User reviews

This was the second of two films that Burt Lancaster's Hecht-Hill-Lancaster company produced with a co-star from the earlier generation of film icons. Lancaster got the services of Gary Cooper for Verz Cruz and for Run Silent Run Deep, Clark Gable signed on for a hitch in as a submarine captain with a mission that isn't in the orders.

Clark Gable has been desk bound for a year after losing his submarine in the Bungo Strait in Japanese waters. He hears of another submarine coming into Pearl Harbor with a wounded captain who will be on medical leave. So with a little back channel influence playing naval politics, Gable gets command of the U.S.S. Nerka.

He inherits a resentful crew and an executive officer in Burt Lancaster who thinks he should have inherited the job. Gable's going back to the Bungo Stratis to nail the Japanese battleship that sank his former submarine and it's against orders.

The conflict already existing between Gable and Lancaster and the one some in the crew would like to make is what gives the film its spark. Though this is a submarine film, you can see plot elements of Flying Leathernecks and The Caine Mutiny here. Brad Dexter is in the Fred MacMurray role.

If Humphrey Bogart on the Caine had had at least one confidant on board he might not have cracked up. Gable's confidante on the Nerka is Jack Warden who is desk bound with him and transferred with him to the Nerka when Gable got command. Both Warden and Dexter are the best in a good supporting cast.

By the way what Gable is drilling his men in doing is shooting with precise speed and accuracy into the bow of an oncoming enemy ship and then diving for cover in split seconds. Quite a maneuver.

And quite a good film as well.

The interaction between Gable and Lancaster is something to behold. That and the story, the tension and the realism of men under attack. Yes, the special effects are not to the "high" standards of today, but they serve the story well and do not detract from the important drama. As one poster said, this movie would be ill served in color as would Das Boot in B&W. An overall excellent adaptation of the book and as far as the points not explained, all the better. I hate movies that stop the action to then explain to a character what that character is about to experience/see/do, etc. Give the movie goer credit for being able to fill in the gaps. A must have for any WWII movie collection.

WOW! is all I can say. This is the most realistic submarine film of it's day. I don't think anybody equaled this film in this genre until Das Boot was released nearly 30 years later. Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster star in this epic about a submarine and a mission. Others have commented at length on the basic story, so I'll leave that alone. Only a couple of details bothered me. The men were all too clean and well-shaven to be sub sailors. Some of the last WWII US Subs built had air conditioning, so that could explain the cleanliness and lack of condensation in the boat. Still, the entire crew should have been growing beards for the entire length of the cruise since water was too precious to be used for shaving or bathing while at sea. The only shipboard scene that I felt was unrealistic was one scene in the crew's mess. The space shown is far too large to have been aboard a US Fleet boat. Otherwise, I found the film to be a great depiction of the way life was aboard a US sub during WWII. The acting is superb by the entire cast, but it should be with names like Gable, Lancaster and Warden. This is one of the greats!

"Run Silent, Run Deep" featured the only pairing of two screen giants-Clark Gable, in the twilight of his career, and Burt Lancaster, whose best performances were still ahead of him. Sad to say that they couldn't be used in a joint effort again, as the on-screen chemistry was on a supreme height.

Gable plays the commander of a WWII submarine that has recently been sunk in an ara referred to as the Bunko Straits, or Area 7. He has been assigned to a desk job back at Pearl Harbor, and even after a year, is still brooding over the loss of his crew and his boat. Lancaster has a good part, that of the Executive Officer of a sub called the USS Nerka. This boat has just had a command change, Lancaster desires that position, but is passed over in favor of Gable, who senses a chance to return to the Straits and extract revenge on the Japanese destroyer which he feels certain sank his old command. The clash between the two men is obvious, but they put their personal differences behind them, and head for a long lasting combat mission, which against orders, will include Gable's return visit to the forbidden area 7 of the Bunko Straits.

