Columbia Pictures
Not part of a collection.
Destroyer
You'll Always Remember . . . And Never Forget . . . Destroyer
Flagwaving story of a new American destroyer, the JOHN PAUL JONES, from the day her keel is laid, to what was very nearly her last voyage. Among the crew, is Steve Boleslavski, a shipyard welder that helped build her, who reenlists, with his old rank of Chief bosuns mate. After failing her sea trials, she is assigned to the mail run, until caught up in a disparate battle with a Japanese sub. After getting torpedoed, and on the verge of sinking, the Captain, and crew hatch a plan to try and save the ship, and destroy the sub.
- Original title
- Destroyer
- Language
- EN
- Country
- US
- Budget
- —
- Revenue
- —
CinemaSerf
Apr 4, 2022 · via TMDB
It's really just a bit of wartime propaganda this - extolling the sterling efforts of the US Navy destroyer. From the build, through it's launch and maritime trials, this film follows "Boley" (Edward G. Robinson) who served on the last "USS John Paul Jones" and is determined to serve on this one. That determination causes upset with the younger "Donohue" (Glenn Ford) who is bumped of that gig - and the two men just don't get along. "Donohue" takes up with the older man's daughter "Mary" (Marguerite Chapman) and that just adds to their tensions. At sea - where this film spends nowhere near enough time - the ship has more than a few teething problems and the crew start to think more of "Boley" as a Jonah. Of course, it can't end that way - we know that the first half hour is merely a preamble to some rousing sea action from their beleaguered vessel. Were it to have been more of an adventure film, then I would probably have enjoyed it better, but it's really not much of anything. Ford doesn't impose himself at all, and though Robinson has a pugnacity to his character, the message just sort of gets lost in the weakly directed and written delivery. Fair-to-middling.
User reviews courtesy of TMDB.
Edward G. Robinson
Steven 'Boley' Boleslavski
Glenn Ford
Mickey Donohue
Edgar Buchanan
Kansas Jackson
Marguerite Chapman
Mary Boleslavski
Regis Toomey
Lt. Cmdr. Clark
Warren Ashe
Lt. Bert Marton
Leo Gorcey
Seaman Sarecky
Edward Brophy
Engineer Casey
Eddy Waller
Marty, a riveter
Roger Clark
Chief Engineer
Curt Bois
Swab with large nose
Kenneth MacDonald
Admiral (Clark's CO)
Charles D. Brown
Doctor, finding Boley unfit for further sea duty
Cliff Clark
Commandant
Richard Loo
Japanese Submarine Commander
Benson Fong
Japanese Sonar Man
Lloyd Bridges
2nd Fireman (uncredited)
Tristram Coffin
Doctor #1 (uncredited)
Bud Geary
2nd Ship Fitter (uncredited)
Eddie Hall
Austin (uncredited)
Charles McGraw
Assistant Chief Engineer (uncredited)
Milburn Stone
Radioman (uncredited)
Dennis Moore
Communications Officer (uncredited)
Larry Parks
Ens. Johnson (uncredited)
Shirley Patterson
Bigbee's Girl (uncredited)
Gene Rizzi
Survivor (uncredited)
Dean Benton
Moore
Lynton Brent
Doctor
Stanley Brown
Marine / Fireman
Eddy Chandler
Chief Gunner's Mate
Edmund Cobb
1st Workman
Eddie Dew
Survivor
Lester Dorr
1st Ship Fitter
Al Hill
Knife-Eating Sailor
David Holt
Sobbing Sailor
Bobby Jordan
Sobbing Sailor
Mauritz Hugo
Survivor
George Magrill
Marine
Robert McKenzie
Justice of the Peace
Frank Melton
Doctor
John Merton
Chief Quartermaster
Gertrude Messinger
Girl
Pat O'Malley
Postman
Mickey Rentschler
J.V. Talker
Addison Richards
Ship Building Foreman
Ronald R. Rondell
Survivor
Virginia Sale
Kansas' Dance Partner
Charles Sherlock
Chief Machinist's Mate
John Tyrrell
Marine
Dale Van Sickel
Sailor
Dorothy Vernon
Justice of the Peace's Wife
Pierre Watkin
Admiral
William A. Seiter
Director
Morris Stoloff
Music Director
Borden Chase
Screenplay
Lewis Meltzer
Screenplay
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