Since 1775, the Marine Corps has been involved in some of the most epic battles in military history. From the flag raising at Iwo Jima to kicking down doors in Fallujah, it’s pretty much a guarantee that a Navy Corpsman was right next to his brothers during the action.
The bond between U.S. Marines and their Corpsmen is nearly unbreakable.
Richard Linklater sheds a charismatic light on this tight brotherhood in 2017’s “Last Flag Flying,” starring Steve Carell, Bryan Cranston, and Laurence Fishburne.
What many people don’t know is that the Marine Corps doesn’t have an independent medical section. Since the Corps falls under the Department of the Navy, the majority of the medical treatment Marines get in the field is through the Naval Hospital Corps — except for reservists, who have different options.
Navy Corpsmen have fought with their Marine brothers and sisters in “every clime and place” since their creation. They train with their Marines in nearly every single aspect of warfare. The experiences — and hardships — they go through together builds a tight-knit bond of respect that lasts well beyond their service together.
HM2 Lamonte Hammond and HM3 Simon Trujillo from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines treat a wounded Marine during a firefight in the Helmand province, Afghanistan. (Source: Cpl. Artur Shvartsberg)
On multiple occasions, the “Docs” have run into harm’s way to render care to their wounded brothers — that tradition and heroism carries on to this day.
The Geneva Convention states that Corpsmen are technically non-combatants and are only supposed to discharge their firearms to protect their patient — but that’s no fun.
In the film Last Flag Flying, Larry “Doc” Shepherd (Steve Carrell), is a former Navy Corpsman and Vietnam veteran who loses his only son during the Iraq war.
Faced with tragedy, Shepard looks to reunite with his former Marine brothers for their most crucial mission yet: To bury Shepherd’s son and ultimately reconnect the brotherhood they shared 30 years ago.
The bond never dies.
Last Flag Flying is set for release Nov. 3, 2017.
Check out the film’s trailer below.
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