Operation Disaster

I first saw this movie at the time of its original release, & it has remained in my memory quite indelibly. Particularly as one of your submissions referred to the sinking of an actual British submarine at the time of the release of "morning departure". HMS "Truculent" was the name of that submarine & the nation was very somber, but I believe the the movie realistically brought home to the public what these submariners went through. My father had served in the Royal Navy during WWII on Destoyers & had his ship sunk under him while in the Mediterranean. So I appreciated the fine acting & portrayal of the courage of the men in the Royal Navy. John Mills always epitomized the character of the rolls he took & this was one of his best for me, except for maybe Scott of the Antartic, but that's another story.

This is quite an anxious wartime drama that goes some way to illustrating the perils faced by those in HM Submarine Service. John Mills is the captain "Armstrong" who takes his crew on a routine maritime patrol only for their gear to become ensnared in a mine cable. A suddens stop and reverse engines doesn't quite do the trick and to the bottom they go. Largely in one piece and not in such deep water, they are optimistic of rescue and, indeed, help arrives fairly sharpish allowing the first four of the twelve survivors to don their emergency gear and head to the surface. The sense of enclosure now builds as their air starts to thin, the first officer "Manson" (Nigel Patrick) becomes ill and we discover that "Snipe" (Richard Attenborough) only joined the service for the extra pay and he actually does suffer from claustrophobia. With four gone, its now the turn of the next four - but there is a snag. The damage from the explosion has ensured that these are the last four escape kits. A lottery needs to be held and that further raises the tension as those left behind will have to await the raising of the ship - and that's dependent on fair weather above! The story develops well here, with Mills (who did like snapping his fingers a lot in these roles!) working well with Patrick, an on form James Hayter as the cook and general dogsbody "Higgins" and Attenborough who really does present us with a plausible sensation of his panic at being shut up in this metal tube deep under the sea as well as the growing guilt he feels at the selfishness of his behaviour. The script marries a bit of dark humour with the accruing peril and Roy Baker keeps the pace taut for the duration of this rather more impactful story.

John Mills is superb as the indomitable submarine captain who leaves his wife and baby for a routine patrol. Richard Attenborough excels as the young sailor who cracks under pressure.

A wonderful film which may have started as a play. Well formed with portrayals which are both intimate and skilful. The "character" actors are enjoyable and colourful as the submarine sets sail, all leading to heightened drama when tragedy strikes.

If you like British black and white films about stiff upper lips and devotion to duty, you cannot do better.

God save the King.

A Rank production, with passable production quality and excellent acting. Much stock footage and a healthy amt. of rear projection, par for keeping costs down on Rank dramatic quickies. Since the screenplay was adapted from a play, its stage origins are still somewhat apparent. The performances of Mills, and a very young Attenborough, plus seemingly one-half the J.R. Rank stable of regulars are very good. The sets and costumes were surprisingly ratty--long in the tooth! Still, this is only a few years after the war, and things were still very hard-up in England. Ultimately, this is a "talker" and not an "actioner", and it does fairly well for all that, though not spectacularly so. The ending, to me, disappointed. I do recommend this for classic movie fans.

Morning Departure had a somewhat slow beginning but it quickly immerses you in the characters and their relationships with one another and with their duty. Whereas a lot of movies these days really try and make you care about the characters by the end of this movie your wondering if there is anything you could do at home to help them out! I actually saw this movie for the first time about 3 years ago but seriously rate this as my favorite movie to date when not influenced by current blockbusters.