The full feature to this movie is just over 2 hours and ten minutes, it is also a cinemascope technicolour movie. Unfortunately, for the super 8 release, Heritage films got hold of it, they released it via Mountain films as this 4 x 400ft reel abridged feature, 4:3, pan and scan, there is also a 400ft version, (& I think a 200ft version).
Sadly, it only appears on super 8 in b/w. We do like this film very much and to be fair, the editing is actually pretty good, but although it is a 4 x 400 footer, the film does fits easily on two 600ft spools, while the reels are full, they are not spilling over. The running time of this version is 62 minutes, so it is less than half that of the full feature films running time of 131 minutes. The sound quality is very good but where the film falls down a bit is in the quality of the image, squeezed into 4:3 the sharpness of the image suffers with a slightly soft focus but it is better than the images you see here taken during tonight’s viewing.. The image has good contrast and as it is in b/w with as less than perfect sharp image, it has the look of some real ww2 film so this sort of compensates for the down sides. For a 1958 movie this is a good gritty war film, Aldo Ray as Staff Sergeant Sam Croft is one of the main characters of the film and he plays it very well, the opposite sort of character that most war films of the time depict. This print was one of our first features so it has been with us for at least 35/40 years and is still in excellent condition, there is a black line to the right on part 4 which was there when we bought it all those years ago.
If I could find a good colour, scope 16mm feature of this film I would defiantly add it to our collection. As far as I can remember, I have only seen it on TV once many many years ago. Luckily, I have found the Blu ray to it so I can view the whole film in all its glorious colour. While it isn’t a popular super 8 title, it is one I would recommend to anyone who enjoys a good war film. As I recall, this title came up on most used list, (and still crops up now) for very little money.
With the help of wiki, here is a plot summary which covers this particular version.

The music score by Bernard Hermann is excellent and suits the film so well, what you clearly hear is Jason & the Argonauts, however, it needs to be remembered that this film was was five years before Jason. In one part i expected the skeletons to rise out of the ground, its that similar in parts.

The Naked and the Dead is a 1958 Technicolor widescreen film based on Norman Mailer's 1948 World War II novel The Naked and the Dead. Directed by Raoul Walsh and filmed in Panama. One of the last films made by RKO before its closure, the film was released by Warner Bros and was the last one Raoul Walsh directed for that studio.
It is the story of Lieutenant Hearn (Cliff Robertson), an aide to General Cummings (Raymond Massey), who treats Hearn as a son and a friend.
Hearn is to lead an intelligence and reconnaissance platoon on a dangerous reconnaissance mission. The platoon had originally been led by Sergeant Croft (Aldo Ray), who now must serve under Hearn. Croft is a professional soldier with a reputation for cruelty. Hearn's relatively idealistic approach is contrasted with Croft's desire to win at all costs. When Hearn considers abandoning the mission due to excessive Japanese presence, Croft tricks him into underestimating the enemy. This eventually leads to several deaths in the platoon, and Hearn himself is wounded. Some of the men head back, carrying Hearn on a stretcher. Croft presses onward with the remaining men. Croft is killed in action, but his men accomplish their mission, relaying vital intelligence to headquarters. Hearn's men consider leaving him to die, as they can escape faster on their own, but decide to continue carrying him despite the risk.
Upon receiving the platoon's report, a subordinate of Cummings orders an immediate large-scale assault on the Japanese position, scoring a major victory despite Cummings' harsh scepticism. The survivors of the platoon, including Hearn, make it back to headquarters. Once there, Hearn tells the chastised Cummings that the men who carried him on a stretcher did so out of love, and that the human spirit will always be too strong to be cowed by any terror imposed by other men.

Tom,

I have heard of this book/film title, but never have seen it on film, TV, or disc. An interesting storyline. B&W Super 8 seems fine, but Technicolor 16mm would of course make it even better.

Since viewing this, i have also played the Blu-ray if this title. Wow, what a difference, Heritage certainly did do a very good job on the edit but there is obviously an additional hour to view. Aside a short piece at the start, the super 8 version starts quite a way into the full feature removing the platoons introduction and most importantly, the following early part of the film as introduced here via wiki,

"Filled with flashbacks, it is the story of Lieutenant Hearn (Cliff Robertson), an aide to General Cummings (Raymond Massey), who treats Hearn as a son and a friend. The General believes that commanding officers ought to inspire fear in their subordinates, in order to enforce discipline. Hearn expresses distaste for these views, preferring instead that soldiers should have mutual respect for each other, regardless of rank. Hearn is eventually transferred to lead an intelligence and reconnaissance platoon on a dangerous reconnaissance mission".

The super 8 edited feature version also misses out much of the drop off of the platoon onto the Island which itself is an early opening battle, here the whole battle sequence is removed. All in all, the full feature is a very good film, the 8mm version is actually a good version capturing much of the later action but splicing out all the introductions and the the obvious frustrations of Sergeant Croft with Lieutenant Hearn.
I think the biggest frustration for me is the slightly soft image that dogs the 8mm version, BUT, it was a 70s Heritage/mountain film release, many of there releases were average in quality as many collectors know.