Film · 1958 · Directed by Raoul Walsh · Starring Aldo Ray, Cliff Robertson
A platoon fights on a Pacific island and the men reveal their hidden selves.
The film tones down the book's rough language and some of its politics.
The novel is raw and ambitious, with many voices.
The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer
An absorbing, realistic story of a platoon.
Who will like it: Readers who like big, gritty war novels.