TOP 10 NAVY MOVIES OF ALL TIME!!!

June 22, 2001

As you may recall, my Memorial Day movie list did not have one World War II movie featuring the Navy on it. Not one!! (and as you can tell from the list below, there was good reason.) I've been so embarrassed -- well, lazy really -- that I haven't even posted the Memorial Day Movie List yet -- but I'm working on it! In a transparent attempt to curry favor , and as penance for my Memorial Day list cup here are the Top 10 Navy Movies of All Time (no Axis powers need apply):

	10.	Captain Horatio Hornblower (1951): Gregory Peck in his Gregory Peckishist. A fine retelling of three C. S. Forester stories packed together with style and panache. Fine sea battles, the English against the French, good vs. evil.
	9.	The Hunt for Red October (1990): Sean Connery , Scott Glenn, Sam Neill and the actor-who-cannot-be-named-on-a-Hugh-Hewitt-related-web-site star in this fine adventure tale of a Russian submarine commander's dramatic efforts to defect. Fine performances and good special effects in an excellent adaptation of the Tom Clancy novel.
	8.	The Bridges at Toko-Ri (1954): Joseph Timothy Cook's favorite movie of all time (there's no accounting for taste). William Holden plays a lawyer called back to active duty as a pilot during the Korean conflict, who is taken under the wing (get it?) of an admiral ably played by Frederic March. Uses its almost-unprecedented access to Navy materiel to fine advantage.
	7.	They Were Expendable (1945): What would a service-movie list be without a John Wayne picture? He stars with Robert Montgomery in this story of PT boat commanders trying to protect Manila Bay and the Philippines during World War II.
	6.	The Last Detail (1973): Not for those with ears of glass, but a fine film about the peace time Navy. Jack Nicholson stars as a salty sailor charged with the responsibility of bringing a dumb recruit convicted of burglary (wonderfully played by Randy Quaid in one of his first roles) to serve an eight year term in the brig. A movie in which the sailors, well, talk like sailors.
	5.	The Enemy Below (1957): Robert Mitchum stars as the commander of a Navy destroyer escort who plays a cat-and-mouse game with his German nemesis, Curt Jurgens, the commander of a German U-Boat. Great film with good suspense.
	4.	Mister Roberts (1955): A fine Navy comedy directed by John Ford (with some late-inning relief from Mervyn LeRoy). Henry Fonda (as Mister Roberts), James Cagney and Jack Lemmon (as Ensign Pulver, winner of Best Supporting Actor) headline a wonderful cast in this story of a Navy cargo ship during World War II. Still funny after all these years.
	3.	Navy Blue and Gold (1937): May not be the best Navy movie, but probably my favorite for its schmaltzy combination of military and college life. Robert Young and James Stewart star as plebes at the Naval Academy and teammates on the football team. A wonderful piece of fluff.
	2.	The Caine Mutiny (1954): Humphrey Bogart's second best movie, and maybe his best role, as the crazy -- or maybe just persecuted -- Captain Queeg. Well cast, well acted, well written adaptation of the Herman Wouk novel explores what happens when a generally-loyal crew begins to believe that their Captain truly is crazy. Jose Ferrer is great as the attorney defending the mutineer, and has the best soliloquy at the end.
	1.	Mutiny on the Bounty (1935): Okay, so it's not the American navy. It's my list, and I set the rules. A truly timeless movie starring Charles Laughton, one of the best (and least remembered) film actors of all time. His performance as Captain Henry Bligh is magnificent -- and Clark Gable ain't bad either. Winner of the Best Picture Oscar©, and deservedly so. If you haven't seen it, you should. There simply isn't a better portrayal of a master seaman than Laughton's version of Bligh.

Taking on water but limping into port: