That's why I'm taking money now. I've got nothing to leave my family but the money I can make from films. Nothing is beneath me if it pays well. I've earned the right to damn well grab whatever I can in the time I've got left."<ref name="vermilye">{{cite book | last =Vermilye | first =Jerry | title =The Complete Films Of Laurence Olivier | publisher =Citadel Press | year =1992 | pages =214–216 | isbn = 0-8065-1302-0}}</ref>

Olivier researched the role by traveling to Norfolk, Virginia to visit the MacArthur Museum, and speaking with Alexander Haig, who had served as ''aide-de-camp'' to MacArthur.<ref name="coleman" /> Haig told Olivier that MacArthur's voice sounded like W.C. Fields, and Olivier tried to imitate this.<ref name="TV Guide" /> He enjoyed working with accents and obtained recordings of MacArthur's voice. He was interested in various inconsistencies in these recordings, and especially in the difference in vowel sounds made by MacArthur.<ref name="vermilye" /> During filming, the makeup process for Olivier took two and a half hours, but after it was complete, he thought he neither looked like himself nor like General MacArthur.<ref name="coleman" />

The 72-year-old Olivier, who had been in poor health for years, suffered during filming in Seoul because of the summer heat. Director Terence Young recalled that between takes Olivier lay on a cot, virtually immobile with pain and exhaustion, but that when needed "he dropped fifty years and stepped forward without complaint".<ref>''Laurence Olivier: A Biography'', Donald Spoto, Cooper Square Press, 2001, p.393.</ref>

Richard Roundtree, known for the title role John Shaft in the film ''Shaft'', portrayed the character of Staff Sgt. Augustus Henderson in the film.<ref name="allen" /> David Janssen, known for his role in television series ''The Fugitive'', accepted a part as journalist David Feld to work with Laurence Olivier.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.davidjanssen.net/chron17.htm | title = The David Jansen Archives | access-date = 2010-03-16 | archive-date = July 29, 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100729000936/http://www.davidjanssen.net/chron17.htm | url-status = dead }}</ref> Actress Karen Kahn portrayed Lim, the young Korean lover of Major Frank Hallsworth (Ben Gazzara) in the film. In a subsequent interview with ''The Press Democrat'', Kahn said of the film: "It was supposed to be this ''Gone with the Wind''. And it was the worst movie. It's in some of those worst-films-of-all-time books. After that movie I quit. I just couldn't take L.A. I was really thin-skinned. So I just got out."<ref name="garcia">{{cite news | last =Garcia | first = Chris | title =Windsor mom gets break in 'Village' | work =The Press Democrat | page =Q5 | date =October 30, 1994 }}</ref>

Young was paid $1.8 million, Jacqueline Bisset was paid $1.65 million, Gazzara was paid $750,000, Janssen was paid $300,000, Roundtree was paid $200,000, and Rex Reed was paid $6,000 per week. Prior to Gazzara receiving the role for Frank Hallsworth, it was offered to Nick Nolte for $1.5 million.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=190}} Olivier and Young later sued One Way Productions for $1 million each citing overtime.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=198}}

===Filming=== Shooting took place in Hollywood, Rome, Ireland, Tokyo and Seoul. The involvement of Moon was "adamantly denied". Moon recommended editing and reshooting changes to the film's script, which "caused the production to return to South Korea three times, Rome twice and Los Angeles twice."<ref name="suid" /><ref name="vermilye" /><ref name="canby">{{cite news | last =Canby | first =Vincent | title ='Inchon,' at last | work =The New York Times |page=C9 | date =September 17, 1982 | url =https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9A03E0D8123BF934A2575AC0A964948260 | access-date = 2009-10-21 }}</ref>