Besides the pairing of two of Hollywood's screen legends, the film features the realism of using an actual ship of the line, the USS Redfish, for many of the shots. Also, the viewer has a chance to feel a part of the underwater tensions and claustrophobic conditions that submariners experienced during times of combat underwater. A must-see, or even better, a must buy film for those that enjoy films of this genre.

A destroyer is relatively small, slim and can easily dodge torpedoes. They proved to be the death of many submarines in WWII. Destroyers were used as escorts screening supply convoys, merchant shipping, capital battleships, aircraft carriers and oil tankers. Their most effective weapons against submarines were the sonar and depth charges.

Commander Richardson (Clark Gable) lost a submarine under his command after firing torpedoes at a Japanese troop and supply convoy. The Japanese destroyer simply run down his submarine as it struggled to submerge. Not quickly enough though as it was split in two. Tragically, Richardson lost some of his men. He was demoted to a desk job and earned the reputation of a loser among sailors.

The experience led him to devise a tactic on how to escape after torpedoing an enemy ship. He figured that it was not enough to run away from a destroyer because it can easily hunt his sub down with sonar and depth charges. The pursuing destroyer must be sunk. How? It moves so much faster than a submarine that it is impossible to hit it broadside. It also dropped depth charges as it circled the submarine in an ever tightening "noose" maneuver.

Richardson thought that if a sub charged a destroyer head on firing torpedoes as it submerged, the enemy ship can be hit on the bow sharp. This calls for speed, precision timing and perfect aim. So he drove his men to exhaustion and frustration as he made them do a new drill for the special maneuver he had in mind. The scenario was this: Fire torpedoes at an enemy aircraft carrier, tanker or whatnot. Then as a destroyer gives chase, instead of submerging at once and running away, the sub will charge the destroyer head on as in a game of "chicken." At this position, the destroyer cannot yet make effective use of its depth charges as they are released at the stern. The front guns of the destroyer are also at an awkward elevation in relation to the sub lying low in the water. The sub may have enough time to fire at least one torpedo or at the most two before it is rammed by the destroyer. The trick then is to fire while submerging at the same time. Remember, this was in the days when torpedoes had no teleguidance and the sub's commander and crew relied entirely on their instinct for the right buoyancy, depth, speed and angle of descent as they submerged as to when to fire the torpedoes at the critical moment for the proper aim. I am curious as to whether this was actually done in WWII.

It was bad enough that Richardson's men resented him but his own XO, Lt. Bledsoe, whom he edged out of command of the submarine by using his connections, also hated him with a passion viewing his drills and new tactic as criminally dangerous and unworkable.

If you liked this movie, watch The Enemy Below starring Robert Mitchum and Kurt Jurgens for a better understanding of submarine vs. destroyer warfare.

A good story and good performances from good actors leads inevitably to a really good movie, and that's what you get with this movie set on an American submarine patrolling Japanese waters during World War II.

Clark Gable plays Commander P.J. Richardson, reduced to a desk job at Naval headquarters in Pearl Harbor after the submarine he commanded was sunk by the Japanese. After another sub returns to base needing a new captain, Richardson convinces the brass to give him another shot, and he sets out on a quest for revenge, seeking the ship that shot his first sub out from under him. Among other challenges, Richardson has to put up with the wounded ego of his Executive Officer, Jim Bledsoe (Burt Lancaster) who believed the command should have been given to him, and with the hostility of the crew, who would have preferred Bledsoe.

The story of Richardson's quest for revenge, of his efforts to gain the trust of his crew and of his ultimate fate is full of suspense and you will not find your attention wandering at any point of this movie. It is an excellent story, well worth watching.

8/10

This interesting underwater drama concerns about an exciting battle of wits . Clark Gable stars as a veteran commander who is scheming to revenge during a dangerous voyage and solid Burt Lancaster as the second-in-command who attempts anticipate his every move . Tensions run high and rise between commandant Rich and Lt. Jim Bledsoe and the crew (Brad Dexter , Jack Warden , Don Rickles and 'Nick Cravat', usual pal of Lancaster) , as they set out from Pearl Harbor to destroy a Japanese cruiser . The veteran sub commander risks his crew when he's seeking vengeance . The crew is pushed to the brink of death by risked mission executed by avenger captain whose former submarine the Japonese had to blow up .

