The Battle of the River Plate (1956)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Directors:

Michael Powell
Emeric Pressburger

Writers:

Michael Powell (written by) &
Emeric Pressburger (written by)

Release Date:

November 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

The true and moving story of a mighty sea battle [Video Australia]

Plot:

A true WW2 story: the British Navy must find and destroy a powerful German warship.

Plot Keywords:

Battleship | Navy | British Navy | Royal Navy | Admiral

Awards:

Nominated for 3 BAFTA Film Awards.

Cast

John Gregson	...	Captain Bell - H.M.S. Exeter
Anthony Quayle	...	Commodore Harwood - H.M.S. Ajax
Ian Hunter	...	Captain Woodhouse - H.M.S. Ajax
Jack Gwillim	...	Captain Parry - H.M.S. Achilles
Bernard Lee	...	Captain Dove - M.S. Africa Shell
Lionel Murton	...	Mike Fowler
Anthony Bushell	...	Mr. Millington Drake - British Minister, Montevideo
Peter Illing	...	Dr. Guani - Foreign Minister, Uruguay
Michael Goodliffe	...	Captain McCall - R.N., British Naval Attache for Buenos Aires
Patrick Macnee	...	Lieutenant Commander Medley - R.N.
John Chandos	...	Dr. Langmann - German Minister, Montevideo
Douglas Wilmer	...	M. Desmoulins - French Minister, Montevideo
William Squire	...	Ray Martin
Roger Delgado	...	Captain Varela - Uruguayan Navy
Andrew Cruickshank	...	Captain Stubbs - 'Doric Star'

Also Known As:

Graf Spee
Pursuit of the Graf Spee (USA)

Runtime:

119 min | USA:106 min (cut version)

Country:

UK

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Spain:7 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:U | Iceland:L

Filming Locations:

Atlantic Ocean

Company:

Archers, The

Trivia:

Most of the sea action was filmed on real ships. The producers were lucky enough to have various ships of the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet at their disposal.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: By the time of filming, one of the turrets on INS Delhi (HMNZS Achilles) had been removed and HMS Cumberland was a trials ship without any guns.

Quotes:

Captain Langsdorff 'Admiral Graff Spee': [to Captain Dove] Every commander is alone, Captain.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Story of Making the Film They're a Weird Mob (1966)

Soundtrack:

Dolores' Song

Request permission to update list of spares

The Events around the Battle of the River Plate have always been somewhat special next to the sinking of the Bismarck for me, as Germany does not have such a rich history of sea battles as England does. Two things stand out : First the very positive display of the Captain of the Graf Spee, Langsdorff, treating his prisoners positively and trying to kill ships but not humans and even saving his crew from heroic death in Battle by sinking the ship by himself and refusing to go into battle. And his tragic end by suicide. Second, the laconic display of the British Officers and Men in Battle. This is where my title quote is coming from, as a message issued by the Captain of the shut-down and burning Exeter trying to escape to safety after the Battle and heavy hits. Otherwise it seems to be a rather careful display of events, although the scenes in Montevideo are sometimes play out like a prelude to a Carry On Farce. Greatest weakness is, that we totally loose sight of the German views and events on board Graf Spee once the battle has started. Totally 6 of 10