The film included several technical errors. Cut-out cardboard pieces were used to depict military aircraft during battle scenes in the film, and one film critic said viewers were almost able to identify the threads attached to the cardboard cut-outs. Footage of a digital watch was spliced into the film, though this technology would not be invented for twenty-five years after the film's time period.<ref name="suid" /> There were other problems. Bisset developed laryngitis during the film's production.<ref name="TV Guide" /> A set-piece for the film included a re-created version of a lighthouse at Incheon, but this was obliterated by a typhoon.<ref name="schlueter" /> The death of David Janssen during production called for extensive reshoots.<ref name="ryan">{{cite news | last =Ryan | first =Desmond | title =On movies: Bond is booming, but 'Inchon' may be a very costly bomb | work =The Philadelphia Inquirer | page =L03 | date =June 6, 1982 }}</ref>

During the filming of the landing at Inchon, a mistake was made in which the ships turned right rather than left. This was due to an aide, whose walkie-talkie was broken, not relaying the correct information due to fear of embarrassment. The filming mistake cost around $500,000. $1 million was spent to bring the crew back to film the three minute scene depicting MacArthur's victory parade. Principal photography cost $26 million and reshoots in other countries cost $22 million. Sidney Beckerman was paid $350,000 to consult Ishii during the editing process.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|pp=193–195}}

The production hired Samuel Jaskilka, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant general who took part in the Battle of Inchon as a company commander, as technical advisor to the film.<ref name="allen" /> A portion of the movie was filmed aboard the {{USS|Cleveland|LPD-7|6}}, an {{sclass|Austin|amphibious transport dock}} during an amphibious operation off the coast of South Korea in 1978.<ref name="navy">{{cite web | last =Kinney | first =C.H. | title =OPNAV REPORT 5750-1 | work =USS Cleveland (LPD-7) | publisher =www.history.navy.mil | date =March 1, 1979 | url =http://www.history.navy.mil/shiphist/c/lpd-7/1978.pdf | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20070926015649/http://www.history.navy.mil/shiphist/c/lpd-7/1978.pdf | url-status =dead | archive-date =September 26, 2007 | access-date = 2009-10-30 }}</ref> The United States Department of Defense allowed 1,500 soldiers from the United States Army and United States Marine Corps to participate as extras in the film, at a cost of $77,000.<ref name="suid">{{cite book | last =Suid | first =Lawrence H. | title =Guts & Glory: The Making of the American Military Image in Film | publisher =University Press of Kentucky | year =2002 | isbn = 0-8131-9018-5|pages=395–401, 720}}</ref><ref name="allen" /><ref name="schlueter">{{cite news | last =Schlueter | first =Roger | title =Answer Man | work =Belleville News-Democrat | page =1C | date =May 22, 2006 }}</ref>

The Little Angels Children's Folk Ballet of Korea, founded by Moon in 1962, was featured in the film, with many Unification movement members.<ref name="suid" /> After shooting had finished in South Korea, Olivier returned to England. He was needed in South Korea to shoot the final scene, but as a concession to his poor health, was allowed to film in Rome instead.<ref name="vermilye" /> The film's director Terence Young was not happy with the completed version of the film and said, "the producers have turned ''Inchon'' into a Korean propaganda movie."<ref name="suid" /> Ishii said: "No problem. We have 20 nations who want this movie."<ref name="allen" />

===Music=== Jerry Goldsmith wrote the score for the film.<ref name="ryanonmovies">{{cite news | last =Ryan | first =Desmond | title =On movies - For the moviemakers, it was a billion-dollar summer | work =The Philadelphia Inquirer | page =I03 | date =September 19, 1982}}</ref> The music was recorded at Rome's Forum Studio in July 1980 and was fraught with difficulties—the studio was not large enough for his orchestra, and room noise made by the players and their equipment affected the tracks.<ref>Joe Sikoryak, pgs. 3-4, liner notes, ''Inchon'' Intrada Special Collection No. 35.</ref>