This nail-biter is a tightly-knit drama centered on the sea maneuvers going after a Japan's mightiest battleship of the Pacific . The film is famous as one of the best WWII submarine movies , though some scenes at sea , however , suffer from the utilization of obvious scale models in a just as obvious studio tank . Underwater shots were filmed with miniatures at the large inland Salton Sea in Southern California . Screenplay by John Gay from a book by commandant Edward Bleach . Atmospheric musical score by Franz Waxman and appropriate black and white cinematography by Rusell Harlan. The motion picture was meticulously mounted by Robert Wise who always manages to make a course correction in the nick of time and delivers another direct success . However , producers James Hill and Burt Lancaster had the film re-edited after director Robert Wise finished his cut . Then Wise left the film after this point for the rest of post-production.

The film originated a big hit into submarine sub-genre , along with : 'Torpedo run (1958)' by Joseph Pevney with Glenn Ford and Ernest Borgnine ; and subsequently , 'Das Boot(1982' by Wolfgang Petersen with Jurgen Prochnow ; 'Hunt for red October (1990)' by John McTiernan with Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery ; 'Crimson tide' by Tony Scott with Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman ; 'K19' with Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson , and several others .

When it comes that particular sub-genre of "military drama" movies that take place aboard submarines, the canon cannot be considered complete without "Run Silent Run Deep." It's not a flawless film, but nevertheless a very powerful one, and arguably seminal for the genre. This may well be the film which introduced the phrase "Ah-OOOO-gah! Dive, dive!" into the collective consciousness.

Plot synopsis: At the start of the film, it's late 1942, and Commander "Rich" Richardson (Gable) is commanding a submarine attacking Japanese shipping in the Bungo Strait. One of the escorting vessels, an Akikaze-class destroyer, counter-attacks and sinks the submarine with consummate skill. We skip ahead to mid-1943 and find Richardson in a desk job at Pacific Fleet headquarters at Pearl Harbor, obsessing over how to take revenge on the destroyer, which he has nicknamed "Bungo Pete," and which has sunk another three American submarines in the interim. When the position of commanding officer of the submarine Nerka becomes vacant, Richardson manages to wangle the job on the basis that the Nerka's next assignment will be to Japanese coastal waters, an area with which Richardson is well familiar. This, however, sets him at odds with the boat's executive officer, Lieutenant Bledsoe (Lancaster), who had originally been slated to take over command of the Nerka. Due to the losses incurred in the Bungo Strait, Richardson's orders are to avoid that waterway, but it is readily apparent to the viewer that Richardson fully intends to return to the Strait and sink "Bungo Pete." However, "Bungo Pete" is not the only threat that the Nerka faces...

The film's primary flaw is that it places emphasis on the significance of certain facts without explaining why these are significant. This is likely a result of being adapted from a novel. It would be helpful to know, for example, that the Bungo Strait is the waterway separating the Japanese islands of Kyushu and Shikoku, and is one of the two exits from the Inland Sea into the Pacific. It is the obvious route for shipping to and from the military logistics center at Hiroshima, among others, and would therefore be a "target-rich environment" for American submarines. Another commentator on this site asks why a Momo-class destroyer "merely serves as target practice" while the Akikaze-class is considered a serious threat. The answer is that the Momo is a "2nd class" destroyer, older, slower and more lightly armed than the Akikaze. Most importantly, 2nd class destroyers did not have depth charges, and were thus unable to harm a submerged submarine. (It should be noted, incidentally, that what is referred to as the Akikaze-class in this film is more correctly known as the Minekaze class. "Bungo Pete" could not be the historical Akikaze, as this vessel was in the South-West Pacific at the time this film takes place.) As to the question why Richardson opts not to dive when attacked by aircraft, the answer is that a submarine IS visible from the air if it's only at periscope depth, while at the same time, being submerged forces it to run on electric (battery) power instead of its diesels, resulting in less speed and maneuverability. For the Nerka to gain protection from diving, she would have to go so deep that she could not continue the attack against the Akikaze.

