Operation Pacific (1951)

Director: George Waggner
Starring: John Wayne, Patricia Neal, Ward Bond

Synopsis:
The XO of a submarine tries to reconcile with his ex-wife amid increasingly difficult patrols and technical challenges like faulty torpedoes.

Impressions:
This is a decent submarine movie that has a lot in common with war films of the period. Depending on your tastes, the romantic subplot either adds some emotional roundness to the story or it's a distraction from the main event. John Wayne is pretty good here as Commander Gifford, as is Patricia Neal as Gifford's ex-wife. Going back to the romantic subplot, if you like it, you may think it wasn't given enough development and if you don't, you'll probably think it took up too much of the screentime. Because the film is a pastiche of different real-life events, the narrative may not feel as cohesive as a single story should be, but I suppose it's fine if you think of it as a series of vignettes in the Thunderfish's career. If you like John Wayne and/or WWII movies, this isn't a bad choice.

Rating:
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