They Were Expendable (1945), - 8pm est
Posted on 04/23/2014 9:49:51 AM PDT by Vision
This is your Turner Classic Movie channel alert!
Tonight...They Were Expendable (1945)), 8pm est
"A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II."
Overview & Cast
Forgot to mention that Robert Montgomery served on PT boats during WWII as well!
What? No ones mentioned the greatest naval hero of the war? PT-109? /s
My dvr is working overtime on TCM this week recording all the Duke movies (outside Rio Bravo and El Dorado).
I hope it is not the colorised version. The black and white version makes you think the movie was filmed in the Philippines instead of Southern California.
There is a scene where the commander pays a great compliment and takes Robert Montgomery into his confidence using a baseball analogy that this is a situation where a ballplayer is sometimes called upon to lay down a sacrifice for the team, saying in so many words the situation is hopeless but they have to fight on to buy time.
Excellent movie. full length and commerical free. Robert Montgomery served as a PT boat commander in the South Pacific during WWII.
Good Movie and cast!!!
Good swimmer.
I wish they would spread out the special movie series. “The Searchers” went off this morning about 0300!
This is also a good movie. Someone should make one about Wendell Fertig though. That would be a great movie story.
Thanks for the ping.
For me the best scene is the one where Montgomery has assembled his men and is explaining the disposition of their boats by releasing them to the Army and they would now have to fight as infantry under Army command. Montgomery is clearly anguished because he has orders to abandon his men, and that sorrow is revealed by the timbre of his voice. The camera pans over the faces of the men as Montgomery regretfully admonishes the grizzled vets to look out for the “kids.” Montgomery’s acting is brilliantly understated but leaves no doubt as to his love for and concern for his men. The scene is all the more poignant when you realize that Montgomery had been awarded the Silver Star as a veteran of destroyers and PT Boats in the war.
This movie was one of the most loving elegys and tributes to the American fighting man that has ever been done, and would never be produced in the same adulatory and respectful manner by the depraved bunch in todays Hollywood.
I totally agree with your comments. Montgomery gave an outstanding performance because he wasn’t performing - that’s how he would have handled such a dreadful situation based on his own Navy experience and he showed just how he would have felt about it. It really is one of the best war movies ever.
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