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They Were Expendable (John Ford, 1945)
Director: John Ford
Writers: William White (book), Frank Wead (screenplay)
Cast: Robert Montgomery, John Wayne, Donna Reed, Jack Hold, Ward Bond
Genre: Drama War
They Were Expendable is based on a novel written by William L. White. White's novel while fictional, was based on his own war time experience with 'Torpedo Boat Squadron Three'....The PT boats were used in the South Pacific during WWII to guard against Japanese invasion during the Battle of the Philippines.
The movie follows the novel and offers up a dramatized and exciting account of the role of the American PT Boats in the defense of the Philippines in World War II
If your not a war buff, then this film might not have much to offer you. There's little in the way of character development and little characterization, it's more like a documentary, which I thought was cool. But after watching the film, I asked myself what was John Wayne and Robert Montgomery characters all about?
On the other hand this is a 'technical' film...most all of the outside shots are done on location in the Florida Keys which to me looked like the infamous shores of Bataan and Karigador in the Philippines, much better than on being shot on a back of a studio lot.
Real Navy PT boats were used which really added to the reality of the film. It's a good film for learning a part of WWII U.S. history in the Pacific Theater. Not surprising then, the movie was Oscar nominated for Best Special Effects.
A nod to Donna Reed who aptly plays a field nurse stationed in Bataan. I shudder to think what would have happened to her character in real life.
They Were Expendable (John Ford, 1945)
Director: John Ford
Writers: William White (book), Frank Wead (screenplay)
Cast: Robert Montgomery, John Wayne, Donna Reed, Jack Hold, Ward Bond
Genre: Drama War
They Were Expendable is based on a novel written by William L. White. White's novel while fictional, was based on his own war time experience with 'Torpedo Boat Squadron Three'....The PT boats were used in the South Pacific during WWII to guard against Japanese invasion during the Battle of the Philippines.
The movie follows the novel and offers up a dramatized and exciting account of the role of the American PT Boats in the defense of the Philippines in World War II
If your not a war buff, then this film might not have much to offer you. There's little in the way of character development and little characterization, it's more like a documentary, which I thought was cool. But after watching the film, I asked myself what was John Wayne and Robert Montgomery characters all about?
On the other hand this is a 'technical' film...most all of the outside shots are done on location in the Florida Keys which to me looked like the infamous shores of Bataan and Karigador in the Philippines, much better than on being shot on a back of a studio lot.
Real Navy PT boats were used which really added to the reality of the film. It's a good film for learning a part of WWII U.S. history in the Pacific Theater. Not surprising then, the movie was Oscar nominated for Best Special Effects.
A nod to Donna Reed who aptly plays a field nurse stationed in Bataan. I shudder to think what would have happened to her character in real life.