Down to the Sea

Greek sponge fishermen fall out over fishing rights. A lot more exciting than the above synopsis might suggest, Down to the Sea is a nifty little programmer that builds up quite a head of steam after a slow start, and could easily have been something of a minor classic with a bigger budget and names. Director Irving Pichel stands out as a treacherous boat captain.

It's conflict in the Florida sponge-diving industry, with top-billed Russell Hardie representing the 'hookers' -- sponge divers who stay in shallow waters and free dive for the sponges -- and second-billed Ben Lyon representing the deep divers who use diving dresses. When bad weather forces the second group into the shallows, third-billed Ann Rutherford is the prize.

Writers Robert Lee Johnson and Wellyn Totman wrote a script that captures the immigrant Greek culture pretty well, from Greek Orthodox practices to dealing with the bends through cupping. Although the movie falls into standard two-friends-fighting-over-one-girl tropes, some fine actors, including Irving Pichel and Fritz Leiber take the senior roles. There's also Vince Barnett for his weak-tea brand of comic relief; I don't understand the fascination he held for Poverty Row producers in the period.

Director Lewis D. Collins apparently took the cameras and some of the cast down to Florida for location shooting. It was a good idea, but there didn't seem to be anything that couldn't have been done in California.