Operation Pacific (1951)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

George Waggner

Writer:

George Waggner (writer)

Release Date:

27 January 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Tagline:

Up From The Floor Of The Sea To A High Mark In Excirement!

Plot:

Submarine commander Duke Gifford feels guilty in the death of his former commanding officer, as well as about his failed marriage...

Plot Keywords:

Submarine | U Boat | Naval Battle

Cast

John Wayne	...	Lt Cmdr. Duke E. Gifford
Patricia Neal	...	Lt. (j.g.) Mary Stuart
Ward Bond	...	Cmdr. John T. 'Pop' Perry
Scott Forbes	...	Lt. Larry
Philip Carey	...	Lt. (j.g.) Bob Perry
Paul Picerni	...	Jonesy
William Campbell	...	The Talker (as Bill Campbell)
Kathryn Givney	...	Cmdr. Steele
Martin Milner	...	Ens. Caldwell
Cliff Clark	...	Commander, SUBPAC
Jack Pennick	...	The Chief
Virginia Brissac	...	Sister Anna
Vincent Fotre	...	Soundman
Lewis Martin	...	Squad commander
Sam Edwards	...	Junior
Louis Mosconi	...	Radarman Mosconi
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Baer	...	Fighter pilot (uncredited)
Robert Carson	...	Torpedo Officer (uncredited)
Gail Davis	...	Bit part (uncredited)
Chris Drake	...	Sparks (radioman) (uncredited)
James Flavin	...	Mick (SP commander) (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Dance floor extra (uncredited)
Ray Hyke	...	Crewman (uncredited)
Gayle Kellogg	...	Crewman (uncredited)
Al Kikume	...	Hawaiian (uncredited)
Brett King	...	Lt. Ernie Stark (uncredited)
Mike Lally	...	Quartermaster (uncredited)
Keith Larsen	...	Crewman (uncredited)
Harry Lauter	...	Freddie (officer on submarine Corvena) (uncredited)
Richard Loo	...	Japanese fighter pilot (uncredited)
Bob Nash	...	Quartermaster (uncredited)
Carl Saxe	...	Shore Patrolman (uncredited)
William Self	...	Helmsman (uncredited)
Michael St. Angel	...	Lt. Jorgenson (uncredited)
Bert Stevens	...	Naval officer at briefing (uncredited)
Milburn Stone	...	Ground Control officer (uncredited)
Harlan Warde	...	Dick (admiral's aide) (uncredited)
Steve Wayne	...	Crewman (uncredited)
Mack Williams	...	Crewman (uncredited)
Carleton Young	...	Pilot briefing officers on carrier (uncredited)

Directed by
George Waggner

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
George Waggner		writer

Produced by
Louis F. Edelman	....	producer

Original Music by
Max Steiner

Cinematography by
Bert Glennon

Film Editing by
Alan Crosland Jr.

Art Direction by
Leo K. Kuter

Set Decoration by
John Gilbert Kissel

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Russell Saunders	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Francis J. Scheid	....	sound

Special Effects by
Hans F. Koenekamp	....	special effects (as H.F. Koenekamp)
William C. McGann	....	special effects director (as William McGann)

Music Department
Murray Cutter	....	orchestrator

Other crew
Charles A. Lockwood	....	technical advisor (as Vice-Admiral Charles Lockwood)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1951) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Home Video (1992) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1998) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2000) (USA) (video)
• Warner Home Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Vídeo (2003) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Bros. (1953) (West Germany) (theatrical)

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

West Germany:12 (nf) | Finland:S | Sweden:15 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Pearl Harbor Naval Station, Pearl Harbor, O`ahu, Hawaii, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

During the film, the men of the Thunderfish watch Cary Grant in Destination Tokyo (1943).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: The first ship sunk on the second patrol has US Navy numbering on its bow.

Quotes:

Lt. Larry: [finding themselves in the middle of the entire Imperial Japanese fleet] I'll never make fun of a picture again!

Movie Connections:

References Destination Tokyo (1943)

Soundtrack:

How Many Hearts Have You Broken (With Those Great Big Beautiful Eyes)

Good showcase for Wayne as war hero

It's hard to decide which genre provided John Wayne the greater opportunity to showcase his talents - the "Western" or the "War Movie". Clearly, he excelled at both (and had more than a few opportunities to demonstrate it). Personally, I've always been a greater fan of his westerns, but when this film appeared on one of my favorite cable channels this afternoon, I found myself willingly drawn in. Although a lot of its elements are standard WWII fare, Operation Pacific still demonstrates why the genre has proven so successful to Hollywood.

This one includes all the cliches - the tragedy of lives lost for a just cause (in this case, the war in the Pacific), the heroism of the men who gave up their lives for that cause (here it's a submarine crew based out of "Pearl"), and the women forced to wait patiently while the men they loved went into harm's way.

Although a lot of this seems outdated and stereotyped some 50 years later, the movies that were made during and immediately following WWII nevertheless reflect the ideals and values that drove an entire nation (and generation) to act and feel as it did. My own father, who was a Navy man during the war, was a big fan of John Wayne. I have to believe that Wayne personified some of the very same values my father had come to embrace as a youth and during his time in the military. For me, this adds some validity and perspective.

I know this is not considered to be Wayne's best war film (and admit to not being an enthusiastic student of the genre), but I'm confident that it's a good example of why these films were (and remain) so popular.