The pacing in the film is very good, and the story carries no unnecessary ballast. It was probably to maintain this that much of the exposition was cut. However, this does cause certain events in the film to come off as contrived to the casual viewer, which is unfortunate, because actually the story is very consistent. Like a good detective story, the film gives you clues to future events instead of springing them on you (per the dictum attributed to Chekov that a gun fired in Act III should be visible on the wall in Act I). Gable and Lancaster may, strictly speaking, be too old for their characters, but they play them convincingly, and their interaction--especially Bledsoe's grudging but increasing respect for Richardson--is very credible. There are some war movie clichés, and you can plainly see the wires used on the sub and torpedo models in the underwater scenes, but this was, after all, 1958. If you like submarine movies, you'll love this one.

If you enjoy a good submarine picture that takes place during WW II with Japan in the Pacific Ocean, you will definitely enjoy this film. Clark Gable,(Cmdr.'Rick' Richardson) commander of a submarine a few years early in the

war encountered a very drastic defeat by the enemy and was placed behind a desk. It was not too long when Richardson decides he is going to see the top brass about commanding another submarine and it is granted. However, Burt Lancaster,(Lt. Jim Bledsoe) wants to be the commander and he is turned down and Rick Richardson wants him on his sub and of course, plenty of trouble starts among the crew who are all on the side of Lt. Jim Bledsoe. There is plenty of action and you will soon find out why the title of this film is Run Silent Run Deep.

A submarine story that sticks to a simple "clash of wills" storyline without the inclusion of sub-plots and worn-out clichés that existed in so many WWII war stories is RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP. It proves without a doubt that CLARK GABLE and BURT LANCASTER were not only genuine classic stars but extremely good actors when given a solid script. And under Robert Wise's no nonsense direction, the cast of submarine sailors delivers the goods in realistic fashion, avoiding the sort of stereotypes often seen in these kind of war stories.

The main action involves Gable's revenge motif. He's like a Captain Ahab, fervently determined to sink the Japanese destroyer that took the lives of his former crew members a year earlier, just as Ahab ran after the whale. His motives are questioned by the man originally selected to be Captain, his second in command Burt Lancaster. It's the clash of wills between these strong personalities that gives the film its punch and keeps the situation tense and taut until the final battle.

Franz Waxman's score is almost non-existent, one of the chief shortcomings for me, as I always expect great things from Waxman. Here he opted for silence on the soundtrack when the situations get tense, as when the depth charges are sinking to the bottom of the ocean, barely missing the submarine. Perhaps this was a wise decision, since the sounds we do hear are those the sailors aboard the sub are experiencing while waiting tensely in their claustrophobic surroundings.

It's an admirable war film, graced by two excellent performances from Gable and Lancaster, both convincing in their display of authority and command. Although models are used in the battle scenes, all of the action looks very realistic thanks to some excellent B&W photography. Kudos to Robert Wise for keeping the whole story brisk and supercharged.

It never drags for a moment, as some of the other big wartime movies like DESTINATION TOKYO did. The script is taut and concise without resorting to any arbitrary love interest or humorous shenanigans which would have weakened the drama--and it's all told in a tense running time of 94 minutes.

