Sea Fury

Not too bad, many weak details re nautical events. To West Coasters the main attraction is the tug "Sea Fury". She is one of a large class of US Army tugs of WW2, widely used by US and Canadian Towing Companies after the war.They were as a class known as Miki Mikis (Hawiian for "on time") after the progenitor built in the late 20's for the Hawiian inter-island pineapple trade. Very popular and successful vessels. All in all not a bad film , very entertaining if You haven't sailed on a tug although 5 stars for featuring one in a film. Good cast too.Scenes of Spanish ports and coastline are another plus. As are the scenes at sea both on board the Sea Fury, the interaction with the Dutch tug and even the sadly inaccurate salvage operation. Still, a fun show.

The continuity announcer for 'London Live' said the star of this film was Stanley Baxter (what a film 'Zulu' would made with him in it!).

It's great claim to fame is that it marked the final film role of Victor McLaglen, predictibly cast as a drunken old curmudgeon (complete with walking stick) who comprises one corner of the screen's most unlikely triangle with Stanley Baker and Luciana Paluzzi.

The film finally lives up to it's title with the dramatic finale of Baker saving a ship in distress carrying drums of highly combustable sodium with a surprising appearance by a dazed-looking Dermot Walsh as the ship's seriously concussed captain.

Sea Fury is directed by Cy Endfield and Endfield co-writes the screenplay with John Kruse. It stars Stanley Baker, Victor McLaglen, Luciana Paluzzi, Grégoire Aslan, Robert Shaw and Francis De Wolff. Music is by Philip Green and cinematography by Reginald H. Wyer.

Aged Captain Bellew (McLaglen) of the tugboat Fury II is lured into a romantic involvement with young Josita (Paluzzi) by her father who has designs on financial gain for the family. However, the arrival of British sailor Abel (Baker) to the crew sees a romantic dalliance occur of which Bellew is sure to be furious about...

Set in a village on the Spanish coast, where the harbour is host to tugboats and ebullient sailor types, Endfield's film is a weird romance - come - seafaring drama. In truth the first two thirds of the film is pretty turgid stuff, it shuffles along as some sort of bizarre love triangle, then a bit of jealousy comes into play and a drama at sea forces the pic onto a much higher level.

Filmed out of Estartit and Girona in Spain, the acting is fine, where McLaglen (in his last film before his death) is in full bluster mode, Baker is smooth and macho, and Paluzzi strikes the right forbidden fruit chords (including one quite racy and well shot underwear change sequence).

When the plot forces the now bitter crew of the Fury II out to a perilous rescue mission that will make them good money, it is here where the pic pays you off for the time spent with the previous tedium of the lovelorn character developments. It's dramatic, furious even, with Baker put through the water mangler by his director.

Above average, but only recommended if one has the patience to wade through an hour of sogginess to get to the watery thrashy pulse raising last third. 6/10

Firstly can I make the point that although this site shows Baker as top billed it is Mclaglen who was top billed and the name above the title.Mclaglen was an actor who was rarely capable of giving a restrained performance.He needed someone of the calibre of John Ford in getting him to be more restrained.Here he is rather odd because he lusts after a woman young enough to be his granddaughter.Difficult to know whether the director was serious about suggesting this romance.Anyway all the action is reserved for the climax which involves Stanley Baker.IThe end of a long career for Victor.

For a man who lived and tasted more of life before his movie career began in the late twenties than most actors, indeed most people will ever know, it is fitting to see Vic in his old form one last time. The film is peppered with references to his life both on and off stage. From the opening sequence with him barking orders and bodily shoving people aside, we see that though in his early seventies, he's still got enough for one last performance.

The scene where he pins a medal on Stanley Baker, and plays his trademark rough-an-tumble drunk is classic McLaglen. His half-hearted attempt at courting the lovely Luciana Paluzzi culminates in an amusing treat of a scene that ends with Paluzzi storming out of the captain's cabin and Victor picking himself up off the floor.

Later we find Vic's character Captain Bellew with Stanley Baker's Abel Hewson on the bridge, as Bellew describes an experience from his early days at sea, and declares that he's done a bit of everything in his time. He says it with an honest conviction because he is quite easily telling the truth about his own life.

In all, I rate it a great watch for anyone who admires the man's irrepressible zest for life and the adventurous tale of his winding course through it. One of the last great men of the Victorian Era takes his bow with this one.