Alerte en Méditerranée

This 1938 French film won the Grand Prix du Cinema Award of 1939, and was first shown in the U.S., at NYC's Cameo Theatre in January, 1940, as "SOS Mediterranean" with a pared-down running time of 81 minutes. The US version had French dialogue with English titles.

The scene of action embraces Tangier, Toulon and the Mediterranean, where Pierre Fresnay, Rolf Wanka and Kim Peacock, cast as captains of French, German and English boats, respectively, unite to rescue the passengers of a neutral boat that is about to be engulfed in a cloud of poison smoke released by a smuggling ship.

Hopefully, the Trivia, Keywords and Awards contributors won't run over each other in getting the above info posted.

Made in 1938 , "Alerte En Méditérranée " may easily pass for a pacifist work ,as a French officer (Pierre Fresnay ) and his two colleagues (an English and ....a German one )have to stand together and to unite their forces to save civilian passengers of a liner.

A smuggling ship hoists the yellow flag :yellow fever aboard !quarantine! in fact the crew feels as fit as a feedle ,it's a ruse:they are arm dealers and are about to spread a poison gaz cloud over a liner .

One of the first French disaster movies,opinions differ as far as the meaning of the film is concerned : some consider it a pacifist movie at a time when war was imminent (1938: Munchen agreement);some disagree because the heroes are military men;some are harsher :historian Jean Tulard considers it "a war documentary about the (real) strength of our fleat which was to sink in Toulon".

Directing is static, the parts of Fresnay's wife and son are unnecessary as hell .Coincidence ? director Joannon would direct a movie about yellow fever and quarantine (real ,this time) in the terribly mediocre " Secret De Soeur Angèle" (1956)

"Alerte En Méditérranée" was awarded the "Grand Prix Du Cinema ";horn-5 gives a running time of 81 min; the French version lasts 3 minutes longer .....