La mer cruelle

I first read this book when I was 14 (and had my father take it back from me when I had to ask "what's 'urinate' mean, dad?"). Monserrat is a master at the depiction of men at war - from his extraordinary technical knowledge to his ability to convey the fatigue, the cross feelings living in close quarters, the bitterness, the moments of triumph or relief.

This film does Monserrat justice. This movie is the opposite of the "boys' own adventure" sorts of movies. There are no striking heroics - just the very real feeling of people performing onerous often dangerous duties as well as they're able - which is heroic itself. The movie does not skimp on the danger either - the shocking losses of ships in convoys that the corvette "protects", the extreme difficulty of finding and sinking U-boats, almost gives one the feeling, "what's the point of convoys?" (Imagine all surgeons operating with an average 3% survival rate - well, 3% recovery is better than none - but imagine the wear on the surgeons).

The film is gritty, and just has the feel of the 1940s in its bones. The sounds, the movement, the look of cities and harbors, the clothes - it's as if one's uncles' tales have all come to life.

Jack Hawkins and Donald Sinden are wonderful - almost always (and necessarily in wartime) stiff upper lip. The movie's moral dramas (bearing upon decisions the captain must make) are wonderfully conceived and executed.

This is truly a superb movie - a great credit to all who worked on it - a memorial to many. It's a completely different - and superior - genre to such movies as Pearl Harbor. I even prefer it to its natural rival, In Which We Serve - good though the latter is.

Almost completely unsentimental (hooray!) portrayal of the life of those aboard a British corvette, HMS Compass Rose, during the Battle of the Atlantic. Jack Hawkins magnificent as its captain. Some harrowing scenes filmed with great reserve.

Easily the best film dealing with war at sea. Only "Das Boot" comes close.

Post British World War II movies helped sustain the ailing British Film industry in the 1950's. There were some truly awful movies made - probably so those who were really there could turn to their girls and say - "you know it wasn't really like that".

The Cruel Sea is an exceptional exception. Firstly it is based on a superb book, secondly it is well cast with Jack Hawkins at the height of his powers playing Captain Ericsson and thirdly it is well abridged. Getting a 500 page novel into 121 mins means that there will be cuts - but they are well done and the narrative thread of the book is not lost. There is also very little "messing with the story" so prevalent in Hollywood.

The Royal Navy obviously thought the movie worth supporting and helped find a real Flower Class corvette. Of all 135 built - 22 had been sunk by the enemy, 13 lost in bad weather and the rest paid off after the war. "Compass Rose" sails across the screen - firing her weapons and throwing her depth charges (you want to see what REAL depth charges are like when they go off - watch this) in beautifully photographed black and white action sequences.

Suspend your historical accuracy regarding true ship detail however - throughout the movie the Flower is in her 1945 paid off configuration with a lantern style radar that wasn't introduced till half way through the war and the continuity switches from moderate weather to flat calm at the flick of a scene as needed when the ship is making turns. Still you want to see heavy weather - there is some real rough stuff with the corvette punching into it and some stock wartime footage very carefully grafted in to give the necessary verisimilitude.

But the real narrative is how the specks of humanity are treated by the war and the cruel sea and it is amply conveyed in the morning after a torpedo'ing. Count how many are INCREDIBLY lucky to be found alive in rafts and remember how many were on the ship that was sunk in the night. It's a grim ratio and a vivid portrayal of the real cost of the Battle of the Atlantic.

Young and upcoming Donald Sinden, Denholm Elliot and Virginia McKenna support this superb movie - it made Donald Sinden.

I hope there is a DVD coming because the photography is clearly good enough to be shown at a higher resolution but this should not stop you watching this now.

Fine English war movie of life aboard a convoy escort ship during WWII. It's original B&W format only adds to the overall feel of the movie. Great no-nonsense performances from the cast. The movie is notable in that it is almost free of propaganda and instead concentrates on showing the crews life on board in a realistic way.Jack Hawkins turns in a fine performance.

The best thing about this WWII naval picture is that it is so ordinary. What I mean by this is that there is no bigger-than-life Hollywood style hero who is invincible, but a collection of normal men showing great heroism collectively--sort of a tribute to the unsung heroes of the war. It's set aboard a convoy escort ship's captain and crew--through their tense moments, trials, successes and failures. In other words, its a WHOLE portrait of the war as seen through these sailors' eyes--the good, the bad and the mundane.

The second best thing is the lovely look and feel--with great acting and direction. Jack Hawkins was, as always, wonderful but all the actors playing the crew did so well--and it's a tribute to the production and direction--this didn't just happen by chance.

In many ways, this film plays a lot like the great British film "In Which We Serve"--though unlike "In Which", "The Cruel Sea" was made after the war. Both films together would make a wonderful night of movie viewing. Solid and exceptional.