In spite of the problems, Goldsmith was pleased with his score, describing it as a chance to "create interesting music out of a bad situation". The original 1982 soundtrack LP comprised 38 minutes of music, edited and assembled by Goldsmith and engineer Leonard Engel into an ideal listening experience rather than a chronological one. The album was issued on Regency Records; Intrada Records prepared a remixed edition of the complete score in 1988. In 2006 Intrada revisited the score and issued a two-disc set, with the original LP making its compact disc debut on disc 1 and the entire score presented in film order on disc 2.<ref>Douglass Fake, ps. 5-7, liner notes, ''Inchon'' Intrada Special Collection No. 35.</ref>

{{Track listing | collapsed = | headline = Disc 1: Original LP Presentation | total_length = 38:27 | all_music = | title1 = Main Title | length1 = 2:22 | title2 = Resignation | length2 = 2:10 | title = The Bridge | length = 3:30 | title4 = The Church | length4 = 3:57 | title5 = The Mines | length5 = 4:19 | title6 = Task Force | length6 = 3:06 | title7 = Medley | length7 = 2:13 | title8 = Love Theme | length8 = 3:00 | title9 = The Tanks | length9 = 3:41 | title10 = Lim's Death | length10 = 3:12 | title11 = The Trucks | length11 = 3:00 | title12 = Inchon Theme | length12 = 3:21 }}

{{Track listing | collapsed = | headline = Disc 2: Complete Score Restoration | total_length = 55:23 | all_music = | title1 = Prologue and Main Title | length1 = 3:48 | title2 = The Bridge | length2 = 3:30 | title3 = The 38th Parallel | length3 = 1:17 | title4 = Medley | length4 = 2:13 | title5 = Love Theme | length5 = 3:00 | title6 = The Aftermath | length6 = 0:53 | title7 = The Tanks | length7 = 3:41 | title8 = A Change of Course | length8 = 1:13 | title9 = The Church | length9 = 2:24 | title10 = MacArthur's Arrival | length10 = 0:50 | title11 = The Harbor | length11 = 1:15 | title12 = The Trucks | length12 = 3:00 | title13 = Corpses | length13 = 1:18 | title14 = The Children | length14 = 0:48 | title15 = The Apology | length15 = 2:38 | title16 = The Lighthouse | length16 = 2:28 | title17 = The Clock Watcher | length17 = 0:35 | title18 = The Mines | length18 = 5:37 | title19 = Resignation | length19 = 2:10 | title20 = The Landing | length20 = 1:18 | title21 = Lim's Death | length21 = 2:09 | title22 = The Scroll | length22 = 2:21 | title23 = Task Force | length23 = 3:06 | title24 = Inchon Theme | length24 = 3:21 }}

==Release== The world premiere was held in Washington, D.C., on May 4, 1981, via special screening at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,<ref name="suid" /><ref name="allen">{{cite news|last=Allen|first=Henry|title=Pickets & Politics at the Second Battle of 'Inchon'|newspaper =The Washington Post| page=B1|date=May 5, 1981}}</ref> as a benefit for retired United States Navy personnel chaired by Senator Alfonse D'Amato.<ref name="pond">{{cite news|last= Pond|first=Steve|title=Epic deals|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=E7|date=August 12, 1982}}</ref> This was the only time the film was screened in its full 140-minute version.<ref name="vermilye" /> Between 25 and 100 protesters came to demonstrate outside the Center.<ref name="allen" /><ref name="romano" /><ref name="criticscarry">{{cite news|last=Washington Star|author-link=Washington Star|title=Critics carry warning signs: It's Moon|work =Boston Globe| publisher=Globe Newspaper Company|date=May 5, 1981}}</ref>

The gala was a benefit for retired Naval personnel sponsored by D'Amato, but he declined to attend when it was announced that Moon would be in attendance.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|pp=195–196}} Twelve congressmen signed on as honorary members of the benefit committee. Although an additional forty-eight Members of Congress accepted tickets to the premiere, Lawrence H. Suid wrote in ''Guts & Glory'' that "... no more than fifteen or sixteen were willing to brave the pickets outside the Kennedy Center protesting the Unification Church and its involvement with the movie."<ref name="suid" />

