Sassoon was decorated for valor as a second lieutenant on the Western Front in World War I. But he faced a court-martial for sending a widely-publicized letter of protest about the conduct of the war.
Unbeknownst to Sassoon, his political allies, including advisors to Winston Churchill, were able to get him out of a court-martial by raising questions of his sanity. He faced a sanity board instead.
(That is the basis of the title of this post: R.C.M. 706 is the U.S. Rule for Court-Martial procedure for questions of an accused's mental competence to stand trial).
This guest author enjoyed the movie, and is of the opinion that Benediction deserves a place in the pantheon of great anti-war movies such as Paths of Glory, Platoon, and Full Metal Jacket.
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