War-time propaganda film

The film was made during WW-II and released late in 1943. The allied invasion of Normandy was yet to come. Films like this were designed as morale boosters. The message was as important as the entertainment value.

The message was delivered in the words delivered by Lionel Barrymore’s dead General to Spencer Tracy. As a propaganda piece, it doesn’t seem as effective as several others. 1942’s “Mrs. Minerva” was possibly the best of the genre. Another one by the same screen writer (Dalton Trumbo) as “Joe” and with many of the same stars was 1944’s “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo,” a partly fictionalized account of the real-life morale boosting mission by a daring group of aviators led by Jimmy Dolittle.