On February 13, 1982, President Ronald Reagan, a former film actor and president of the Screen Actors Guild,<ref name="SAG">{{cite web|url= http://www.sag.org/history/presidents/reagan.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228063556/http://www.sag.org/history/presidents/reagan.html|archive-date= 2007-12-28 |title=Screen Actors Guild Presidents: Ronald Reagan|publisher=Screen Actors Guild|access-date=November 10, 2008}}</ref> screened the film in the White House.<ref name="gorenfeld" /> He noted in his diary: "Ran ''Inchon''—it is a brutal but gripping picture about the Korean War and for once we're the good guys and the Communists are the villains. The producer was Japanese or Korean which probably explains the preceding sentence".<ref>Reagan, Ronald, The Reagan Diaries, 2009, HarperCollins {{ISBN|0-06-155833-8}}, {{ISBN|978-0-06-155833-7}}</ref>

===Promotion=== The Unification movement wanted to distribute on their own, but Young told them this would result in a "total disaster".<ref name="coleman" /> The Church did however front the full $11 million promotion budget.<ref name="ryanreview">{{cite news | last =Ryan | first =Desmond | title =Review - MacArthur as a soldier of Christ | work =The Philadelphia Inquirer | page =D01 | date =September 20, 1982 }}</ref> The press releases made many mystical claims, such as of a B-29 bomber pilot seeing the face of Jesus Christ during the war, or of MacArthur's spirit causing his face to appear on a photograph of his office door.<ref name="suid" /> The press kit also claimed that MacArthur had endorsed the film from the spiritual world (MacArthur having died in 1964).<ref name="gorenfeld">{{cite book | last =Gorenfeld | first =John | title =Bad Moon Rising | publisher =PoliPointPress | year =2008 | page =[https://archive.org/details/badmoonrisinghow00gore/page/128 128] | isbn =978-0-9794822-3-6 | url =https://archive.org/details/badmoonrisinghow00gore/page/128 }}</ref>

===Distribution=== ''Inchon'' screened at the 35th Cannes Film Festival in May 1982 but failed to interest any buyers despite a $250,000 publicity campaign,<ref name="ryan" /><ref name="goldfarb" /><ref name="stiratcannes">{{cite news|last=United Press International|author-link=United Press International|title=Disputed Korean Film Creating Stir at Cannes|work=The New York Times|date=May 18, 1982|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/05/18/movies/disputed-korean-film-creating-stir-at-cannes.html|access-date= 2009-10-21}}</ref> which included hiring the publicity firm Rogers & Cowan to arrange a large party and give out promotional ''Inchon'' jackets.<ref name="goldfarb">{{cite news|last=Goldfarb|first=Michael|title=Notes From All Over|newspaper=The Washington Post|page=E3|date=May 23, 1982}}</ref>

In August 1982, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contracted distribution rights.<ref name="pond" /> One Way Productions came to an agreement with MGM that it would cover the costs associated with advertising and distributing if MGM agreed to distribute ''Inchon'' for a profit share of only 15%.<ref name="ryanreview" /> The normal profit fee for distributors was 30%.<ref name="ryanreview" /> One Way also convinced Moon to change his credit from spiritual advisor to special advisor.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=196}}

The film, cut to 105 minutes, was released in the United States on September 17, 1982,<ref name="kelleher" /> but was swiftly pulled from theater exhibitions due to poor commercial performance. It was never shown in the United Kingdom.<ref name="king">{{cite news|last=King|first=Susan|title=Film flops: Even Hollywood greats trip up - Murphy's 'Nash' may earn him a spot in the hall of shame|work=Milwaukee Journal Sentinel|page=06|date=August 20, 2002}}</ref><ref name="coleman" />

===Home media=== After its release, ''Inchon'' was never theatrically rereleased, and never issued on videocassette or DVD.<ref name="canby" /><ref>{{cite magazine|last=Weinberg| first=Marc|title=Money for Nothing|magazine=Orange Coast Magazine|page=104|publisher=Emmis Communications |issn=0279-0483|date=May 1982}}</ref> However, it did air on U.S. cable television outlet Goodlife Television Network, at the time owned by the Unification movement.<ref name="filmthreat" /> Bootleg copies circulated from individuals that had copied ''Inchon'' from these television broadcasts.<ref name="filmthreat" />

