The Sea Wolves

They just turn up in films like this.

I loved this film. The combination of these great old stars and charecter actors having a lark in a war film. Fantastic.

The trick with this film is not to take it too seriously.

Just sit back and release your grip on reality for a couple of hours.

Pity we don't get more films like this today.

I would concur with the previous reviewers comments, though perhaps a little less enthusiastically. The Sea Wolves is entertaining, owing largely to a cast of good British actors. I saw this film on the History Channel, and as World War II buff, my interest in the film is largely around its wartime premise. I don't mind that the film makers have exercised minor artistic license with some of the story. It's often essential for good film storytelling.

In this case, the true story, which was declassified by the British government in 1978, two years before the making of the film, is such a good story that little embellishment is needed to make a good film. I suspect that in this film the romantic exploits of Roger Moore are fiction, but no matter. My favorite films of the war genre, "Force 10 from Navarone" and "The Dirty Dozen" are historical fiction. The Sea Wolves has a similar element of misfit commandos, which is really tautology. Both Force 10 from Navarone and The Dirty Dozen are wildly humorous. Having served in two wars, I recall much of what happened as humorous to the point of farce, equally mixed with the parts that were serious, including a few terrifying experiences. A few brief moments of terror can go a long way, when experienced in real life, but not nearly as far when watched on the screen. Therefore, film makers typically alter the mixture, adding more action to keep us riveted. Like the historical epics films, based on the books of Connelious Ryan ("The Longest Day" and "A Bridge Too Far"), The Sea Wolves seems to strive to be faithful to the actual events, and in doing so, ends up being a little slow in the start.

My harshest criticisms of the Sea Wolves are that its cinematography is rather uninspired, and its costumes are a disappointing to the historical enthusiast. Some of the uniforms and civilian clothes appeared to be reproductions in synthetic fabrics not used at the time. Also, as is typical of studio productions, some of the hairstyles were more influenced by contemporary styles than faithful renditions of the styles of the period. The film was shot entirely on location in India, where the authenticity of the sets and extras offer some consolation for the film's other failings.

In summary, The Sea Wolves, while having the makings of two kinds of great war movies-- the entertaining all-star blockbuster and the ultra-accurate historical epic-- but fails to fully deliver either. Still, a good story and competent acting make it work a look. In doing a little research on the Web, I was able to locate a book, entitled "Boarding Party: The Last Action of the Calcutta Light Horse." The reviews of the book on Amazon are very promising for both entertainment and history. The film has got me interested, so I'll be sure to read it.

True WWII story about a commando-style mission undertaken by a group of middle-age semi-retired British Cavalrymen in 1943 . The crew of veteran saboteurs (most of them formed by veteran actors as Trevor Howard , Patrick Mcnee ,Morgan Sheppard , Terence Longdon and several more besides ) commanded by Gregory Peck and David Niven are assigned the dangerous operation by the general (Kenneth Griffith) to blow up a German ship called Ehrenfels that carries a radio station located in the port of Marmagoa . They must destroy a transmitter in Goa , a Portuguese colony and neutral territory . As the end credits of this movie state , "during the first 11 days of March 1943, U-boats sank 12 Allied ships in the Indian Ocean , after the Light Horse raid on Goa, only one ship was lost in the remainder of the month¨. The film is dedicated to the memory of the honorary colonel of the Calcutta Light Horse , Admiral of the Fleet the Earl Mountbatten of Burma , K.G. 1900-1979 . The producers wish to thank the Government of India and Administration and peoples of Goa and to pay tribute to commander B.S. Davies whose skill and courage at the helm of ¨Phoebe¨ contributed so much to the success of the mission . There are not the ¨Sea Wolves ¨of the title also called ¨Wolf pack¨ , that refers to the Nazi U-boats that are doing the shipwrecked and damage on the Allied fleet.

