They Were Expendable (1945)

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

William L. White (book)
Frank Wead (screenplay)

Release Date:

20 December 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

A Spine-Tingling Thundering Saga Of The Sea!

Plot:

A dramatized account of the role of the American PT Boats in the defense of the Philippines in World War II.

Plot Keywords:

P.t. Boat | Philippines | Pearl Harbor | Ship | General

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars.

Cast

Robert Montgomery	...	Lt. John Brickley (as Robert Montgomery Comdr. U.S.N.R.)
John Wayne	...	Lt. (J.G.) 'Rusty' Ryan
Donna Reed	...	Lt. Sandy Davyss
Jack Holt	...	General Martin
Ward Bond	...	'Boats' Mulcahey C.B.M.
Marshall Thompson	...	Ens. 'Snake' Gardner
Paul Langton	...	Ens. 'Andy' Andrews
Leon Ames	...	Major James Morton
Arthur Walsh	...	Seaman Jones
Donald Curtis	...	Lt. (J.G.) 'Shorty' Long
Cameron Mitchell	...	Ens. George Cross
Jeff York	...	Ens. Tony Aiken
Murray Alper	...	'Slug' Mahan T.M. 1c
Harry Tenbrook	...	'Squarehead' Larsen SC 2c
Jack Pennick	...	'Doc'

Runtime:

135 min | West Germany:107 min (cut version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (f) | Canada:G (video rating) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 (1964) | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (certificate #11113)

Filming Locations:

Florida Keys, Florida, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Filmed in Miami, the closing shot with the lighthouse is the Cape Florida Lighthouse, in what is today the Cape Florida State Park. The lighthouse withstood and was the scene of an Seminole Indian attack in 1835.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Lt. Sandy Davys attends the 'party', Lt. JG 'Rusty' Ryan takes a big swig of his drink, spilling some of it down his face and shirt, yet in the next scene, he's completely dry.

Quotes:

Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: Are you kidding, Brick?
Lt. John Brickley: Theirs not to reason why. Theirs but to do...
Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: And die... but I don't want to be bored to death running messages!
Lt. John Brickley: I'll see that you get the more intriguing ones.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Mister Roberts (1955)

Probably the greatest WWII film of its era.

Rather than re-hash Tom Martin's excellent review of the film, I would rather provide some personal reflections.

This really is the most human of all the late-era WWII films, minus much of the blatantly propagandistic speeches that mar so many movies from that era. Rather, the dialogue is beautifully understated. Robert Montgomery's "looking for the Arizona too" comment to Wayne sums up the feelings of its time much more than a five minute speech on how important it is to win the war could ever do.

The cinematography is top notch, as it is in most of Ford's films. Watching this I believe we can definately see how Orson Welles would be influenced by his work over the years.

Robert Montgomery's work here is fantastic; again, as Martin states in his review, probably his best work in front of the camera. He seems war-weary (and in one of the Duke's biographies this is probably how Montgomery really was at this time, as he had seen quite a bit of action during the war before the film was made). John Wayne's character provides us with proof that he truly was a great actor. Watch the scene where he sits in a bar listening to a broadcast from San Francisco about the fall of Coregidor; his emotions are completely shown by the camera; no "let's get them dirty so-and-so's" speeches here, this is pure, wordless acting.

All in all, a great film; the best of the WWII era, and certainly one of the best of the 1940's. No hesitations here on my score: 10* out of 10.