==Reception== ===Box office=== The film's total North American gross was $1.9 million.<ref name="vermilye" /> It eventually took in $5.2 million at the box office.<ref name="boxofficemojo">{{cite web|access-date=2009-10-30|last=Box Office Mojo staff|publisher=www.boxofficemojo.com|title=Inchon (1982)|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=inchon.htm|work=Box Office Mojo|year=2009}}</ref> ''Inchon'' lost over $44 million, and was the year's largest cinematic financial failure.<ref name="inchontops" /><ref>{{cite book | last =Hadleigh | first =Boze | title =The Lavender Screen | publisher =Citadel | year =2001 | page =195 | isbn =0-8065-2199-6 }}</ref> In 1989, a survey released by the entertainment research firm Baseline identified ''Inchon'' as "the biggest box-office fiasco of the 1980s".<ref name="inchontops">{{cite news | agency =Associated Press | title ='Inchon' Tops List of '80s Flops | work =San Francisco Chronicle | page =E1 | date =November 29, 1989 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last =Aucoin | first =Don | title =Really gross earnings | work =Boston Globe | page =12 | publisher =Globe Newspaper Company | date =November 19, 1989}}</ref>

''Inchon'' has been included on multiple lists of box-office bombs.<ref name="guthmann" /><ref>{{cite news | last =Tugend | first =Tom | title =Biggest Bombs | work =The Jerusalem Post | page =06 | date =December 7, 1989 }}</ref> Michael Wilmington of the ''Chicago Tribune'' placed ''Inchon'' as number six in a "list of Hollywood's 10 worst mega-flops".<ref name="wilmington" /> Wilmington noted that ''Inchon'' displaced the 1980 film ''Heaven's Gate'' as "the bomb of the decade".<ref name="wilmington">{{cite news | last =Wilmington | first =Michael | title =Films that went splat - From 'Intolerance' to 'Cutthroat Island.' 10 of Hollywood's messiest box-office disasters | work =Chicago Tribune | page =5 | date =April 14, 1996 }}</ref> ''The Washington Post'' described ''Inchon'' as "one of the biggest commercial disasters in film history".<ref>{{cite news | last =The Washington Post staff | title =Terence Young dies - Directed Bond movies | newspaper =The Washington Post | page =B6 | date =September 9, 1994 }}</ref> In 1995, the ''San Francisco Chronicle'' reported that ''The Guinness Book of World Records'' called ''Inchon'' "the biggest money-loser in film history".<ref name="guthmann">{{cite news | last =Guthmann | first =Edward | title =Big-Bucks Bombs That Hit Hollywood | work =San Francisco Chronicle | page =27 | date =July 23, 1995|url=https://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/big-bucks-bombs-that-hit-hollywood-3028158.php|access-date=2009-10-31 }}</ref> ''Inchon'' was one of the "10 costliest movies", adjusted for inflation, at $173 million in 1997 dollars.<ref>{{cite news | last =Wilmington | first =Michael | title =The costliest | work =Chicago Tribune | page =1 | date =December 14, 1997 }}</ref> In a 2006 list of "The top 10 biggest box office failures", Kat Giantis of ''MSN Movies'' placed ''Inchon'' as tied with ''Battlefield Earth'' (a science fiction film based on a novel by L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology, the fact this film was based on a book written by the founder of the Scientology religion meant that it was heavily promoted by Scientologists) for number seven.<ref name="giantis">{{cite news | last =Giantis | first =Kat | title =Bombs Away! - The top 10 biggest box office failures | work =MSN Movies | publisher =movies.msn.com | year =2006 | url =http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=131054 | access-date =2009-10-31 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20101203221523/http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=131054 | archive-date =December 3, 2010 | url-status =dead }}</ref>