This exciting film contains intrigue , suspense , noisy action scenes ,fascinating battles and an enjoyable love story with treason and tragedy between Roger Moore and Barbara Kellerman who results to be the main fascination of the film . Other chief excitements about the movie, will be in the intervention of famous British secondaries who realize professionally competent interpretations , some of them with no more than a line or two to say as Allan Cuthberson ,Patrick Allen , Donald Houston , Jack Watson , Grahame Stark , John Standing , Percy Herbert and several others . Vibrant and rousing musical score by Roy Budd with agreeable final song titled ¨The precious moment¨ sung by the usual Matt Monroe . Colorful and evocative cinematography by Tony Imi .

The picture finely directed by Andrew V. McLagen is based on the book ¨Boarding party¨ by James Leasor who took actual events for his writing , these are the following : On reserve since the Boer War, they are most noted for their attack with members of the Calcutta Scottish against the German ship, Ehrenfels. The operation was organized by SOE's India Mission. It was kept covert, to avoid the political ramifications of contravening Portuguese neutrality in Goa, and was not revealed until thirty-five years afterwards, in 1978. The Ehrenfels was known to be transmitting information on Allied ship movements to U-boats from Mormugao Harbour in Portugal's neutral territory of Goa on 9 March 1943.The Light Horse embarked on the barge Phoebe at Calcutta and sailed around India to Goa. After the Ehrenfels erupted in a fireball and was sunk by the team of British saboteurs, British intelligence dispatched an open message over the wire falsely warning that they would invade Goa. The crews of the other two German ships in the Harbour, the Drachenfels and Braunfels, received the message and scuttled their ships in Goa's Harbour in the belief that they were protecting their ships from capture by the British. Italian ships in the Harbour were also destroyed. In 1951 all three ships were salvaged.

A neutral Portugese port in India has three German cargo ships in it. One of them is believed to contain a hidden short wave radio that is transmitting the locations of British war ships to U-Boats, costing the British Navy dearly in the Indian Ocean. Because the port is neutral, Allied forces are not allowed to enter and destroy the radio. A plan is finally devised to use aged retired members of the, no longer in use, Calcutta Light Horse, who are now enjoying the joys of civilian life. But, is there really a radio in the harbor? If so, which ship is it on? This is quite an entertaining film, especially for those who enjoy (and remember) Gregory Peck, David Niven, Trevor Howard, and many many more British actors.

This movie really is an oddity - as others have noted its hard to see it being made now and it was pretty odd to see it being made then. However, I'd encourage folk to watch it as its an old-fashioned yarn featuring some splendid cameos from a strong cast of supporting actors. As for the stars - well Messrs Niven, Peck and Moore aren't perhaps stretched too much but they do enough to show just why they were the stars. I think its called 'screen presence'. Peck's accent - a plucky effort and far from the worst I've heard.

A few minor points Why was the film made? Am I alone in suspecting that the director had a key role? Andy McLaglen had a penchant for casting favourite actors (a John Ford influence) and a scenario like this with ample opportunity to cast screen veterans would have appealed. He was also the son of the redoubtable Anglo-Irish actor Victor McLagan, an old soldier who (as you'll find elsewhere on IMDb)in the 1930s organised a semi-militaristic polo club called the 'Light Horse Brigade'. A coincidence - surely not, it must have appealed to McLaglen to publicise the story of another 'Light Horse' that did get to 'do its bit'.

On the German resistance. These were not crack Nazi stormtroopers - they were mainly merchant sailors (tho some would have had naval experience). They were also taken by surprise in a neutral port where they were happily sitting out the duration. Given those circumstances they put up a rather good fight in the film - and its to be noted four German survivors of the raid were advisers on the movie.

On people being shot in the arm. Were they supposed to invent extra British characters so they could kill them? On the whiskey - its the men's cover if the raid went off half-cocked as was quite possible.

On the dedication - Mountbatten was the wartime commander in the area of operations including the Indian Ocean. Being made so soon after his murder it must have appealed to McLaglen (British-born of Protestant Irish stock) to remind the viewers again that not all old soldiers get to live out their retirement peacefully. We should also recall the two teenage boys (one of them local) and the 83-year old woman killed along with Mountbatten in that terrorist atrocity.

Finally, I like the closing moments when the men are gazing at the burning ships. No champagne, no cheers, no high fives - just a comment of 'poor devils'.