The Fighting Seabees

Saying this film is "propaganda" is not an insult. No, it was deliberately crafted to encourage Americans that we can and will win the war if we stand firm. And what better image of this than the ever-vigilant John Wayne--the embodiment of the Hollywood image of heroism.

This film reminds me a lot of The Flying Tigers, though the plot isn't so melodramatic. It's about a crew of civilian engineers sent overseas to do construction for our troops (such as building runways and other projects). BUT, the evil Japanese in the movie take advantage of the fact that these are unarmed civilians and butcher them at every opportunity. So, what is The Duke and his trusted pals to do? Take up arms and use their own equipment when necessary to beat the stuffing out of the Japs! Yes, guys with bulldozers and clubs NEVER could have inflicted the casualties you witness in the movie, but man if it isn't entertaining to watch--particularly the explosive ending.

I was a "Seabee" w/ MCB 4, from 1964-1970!! In basic training in Port Hueneme California, during our first week of training we were marched to the post theater, and were shown this movie. We for the most part thought it was a good movie, but thought it might have been a little overplayed as a promotional thing to peak our interests in becoming a "SeaBee!? ..Well after two full tours in Viet Nam, with my battalion! I have come to the realization. That this is one of the few Wayne war movies of the WW2 time frame that is as close to accurate as they could portray a unit of the Armed Forces! A bunch of Construction workers doing their damndest to get a job done no matter the adversity or dangers ! the only real link they had to being in the military was the fact they were wearing uniforms! they Build and Fight! and Party hard !! just as we did and as the Bees still do !!

Before writing this review I took a quick look at Wikipedia and the article they have on the Seabees. Despite the fanciful story that Borden Chase wrote here about how the service was founded, the Seabees were actually an idea already thought of by Admiral Ben Morreell the Chief of Navy Supply even before Pearl Harbor.

Unlike the war in Europe where the Allies would be looking to take an hold cities with facilities already there, like air fields for example, those planning the war in the Pacific knew that they would be starting from scratch. Airfields, fuel depots, etc. would have to be constructed on jungle islands in the Pacific. So the idea of a separate service for the construction trade was born.

Now that we know that the plot of The Fighting Seabees is so much hogwash, let me say that what the film does do very well is show the hazards of what the men in that service faced. Trying to build facilities at the same time as the enemy is firing on them. The scenario in this film is repeated many times over on the islands of the Pacific.

As to the story of this film, John Wayne reverses roles here. In most of his war films he's usually the professional military man, here he's the tough, but inpatient civilian who never seems to learn the value of military discipline. Of course being this is the Duke, he does redeem himself in the end in a spectacular manner.

A love triangle is tossed in here, rather unnecessarily in my opinion, a straightforward account of Seabee heroism would have been sufficient. Wayne and Navy Commander Dennis O'Keefe are both interested in war correspondent Susan Hayward. This was Hayward's second film with John Wayne, who along with Clark Gable, and Dean Martin, she once described as her three favorite leading men. Her big scene is when she's wounded and thinks she's cashing in, she declares her love for the Duke. Susan Hayward has always been a favorite of mine, but it's on the strength of her performances in her starring roles in the Fifties, not as the sex object in The Fighting Seabees.

The Fighting Seabees isn't one of the Duke's top 10 or even top 20, but it's a decent enough film to sit through even with the World War II heroic bravado that was obligatory at the time this was made. You even get to see John Wayne attempt the jitterbug. During that scene, the Duke looks mighty uncomfortable. He was never going to compete with Fred Astaire for roles.

Werner's rather tepid 6 out of 10 evaluation of THE FIGHTING SEABEES notwithstanding (I'd have given the film much higher, but that is just opinion), the allegation that Wayne failed to perform military service during World War II owing to "disabling restrictions" is simply not true. Accounts vary in accounting for his lack of military service, but none of them have to do with disabilities of any kind. As a married man with four children, he was exempt from the draft. His daughter Ayssa reports that Wayne was eager for military service but that pressure from Republic Pictures (with whom he was making enormously profitable films) convinced him not to volunteer for military service. A less flattering picture emerges from Gary Wills JOHN WAYNE'S America: THE POLITICS OF CELEBRITY in which evidence seems to indicate that Wayne (who was no physical coward by any stretch of the imagination) made a complex decision based on his growing stature in the film industry, his value as a propaganda symbol, his increasing paycheck, and the fact that he found film-making so rewarding. Whether an outside observer finds this an appealing portrait or not, there is ample evidence to suggest that Wayne always regretted thereafter not having served on active duty.

Ended up being a pretty good war film. A bit more acting cred for John Wayne than in his Westerns, which is fine. Some really good combat scenes, by the standards of the time. And Susan Hayward provided the much-needed eye candy. Sitting here in the hyper-polarized polity of today, it's a little hard to wrap one's mind around the wartime unity. And yes, I noticed the depictions of Japanese soldiers that are considered racist in today's oh so sensitive times. But it's never fair to judge personages or art from the past by a politically correct standard of which they knew nothing. Sort of like criticizing Jesus for admonishing slaves to obey their masters.