===Critical reception=== ''Inchon'' was universally panned by critics and audiences, and is widely considered to be one of the worst films ever made. {{Rotten Tomatoes prose|0|3|8|access-date=April 10, 2025}}

Most newspaper reviewers gave the film negative reviews, among them were ''The Boston Globe'',<ref name="mccabereview">{{cite news | last =McCabe | first =Bruce | title =Korean War as pop cartoon | work =The Boston Globe | date =September 18, 198 }}</ref> ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'',<ref name="ryanreview" /> ''Miami Herald''<ref name="kelleher" /> and ''The Washington Post''.<ref name="arnold">{{cite news | last =Arnold | first =Gary | title ='Inchon': An Epic Bungle | newspaper =The Washington Post | page =D1 | date =September 17, 1982 }}</ref> In ''The New York Times'', critic Vincent Canby wrote: "''Inchon'' is a hysterical historical epic, somewhat less offensive than ''The Green Berets'' and far funnier ... ''Inchon'' looks like the most expensive B-movie ever made."<ref name="canby" /> A review in ''Variety'' wrote "Olivier is convincing in his role throughout most of the saga, the only member of the cast to achieve that status. The screenplay generally treats all others as one-dimensional buffoons, giving them lines that are unintentionally laughable. One reason is that all plot digressions are simply window dressing to the film's focus on the brutally invading North Koreans and the big-scale counterattack by the good guys. No speaking roles are given to the Communists, for example."<ref>{{cite news | last =Variety staff | title =Inchon Review | work =Variety] | publisher =www.variety.com | url =https://www.variety.com/review/VE1117791922.html?categoryid=31&cs=1&query=inchon | access-date = 2009-10-31 | date=January 1, 1981}}</ref>

