peter-woodhart Although this film was made more than 60 years ago, it is in my opinion the best war film ever made. It 's dramatic understatement is brilliant film-making. Notice how often characters are allowed to move away from the camera and have a conversation that you are not privileged to listen to. It's a pity today's directors don't use this technique to create tension and mystery. It also portrays a world that has almost vanished in just one lifetime. Notice how in the early bar scene of the enlisted men and non-Com's, the youngest sailors are only allowed to drink a small beer or milk! Self sacrifice and duty permeate the whole film. The scene when General McArthy leaves the Phillapines is particularly stirring. I cannot recommend this film highly enough!

Ronnie Spencer this is an unexpected treat especially if seen projected. one of the best combat films shot during world war two. Robert Montgomery and duke Morrison give memorable performances as PT boat captains doing battle in and around the former US colony known as the Philippine islands. rear screen projection is only reverted to, well, when there's a close shot of either the duke or bob. other than that, the boats and the camera are in the water. john ford produced this minor classic for MGM. as in all ford films there is a dance sequence. here it's shot in shadow time. very evocative. did Gregg Toland lens the picture? Donna Reed, Ward Bond Jack Holt, Cameron Mitchell and Louis Jean Heydt offer support.

The Mick 7 Yankee Fan This is a great character study of those who were basically in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's all about a PT Boat squadron in the South Pacific at the outbreak of WWII. John Wayne, Robert Montgomery and Donna Reed head a great cast in this moving drama. This is about what war can do to people lives, people like you and me and the drastic decisions that have to be made in order to survive. It's about the military chain of command and what it's like to be near the bottom of that chain. Finally it has everything to do with how terrible war is and the ultimate price that must be paid for freedom.The Duke, as always, leads the charge while Ward Bond and the usual John Wayne crew fill in the balance of the story. Then of course there is Donna Reed, the Duke's love interest. She is beautiful, strong willed and a reminder that even in war everyone is expendable.This is without a doubt a great movie.

tavm After so many years of reading about this fictionalized filmed account of the events of American sailors dealing with the invasion of Japanese forces in the Phillipine peninsula, I finally watched They Were Expendable on VHS today. With John Ford as director, we see a fine drama of the struggles after Pearl Harbor of the Navy men trying to stay one step ahead of what they referred to as the Japs during their maritime missions of battle. Robert Montgomery and John Wayne play the superior officers put in charge of many young men not quite trained for the enemy attacks though they pull ahead with their best foot forward, anyway. While quite serious, there are some subtle humorous touches not to mention a slightly touching romance between Wayne and Donna Reed as a nurse that effectively pulls at the heartstrings down to hearing Ward Bond and many of his shipmates sing in accompaniment while Ms. Reed, Wayne, and many of the officers have a quiet dinner in a tent. In fact, part of the time, I couldn't help thinking of a similar scene in my favorite movie-It's a Wonderful Life-when Bond also accompanied with Frank Faylen on the song "I Love You Truly" as Ms. Reed and Jimmy Stewart were kissing on their honeymoon! And the battle scenes were some of the most exciting at the time. So on that note, They Were Expendable comes highly recommended.