I've served on the U BOOTS we got after the WAR from the Germans as " WAR damage " ,type SEVEN .type nine .type Twenty one .I'm now 81 ,and I know all about submarines .I let U- BOOT Kapitan Leutnants and Chief Engineers . I never Heard them Boasting " Frontal torpedo attacks " on destroyers . Totally unrealistic ,AIMING at a destroyer running at you at 40 knots with just the boa showing and his front Cannon firing at you is a stupid and suicide move :if you miss ,which is more than probable ,you get rammed because you have nô Time to dive at pericopic depth ( 13 meters at That Time ).All the more That the US Submarines were very slow to dive ,nothing to do with a TYPE SEVEN U BOOT which crash Dived in 24 seconds . As for depth charges ,they are " innocuous " if they explode above the submarine ,they break it's back if they explode below . The U BOOTS crash Dived to 100/150 meters to avoid the depth charges . When the explosions occur ,it's hell aboard ,and this is not shown in this film Interesting film ,but very poor as naval submarine warfare is concerned . I'm an experienced Naval Archhitect and Engineer ,not a Movie Man,and I was inches losing m'y Life aboard these marvelous WAR machines ,the most intricate ever !

RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP is a WW2 thriller about the crew of an American submarine in the Pacific who go after a deadly Japanese destroyer which has been sinking tons of their shipping. The film is directed by the one and only Robert Wise with his usual level of professionalism and features two stars in the forms of Burt Lancaster and Clark Gable as the leaders of the crew who end up butting heads throughout.

Naval thrillers such as this one live or die depending on the action and suspense scenes and I'm pleased to report that they're more than effective here. The special effects of ships exploding and the like are highly impressive and the depth charge attacks are gripping. Gable plays the old timer as a Captain Ahab-alike, obsessed at revenging himself on the enemy at whatever cost, while Lancaster is a more likable, level-headed guy in charge. RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP features a little comedy to lighten the mood, a good sense of setting, and some solid plot twists. There's very little to dislike about it overall.

Clark Gable plays "Rich" Richardson, a submarine commander whose previous boat had been sunk. He's subsequently given a new sub to command, and a new XO in Lieutenant Jim Bledsoe (Burt Lancaster). While back at sea, he's itching for some payback, and disobeys direct orders from his superiors to avoid a certain area. Soon, the commander and the crew will find themselves stalked by a stealthy enemy.

What's truly impressive about "Run Silent Run Deep" is how utterly convincing it is. The filmmakers, led by the talented director Robert Wise, were sticklers for accuracy, and everything looks and sounds authentic. There's no melodrama to be found here, nor is there any bloat: the film clocks in at a reasonable one hour and 33 minutes. All of the tension is genuine, and the storytelling is done in an efficient, no-frills style. Franz Waxmans' score is excellent, but the absolute best scene comes late in the film when score and sound effects are dropped out. The suspense then becomes extremely palpable.

Lancaster, a star who subscribed to the theory of balancing projects done for artistic reasons and ones done for commercial reasons, delivers a wonderful low key performance as the lieutenant who doubts his commanders' ability to lead but never oversteps his boundaries. Gable is appropriately intense, and these two men get a good odd couple chemistry going as their characters butt heads. The top notch supporting cast are all 100% believable: Jack Warden, Brad Dexter, Don Rickles (who does have some amusing moments), Nick Cravat, Joe Maross, Eddie Foy III, and Rudy Bond.

Even for a film released 57 years ago, the special effects are reasonable and don't distract from the scenario one bit.

This is a very fine example of the war / submarine genre.

Eight out of 10.

One of the most influential war films from the 50's, "Run Silent Run Deep" had a huge impact on projects as diverse as "Das Boot" to "Star Trek" (the episode "Balance of Terror")due to Robert Wise's ("West Side Story", "The Sand Pepples", "The Andromea Strain", "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", "The Haunting", "The Day The Earth Stood Still", "Somebody Up There Likes Me!" and numerous other classic motion pictures) taunt, claustrophobic direction and the intelligent script by John Gay ("The Court Martial of George Armstrong Custer", "Sometimes a Great Notion")gives actors Clark Cable and Burt Lancaster material to sink their teeth into.