Moon founded ''The Washington Times'' in Washington, D.C., as a part of his international media conglomerate News World Communications in the same year ''Inchon'' was released.<ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F00E5DA1238F93BA25756C0A964948260 Sun Myung Moon Paper Appears in Washington] from ''The New York Times''</ref> According to ''The Times''{{'}} rival ''The Washington Post'', a full-length two and a half page version of a film review of ''Inchon'' written by critic Scott Sublett that was originally planned for the September 16, 1982 issue of ''The Times'' was killed by the newspaper's publisher and editor James R. Whelan.<ref name="romano">{{cite news | last =Romano | first =Lois | title =Review is Killed | newspaper =The Washington Post | page =C1 | date =September 18, 1982 }}</ref> Whelan told Sublett that ''The Times'' had a conflict of interest in reviewing ''Inchon'', and would not print his review.<ref name="romano" /> Instead, ''The Times'' printed a one-paragraph critical synopsis of the film, also written by Sublett, which said in full: "Puerile dialogue, perfunctory acting and haphazard construction doom from the start this visually impressive would-be epic about love and dead Reds in wartime Korea. Olivier (in a performance that is the nadir of his career) joshes, minces and rolls his eyes absurdly as Doug MacArthur. The script, by Robin Moore, is pure twaddle – a cross between ''South Pacific'' and ''The Green Berets''."<ref name="romano" /><ref name="diddctimes">{{cite news | agency =Associated Press | title =Did D.C. Times kill critical review of movie? | work =The Miami Herald | page =19A | date =September 19, 1982 }}</ref> Moore is the author of the novel ''The Green Berets'', upon which the 1968 film was based.{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=189}} On September 21, ''The Washington Times'' printed ''The New York Times''{{'}} review of the film.<ref name="miljournal">{{cite news | title =D.C. Times fires back | work =Milwaukee Journal | date =September 21, 1982 }}</ref> Reviewers Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert selected the film as one of the worst of the year in a 1982 episode of their program ''Sneak Previews''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://siskelebert.org/?p=4255 |title=''Sneak Previews'': Worst of 1982 |access-date=February 1, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150224050612/http://siskelandebert.org/video/N44N7DM9RKON/At-the-Movies-Stinkers-of-1982 |archive-date=February 24, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Later commentary=== Multiple commentators have described ''Inchon'' as the worst film ever made, including ''The Washington Post'',<ref>{{cite news|last=Mayo |first=Mike |title=Hollywood's untaped resources - worthwhile movies don't always make it to video |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=April 13, 1997 |page=G7}}</ref> ''Newsweek'',<ref>{{cite news|last=Boedeker |first=Hal |title=The Magic of Olivier his film legacy sets standard for all actors |work=The Miami Herald |page=36G |date=July 21, 1989 |quote=The worst of his choices was probably taking on the role of Gen. Douglas MacArthur in 1982's Inchon. ''Newsweek'' called Inchon 'the worst movie ever made, a turkey the size of Godzilla.'}}</ref> ''TV Guide''<ref name="TV Guide" /> and The Canadian Press.<ref>{{cite news|last=McKay |first=John (Canadian Press) |title=Welch fleshes out worst in film |work=The Record |place=Kitchener, Ontario, Canada |page=E4 |date=March 23, 2004}}</ref> ''Inchon'' was later profiled in multiple books on worst in film, including ''The Hollywood Hall of Shame'' by Harry and Michael Medved,{{sfn|Medved|Medved|1984|p=186}} and ''The Worst Movies of All Time'' by Michael Sauter.<ref name="sauter">{{cite book|last =Sauter |first=Michael |title=The Worst Movies of All Time: Or, What Were They Thinking? |publisher=Citadel Press |year=1999 |page=197 |isbn=0-8065-2078-7}}</ref> In 2000, Kenneth Lloyd Billingsley in the libertarian magazine ''Reason'' wrote about a proposed film on Stalinism: "A film like this could easily have turned out as big a didactic dud as the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's 1982 bomb, ''Inchon'', with Laurence Olivier as Gen. Douglas MacArthur."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://reason.com/2000/06/01/hollywoods-missing-movies|title=Hollywood's Missing Movies |last=Billingsley |first=Kenneth Lloyd |date=July 22, 2007 |work=Reason |access-date=April 20, 2019}}</ref> A 2009 review by Phil Hall for ''Film Threat'' was less negative, and he disagreed with the characterization of the film as the worst ever made, "I was genuinely surprised—this is hardly among the very worst films of all time. That's not to say it is a good film. It is a dull and forgettable movie, and I would never recommend it. However, its reputation for being among the bottom of the cinematic barrel is wholly undeserved."<ref name="filmthreat">{{cite web|url=https://filmthreat.com/uncategorized/the-bootleg-files-inchon/|title=The Bootleg Files: Inchon |last=Hall |first=Phil |date=February 20, 2009 |work=Film Threat |access-date=April 20, 2019}}</ref>

A review in ''Brassey's Guide to War Films'' by Alun Evans was critical, calling the film "Arguably the worst war picture made in the last quarter of the 20th century".<ref name="evans">{{cite book| last =Evans |first=Alun |title =Brassey's Guide to War Films |publisher=Potomac Books Inc. |year=2000 |page=103 |isbn =1-57488-263-5}}</ref> Robert Niemi commented in his book ''History in the Media: Film and Television'', "Plagued with a terrible script, horrendous production problems, and shoddy performances all around, the resulting film, ''Inchon'' ... was bad beyond belief."<ref name="niemi" /> Niemi wrote that Olivier's performance "was a low point in an otherwise distinguished film career".<ref name="niemi" /> In his biography of the actor, ''Olivier'', author Terry Coleman called the film "probably the worst he ever made and one of the best paid".<ref name="coleman">{{cite book|last =Coleman |first=Terry |title=Olivier |publisher=Macmillan Publishers |year=2005 |page=[https://archive.org/details/olivier00terr/page/423 423] |isbn =0-8050-8136-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/olivier00terr/page/423}}</ref> Author Lawrence H. Suid wrote in ''Guts and Glory: The Making of the American Military Image in Film'' that "what combat the film portrayed lacked any believability or authenticity ... As a result, the movie met with almost unanimous critical disdain."<ref name="suid" />

