Massachusetts fishing boat captain Pat Bannon (Dana Andrews) and his crew come across a derelict Danish sailing ship in the North Atlantic. The only person on board is the ship's captain Skalder (Claude Rains). He claims that a German u-boat attacked his ship in rough weather, and that the rest of his crew were either killed or abandoned ship. Bannon agrees to tow Skalder's boat back to port, but is there more to his story than he's letting on?
This is an entertaining wartime suspense film, with the first half playing like a whodunit mystery as Bannon (and the audience) tries to figure out what's really going on and who is on whose side. The second half is a well-executed thriller as those in the know try to evade detection and solve their new-found problems before it's too late. I'm being purposely vague, as the revelations are a big part of the movie's appeal. The cast is good, with the standout for me being Philip Dorn as a suspicious new crew member on Bannon's ship. This movie also marked the only time real-life brothers Dana Andrews and Steve Forrest appeared together.
This is an entertaining wartime suspense film, with the first half playing like a whodunit mystery as Bannon (and the audience) tries to figure out what's really going on and who is on whose side. The second half is a well-executed thriller as those in the know try to evade detection and solve their new-found problems before it's too late. I'm being purposely vague, as the revelations are a big part of the movie's appeal. The cast is good, with the standout for me being Philip Dorn as a suspicious new crew member on Bannon's ship. This movie also marked the only time real-life brothers Dana Andrews and Steve Forrest appeared together.