The plot, like Melville's "Moby Dick", focuses on obsession; Commander Richardson (Gable) finally has a new command after time spent at a desk. His last command sunk by a Japanese destroyer returns to haunt him; when he and his crew (featuring a marvelous group of character actors led by jack Warden, Don Rickles and Brad Dexter)of run into the same destroyed he obsessively hunts it down and, in turn, is hunted putting his crew and latest command at risk. This puts him into direct conflict with his second-in-command Jim Bledsoe (Burt Lancaster). To paraphrase Lee Marvin's character in the film "The Big Red One", in war it isn't murder it's killing. The tunnel vision effects everyone in a crisis but when a commander is obsessed with his own revenge, it destroys the men's morale and puts the crew in jeopardy.

A thoughtful, penetrating drama that doesn't have men debating the merits of their morality but integrating it into their actions, "Run Silent Run Deep" deserves to be a deluxe release on DVD (much like the recent reissue of "The Day the Earth Stood Still")but probably won't receive it. "Das Boot" (all three versions)is a great film looking at similar circumstances but "Run Silent Run Deep" has the edge because the film rarely leaves the confines of the boat once the drama truly starts. A submarine is a crew member's entire world. Any threat to it could destroy that pressurized hot dog and wipe out everything including their important mission.

I saw "The Enemy Below" many years ago and was blown away by it. I thought it was one of the best war films ever made. It stood out because it was the story the commanders of both ships, not just of one, as most every other naval film is. I felt Mitchum and Jurgens were marvelous. Then, a couple of years back I decided to spend Veteran's Day watching war movies and I decided to rent three "submarine" movies that came out almost at the same time, "The Enemy below", (19570, "Run Silent Run Deep", (1958) and "Torpedo Run", (also 1958). To my amazement, I like "The Enemy Below" the least. I found it pretentious and wordy. men of action don't spend much time philosophying about what they do. they rarely say anything they don't have to. they are much more likely to be "internal". The windy verbal essays of "The Enemy Below" seem unrealistic. It's probable that the commanders of opposing vessels felt a kinship on some level but the fact that they were trying to destroy each other would have overwhelmed that. It's true, as one poster says that "you'd never seen a film like this in the 40's". That's because the perspective of the time was that the Germans were enemies. The point of view of this film would not have obtained at the time the action of the film took place. It's outlook is thus revisionist in the worst sense of the word.

"Run Silent, Run Deep" is the real article. the attitudes of the men- tightlipped, grim faced, worried about their survivals, not the enemies'. Nobody wonders what it's like for the other guys. Right or wrong, that's the way men see war. the crackling rivalry between Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster is much more realistic than the "brothers under the skin" relationship between Mitchum and Jurgens.

"Torpedo Run" lacks credibility. Glen Ford sinks a ship he knows his family was on to get at a battleship he wants to sink. Maybe I'm naive but I don't believe he would do that- even if his family wasn't on the ship. And the ending where they escape by swimming to the surface from the bottom of the seas, (I assume they weren't exactly in the Mariannas Trench), seems unlikely, at best. I checked the web for anything about "Momsen Lungs" and found nothing, at least under that spelling. has anyone heard of an actual instance of a submarine crew escaping a sunken sub and swimming to the surface? I haven't.

Directed by Robert Wise, starring Clark Gable and Burt Lancaster, with 3331 votes and a 7.3 average. How come I have never heard any talk about this film? It's great! It starts of a bit short with a not so well looking prelude but don't worry it will pick up! We meets Gable again a year after his U-Boat was sunk, now in some tiny office where he plans his revenge on the Japanese destroyer that sunk him and he soon gets his chance.

To skip a lot of the story which is always more fun to see for yourself Lancaster gets a bit sore when Gable takes the command from him as do the men and this leads to a large build up.

The film is very much alive and kicking with loads of u-boat action. The characters feels alive and you actually get to know these people, and hopefully like them. But what the film is best at is suspense. The film kept me at the tip of my seat through the entire thing and I must say I'm sold.

