Pacific Liner

In light of the hysteria currently surrounding the Corona Virus recently, TCM showing "Pacific Liner" seems very timely! The film is about a cholera outbreak among the stokers on an ocean liner...and the Chief Engineer (Victor McLaglen) and Doctor's (Chester Morris) actions to try to contain the illness.

Much of the film is set in the lower depths of the ship among the lowly stokers who shovel coal in to the ship's steam engines. Oddly, although temperatures among the furnaces should be at least 100-120 degrees Fahrenheit, the Chief Engineer's uniform seems always clean and sweat-free...and he wears a very heavy uniform throughout the movie. His way of dealing with the crew is to slap them around and intimidate them but this bullying is tested when Cholera breaks out, as these tactics might stop working once panic sets in among these men. At the same time, the Doctor is against these tactics and the two men are pitted against each other during much of the story. They also are rivals for the attention of the pretty nurse aboard the ship (Wendy Barrie).

This is a tense and well made film despite looking in some ways like a B-movie (though at 78 minutes it wouldn't qualify as a B). Worth seeing and exciting.

With that bucket load of stars, it's a shame this one wasn't better. It WAS made five years after the Hayes code came whooshing in, so I wonder if it wouldn't have been a little more interesting if it had been made a couple years earlier... LOVE the scene where Alan Hale and another engine room worker are dancing together to the music coming from the upper decks. Alan Hale Sr. was the real life father of the Skipper on Gilligan's Island. He was the jolly, laughing character actor in about half the films made in the 1930/1940s. Viewers will recognize "Britches"...Barry Fitzgerald is the shorter Irish gentleman from The Quiet Man & Going My Way. Chester Morris (was sleuth "Boston Blackie") is the ship's doctor, who must deal with cholera outbreak. A stow-away has brought the deadly disease on board, and the captain (Halliwell Hobbes) must come up with a plan as it threatens to spread through the ship. Victor McLaglen is the burly, tough Chief Engineer, and had been a boxer in real life, which came in handy, since he needs to keep firm control of the men here. McLaglen would also work with Fitzgerald in "Quiet Man". Bombshell star of the 1940's Wendy Barrie is the ship's nurse. The film is OK, but it just kind of ends, without any drama or big climactic scene. Directed by Lew Landers. Worth watching on Turner Classics, but I sure wouldn't buy this one...

Pacific Liner (1939)

** (out of 4)

Disappointing RKO picture about a ship going from Shanghai to San Francisco and the crew coming down with cholera. The Captain (Victor McLaglen) tries to keep the men calm but soon they're threatening mutiny while the ship's doctor (Chester Morris) tries to find a way to keep the epidemic from spreading. Being a fan of McLaglen and especially Morris, I found this film to be pretty disappointing and it was made even worse when I noticed Landers was the man behind the camera as I usually enjoy his "B" pictures. What didn't work for me was the fact that the film seemed to forget what type of story it was trying to tell. The screenplay is all over the place as we're sometimes looking at the feud between the Captain and the doctor but then we'll jump to stories involving the crew members and then jump again to the outbreak on the ship. The movie just keeps jumping all over the place and at times I started to wonder if it had completely forgotten the stuff dealing with the outbreak, which seemed to be the main story for most of the running time. McLaglen gives his usual tough performance as he was born to play this type of role. Morris really doesn't get to do too much and I must admit that he left me a bit disappointed in terms of his performance. Not only is the character laid back too much but it seemed like Morris just wasn't all that interested in anything that was going on. The supporting cast includes Alan Hale, Barry Fitzgerald and Wendy Barrie. The film runs 76-minutes but it feels much longer due to the slow pacing and the lack of any real energy or thread of danger. Landers lackluster direction really doesn't help matters but I guess it's worth noting that RKO would use this ship again in Val Lewton's THE GHOST SHIP. It's also worth noting that the music score got an Oscar nomination even though you hardly hear it here.

This 1939 film has a plethora of great supporting actors including Barry Fitzgerald ("Going My Way", "The Quiet Man"), Alan Hale Sr. (Little John in "Robin Hood"), Paul Guilfoyle, and Halliwell Hobbes. Look for a young Eddie Bracken among the sailors. Of course you need to love Victor McLaglen who chews through the scenery as few can do.

A dead cholera victim is thrown into a ship's furnace in a makeshift funeral ceremony. Chester Morris has to turn ship's doctor to try check the cholera outbreak in the ship's engine room. He quarantines the men working below. Chief Engineer Victor McLaglen has to goad his depleted crew of stokers to keep the ship moving. He removes his shirt and gets stuck-in to get stoking himself. Morale in the engine room drops lower after the men hear that McLagen has become very sick. There is a threat of mutiny in the air. This was intended as a filler, but after positive reviews this movie was promoted to top of the bill feature. The acting is good particularly from the blustery McLaglen. He has a very lyrical line in anecdotes and sea shanties and verbal abuse. I like the way his bird called Chicken gets it's own back on McLaglen at the end.