===Awards and nominations=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Award ! Category ! Nominee(s) ! Result ! Ref. |- | rowspan="5"| Golden Raspberry Awards | Worst Picture | Mitsuharu Ishii | {{won}} | align="center" rowspan="5"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://razzies.com/asp/content/XcNewsPlus.asp?cmd=view&articleid=22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303184900/http://razzies.com/asp/content/XcNewsPlus.asp?cmd=view&articleid=22 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |title=1982 RAZZIE Nominees & "Winners" |publisher=Golden Raspberry Awards |date=April 11, 1983 |access-date=March 26, 2008}}</ref> |- | Worst Director | Terence Young | {{won}}{{efn|Tied with Ken Annakin for ''The Pirate Movie''.}} |- | Worst Actor | Laurence Olivier | {{won}} |- | Worst Supporting Actor | Ben Gazzara | {{nom}} |- | Worst Screenplay | Robin Moore and Laird Koenig | {{won}} |- | Stinkers Bad Movie Awards | Worst Picture | Mitsuharu Ishii | {{won}} | align="center"| <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1982/1982st.htm |title=1982 5th Hastings Bad Cinema Society Stinkers Awards |access-date=March 30, 2013 |work=Stinkers Bad Movie Awards |publisher=Los Angeles Times |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103154829/http://theenvelope.latimes.com/extras/lostmind/year/1982/1982st.htm |archive-date=January 3, 2007}}</ref> |}

==Notes== {{Notelist}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Works cited== * {{cite book|author-last=Medved |author-first=Harry |author-last2=Medved |author-first2=Michael |author-link2=Michael Medved |title=The Hollywood Hall of Shame: The Most Expensive Flops in Movie History |publisher=Angus & Robertson |date=1984 |url=https://archive.org/details/hollywoodhallofs0000medv |isbn=0207149291}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book| last=Gazzara | first =Ben| author-link = Ben Gazzara| title =In the Moment: My Life as an Actor| publisher =Da Capo Press| year=2005| pages =192–207| isbn =0-7867-1582-0 }} * {{cite book|last=Sauter|first=Michael|title =The Worst Movies of All Time: Or, What Were They Thinking?|publisher=Citadel Press|year=1999|pages=197–198|isbn=0-8065-2078-7}}

==External links== * {{IMDb title|0084132}} * {{mojo title|inchon}} * {{rotten-tomatoes|inchon}}

{{S-start}} {{S-ach|aw}} {{Succession box | title=Razzie Award for Worst Picture | years=3rd Golden Raspberry Awards | before=''Mommie Dearest'' | after=''The Lonely Lady'' }} {{Succession box | title=Stinker Award for Worst Picture | years=1982 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards | before=''Tarzan, the Ape Man'' and ''Mommie Dearest'' | after=''Krull'' }} {{end}}

{{Terence Young}} {{Navboxes |title = Awards for ''Inchon'' |list = {{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Picture}} {{Stinkers Bad Movie Award for Worst Picture}} }} {{Unification Church}}

Category:1981 films Category:1980s war drama films Category:1981 war films Category:1981 drama films Category:American war drama films Category:English-language South Korean films Category:Films about Douglas MacArthur Category:Films about the United States Marine Corps Category:Films directed by Terence Young Category:Films scored by Jerry Goldsmith Category:Films set in Incheon Category:Films set in Seoul Category:Films set in Tokyo Category:Films set in the 1950s Category:Films shot in Ireland Category:Films shot in Los Angeles Category:Films shot in Rome Category:Films shot in Seoul Category:Films shot in Tokyo Category:Films sponsored by the Unification Church Category:Korean War films Category:Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films Category:Political controversies in film Category:South Korean war drama films Category:Unification Church and the arts Category:United States in the Korean War Category:Golden Raspberry Award–winning films Category:1981 English-language films Category:1981 American films Category:English-language war drama films Category:American anti-communist propaganda films