Very well acted on all accounts. It's shot and made quite well too but the film relies more on the story which is rather nice for a change. To say a few short things about the story it's gritty but not too much, perhaps a bit cold and cruel but also warm and even humorous at times.

This is just one of those mainstream films I really came to like.

This is a wonderful movie depicting the experience of one United States Navy submarine during the Second World War. The "Silent Service" never looked better.

It is filmed in black and white, which is (possibly) a salute to the "Victory at Sea" series of a few years before, but this film would not work as well in color (in contrast with "Das Boot," which would not work as well in black and white). Like "Das Boot," the sets are realistic and give the viewer an intimate feeling of the claustrophobia that existed on these small subs.

The script is excellent, although I have one recommendation: Try to watch this film in a "closed caption" mode. I hear fine, but when I watched it a second time in closed captioned, I picked up even more, particularly the names of the crew.

Gable and Lancaster are a little too old for the roles they are playing. But, this is a small complaint in comparison to their remarkable performances. It's easy to think of Gable as "Rhett Butler," no more and no less, but this film illustrates what a very fine actor he was. Lancaster is excellent, and gives a preview of his Oscar-winning turn in "Elmer Gantry," just a year or two later.

This is an old-fashioned film made with the able assistance of the U.S. Navy, and one cannot help but feeling a little pride in our nation and gratitude for our brave WW II veterans, after watching it. Highly recommended.

Almost every order given is questioned by the crew at every level. I am surprised they could function. Some of the "discussions" border on mutiny. With limited air supply in a sub, why is smoking allowed while underwater? The battle scenes look like toys in a bathtub. Good script and acting but strange delivery.

I won't state the old cliché of "the book is better", because it really isn't. Both film and book have their strong points, and a couple of weak ones, but as far as the film goes there're only two major flaws, both of which stem purely from the from the period in which it was made. Beyond that, what we have is essentially a snapshot, an encapsulation of the literary origins of the tale.

There's conflict. In Hollywood tradition the show revolves around the interpersonal collision between an experienced veteran officer and a younger officer who has the hearts of the men he commands. But there's also an antagonist. A Japanese naval anti-submarine warfare ace. An expert in killing US Navy submarines. The two US officers must put aside their contention and sync their personalities enough to help spear one of the many tentacles of the Axis kraken that has sent many a US sub to the bottom of the Bungo Straits and elsewhere.

One of the highlights of this film is seeing a Gato Class sub in all her post WW2 glory actually surface and dive in the Pacific on film. And it is an impressive anachronism. Another highlight is that the sets for the film (if they are sets) accurately simulate the confined spaces of a WW2 era submarine. The drama that unfolds mimics the literature in spirit, but for the purpose of cinematic alacrity truncates some of the more extraneous elements of the original book.

There are of course two thespian giants on screen, Gable and Lancaster, playing the US Navy officers at odds with one another. The performances are of course solid. Lancaster is the well disciplined if ever so somewhat brash CO temporarily turned XO to make way for the troubled Gable, the skipper with a score to settle. There are others here, but will refrain from listing them. There are no bad performances here, just as there are no over the top moments so prevalent in today's films.

The flaws; first, the special effects. The technology of the time shows itself with the models on the screen. They get their point across, and that's about all we can ask for. Dated, but functional. We of course understand this, and nod at the effort. Ditto with some of the front screen projection work. Again, we acknowledge the period of film making.

The other "flaw" one might cite is the music. It too comes from a period when the industry sensationalized all aspects of the film, and before certain modern musical trends and sensibilities were introduced. It's very traditional. No chances are taken with the music.

All in all an excellent sub-genre film (no-pun intended) of the war film. Some very minor technical flubs that even WW2 aficionados might miss, but should probably forgive. There are also some film particulars that experts should forgive, for they were stylistic choices for the sake of abbreviating both film and the tale it tells.

If you're a younger movie fan, give it a chance.

If you saw this in the theatre, or grew up watching it rebroadcast in the 70s, then pick up a copy.

Definitely one to see.

Enjoy.