Editing Battleground (film) (section)

==Plot==
<!-- Per [[WP:FILMPLOT]], a synopsis should usually be 400–700 words long, and this movie is not one of the exceptions. ! -->
In mid-December 1944, Privates Jim Layton and William J. Hooper are assigned to the [[327th Infantry Regiment (United States)|327th Glider Infantry Regiment]], [[101st Airborne Division]]. As a newcomer, Layton receives a chilly welcome from his squad. Private First Class Holley returns to the company after recuperating from a wound.

Instead of going on leave in [[Paris]], the squad is trucked back to the front because of a surprise German breakthrough in the [[Ardennes]]. They stop that night in [[Bastogne]] and are put up for the night in the apartment of a young woman, Denise, to whom Holley is attracted.

Jarvess later stands guard in the village, where he runs into some battle-weary soldiers making a "strategic withdrawal". The next morning, led by Platoon Sergeant Kinnie, the men are ordered to dig in on the outskirts of town. Just as they are nearly done, they are sent elsewhere and must dig in all over again.

Holley, Layton, and Kippton man a roadblock that night. German soldiers [[Operation Greif|disguised as Americans]] infiltrate their position and later blow-up a nearby bridge. In the morning, Roderigues, a [[Latinos|Latino]] from [[Los Angeles]], is delighted by the novelty of snow from a heavy winter storm, but "Pop" Stazak, awaiting a "dependency discharge" that will send him home, is unimpressed. Layton goes to see Hooper, only to find he had been killed, and no one in his company had even known his name.

Kinnie informs the squad about the infiltration and dispatches a patrol comprising Holley, Roderigues, and Jarvess. Just before they start out, the platoon is shelled by German artillery, causing Bettis to panic and desert. Holley's patrol briefly skirmishes with the infiltrators. Roderigues is wounded by machine-gun fire from an enemy [[tank]]. Holley conceals him under a disabled [[jeep]] half-buried in snow, promising to return for him. Unfortunately, by the time Holley can return, Roderigues has died.

Sgt. Wolowicz, wounded by shrapnel, and a sick Cpl. Standiferd are sent to a [[field hospital]]. Later, Doc informs the 2nd Squad that the hospital has been captured.

Holley is appointed the new squad leader and partnered with Layton, while Pop is paired with Hansan. Pop's discharge finally comes in, but they learn from Kipp [[Siege of Bastogne|they are surrounded]], meaning he's stuck and unable to leave.

Moved repeatedly, the 3rd Platoon is attacked at dawn. When it appears the platoon will be overrun, Hansan is wounded, Holley flees, and Layton follows Holley. Ashamed, Holley turns around and leads a flanking counterattack that stops the Germans, during which Abner Spudler is killed reaching for his boots, as he can't sleep with them on.

After they get Hanson to an [[aid station]], the squad runs into Bettis, who is doing [[kitchen police|K.P.]] duty. Holley finds Layton being entertained by Denise. Later, while on guard duty, they encounter some Germans who have come under a flag of truce to offer Brigadier General [[Anthony McAuliffe|McAuliffe]] surrender terms; his famous reply - "Nuts!" - puzzles the Germans.<ref>The actual incident involved F Company, 2nd Battalion, 327th Glider Infantry on December 22, near Marvie, southeast of Bastogne. As depicted, the commander of the 327th GIR, Colonel Joseph Harper, was called upon to explain the term.</ref>

The squad is short of supplies, as bad weather has grounded the supply transport aircraft. Several men attend impromptu outdoor Christmas services held by a chaplain. (The chaplain had previously served as clergy at a [[Hanukkah]] ceremony, and when he asks a Jewish soldier how he did he responds, "Not bad for a beginner, sir.") The chaplain gives a short speech on the importance of the fight against fascism. He then asks "The 64 dollar question is: was this trip worth it?" After giving an affirmative explanation, he says that people will forget, but they won't, and "don't let anyone ever tell you that you were a sucker to fight against fascism." That night, the [[Luftwaffe]] bombs Bastogne. Denise dies, and Bettis, slowed by his fear of returning to the lines, is killed by a collapsing house. The "walking wounded", including Hansan and a mess sergeant he befriends, are recalled for a last-ditch defense of the town.

As the platoon is down to its last few rounds of ammunition, the weather finally clears, allowing Allied fighter aircraft to attack the Germans and [[C-47 Skytrain|C-47 transports]] to drop supplies, enabling the 101st to hold. Afterward, Kinnie leads the platoon's survivors rearward for a well-earned rest.