Minesweeper

Early B-movie WWII movies were foten hard to watch and not worth the time. Having said that, they do give our historical view of what everyone was thinking at the beginning of the WWII.

Notable as it was one of the only U. S. Naval movies about minesweepers, but it didn't go over much of the detail of daily naval duties. The diving was interesting but not much detail either.

The version I saw on TV was very dark, even with exterior scenes or were they also shot in the studio? And with poor sound so either a poor copy, many around it seems, or the film has degraded over the many years.

Not as good as expected as we could have done with seeing more of the training and more mine sweeping work. There was no explanation as to how the sweeping was actually organised, a serrated cable between two boats? This film probably did the job at the time as a flag waver and it would have been an acceptable offering in 1943.

One of the poorer film made during the war as a morale booster.

One might think a movie entitled "Minesweeper" would be a war film, but instead its billed as an action, adventure and comedy film. It does have those elements, to the extent that it is quite a mixed bag. But, of course it is a war movie, because it's all about Navy men who serve on a minesweeper at one of the California coastal port cities during World War II. It's most likely San Diego or Long Beach from which convoys sailed to the Pacific theater.

One reason it may not have been played up as a war film, right in the middle of war, was because it wasn't the type of war duty most people imagined or associated with war time. And, the film itself, with its milieu, doesn't seem to have the feel of a war film. Reflecting on this, it occurred to me that not many men or women in wartime service were able to stay at and go home to mom's house for home-cooked meals.

Most sailors were either at sea or based at a foreign port sailing on combat missions. Most Army and Marine GIs were either on the ground in combat units or in command and supply posts supporting them. Most Army Air Corps members were assigned at European or Pacific bases and commands that were flying combat or bombing missions. These countless numbers of military people were far from their homes.

Aside from that, this film is a modest look at a small service of the Navy that was important for keeping American ports open and protecting convoys and Navy ships from mines. But, this clearly is a B movie. It was one of just 80 films made by Pine-Thomas Productions between 1940 And 1957. It was filmed at Catalina Island and the Paramount studios. The film quality and production values are second-tier, and the screenplay and story are just so-so.

Richard Arlen stars as Richard Houston, under an alias of Jim Smith. Arlen was about midway in his career. After starting with some promise as a leading man in silent films, when sound came on and a crop of handsome and talented new actors began appearing in the early 1930s, Arlen was increasingly relegated to B films. I've seen a couple in which his is quite good, but in this film he seems flat and dull. Some of the cast are good and others seem wooden. The best performance is by Guinn Williams who plays 'Fixit' Smith. This is one of the meatier roles this long-time supporting player had in the more than 220 films he made.

Look for Robert Mitchum in an uncredited role. He plays Seaman Chuck Ryan who rows a boat out to a mine so that another seaman can cut it loose from being tangled in their minesweepers tow. The mine blows up and Mitchum's scene is a wrap.

Probably the only people who will like this film will be military veterans and those interested in all aspects of war in movies.

"Minesweeper" is a somewhat melodramatic but interesting World War II drama that has a pretty good story and that also takes a look at one of the less familiar aspects of the war. There are also some moments of real suspense and tension. The print that aired recently was unfortunately not very good, so viewing it involves accepting some distractions, but it has a number of points of interest to compensate.

Richard Arlen stars as a naval officer who had deserted a few years before the war, but who finds himself drawn back to the Navy when the war breaks out. Helped by a friendly family, he assumes a new identity and re-enlists under his new name. Throughout the action that follows, he is faced with numerous dangerous missions, while also living in constant fear that his true identity will be discovered. He also finds himself involved in romantic complications. It all builds up to a climactic sequence of events that, while rather melodramatic, is action-packed and rather surprising.

Arlen's ship is a minesweeper, and the film incorporates some interesting details on the job that such ships had to do in keeping shipping lanes and harbors free of mines. The hazards involved also lead to some rather tense moments of drama.

The movie is not too long, and moves fairly quickly. It should hold some interest for most fans of old war movies.

This is the story of a man who tries to make amends for past misdeeds in the service by reenlisting under another name, and whose experience in the service gives him an edge in the disarming of water mines.

It is a well written story, with interesting characters all around, including the minor ones. Everything is very believable, not just by film standards, but by normal standards.

However, I gave this only a ranking of 6, which is still above average, because for me it was painful viewing. It is not because of a bad story, but because it shows the pain involved with gambling addiction in a true light, which means it will be difficult to watch. This is still quality work, and if you aren't afraid of the pain, this may be the film for you.