They Were Expendable (1945)

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Approved
2h 15min
Drama, War
31 Dec 1945 (USA)
Movie

7.2 (9,261)

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A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.

Directors:

John Ford, Robert Montgomery

Writers:

Stars:

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars.
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Reviews:

Photos and Videos

The PT boat unit Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three defends the Philippines from Japanese invasion during World War II.

Still of John Wayne (I) and Robert Montgomery (I) in They Were Expendable (1945)

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106 photos | 1 video

Cast verified as complete

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	Robert Montgomery	...	Lt. John Brickley (as Robert Montgomery Comdr. U.S.N.R.)
	John Wayne	...	Lt. (J.G.) 'Rusty' Ryan
	Donna Reed	...	Lt. Sandy Davyss
	Jack Holt	...	Gen. Martin
	Ward Bond	...	'Boats' Mulcahey C.B.M.
	Marshall Thompson	...	Ens. 'Snake' Gardner
	Paul Langton	...	Ens. 'Andy' Andrews
	Leon Ames	...	Maj. James Morton
	Arthur Walsh	...	Seaman Jones
	Donald Curtis	...	Lt. (J.G.) 'Shorty' Long / Radio Announcer
	Cameron Mitchell	...	Ens. George Cross
	Jeff York	...	Ens. Tony Aiken
	Murray Alper	...	'Slug' Mahan T.M. 1c
	Harry Tenbrook	...	'Squarehead' Larsen SC 2c
	Jack Pennick	...	'Doc'
	Alex Havier	...	'Benny' Lecoco ST 3c
	Charles Trowbridge	...	Adm. Blackwell
	Robert Barrat	...	The General
	Bruce Kellogg	...	Elder Tompkins M.M. 2c
	Tim Murdock	...	Ens. Brant
	Louis Jean Heydt	...	'Ohio'
	Russell Simpson	...	'Dad' Knowland
	Vernon Steele	...	Army Doctor
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
	Pedro de Cordoba	...	Priest (scenesDeleted)
	Philip Ahn	...	Army Orderly (uncredited)
	Steve Barclay	...	Naval Officer (uncredited)
	Bill Barnum	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Betty Blythe	...	Officer's Wife (uncredited)
	Danny Borzage	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Al Bridge	...	Lieutenant Colonel (uncredited)
	George Bruggeman	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Charles Calhoun	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	James Carlisle	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	John Carlyle	...	Lt. James (uncredited)
	Jack Carrington	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Bruce Carruthers	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Tony Carson	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Jack Cheatham	...	Commander (uncredited)
	Fred Coby	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Roger Cole	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Jane Crowley	...	Officer's Wife (uncredited)
	Henry H. Daniels Jr.	...	Sailor (uncredited)
	William B. Davidson	...	Hotel Manager (uncredited)
	Marjorie Davies	...	Nurse (uncredited)
	Patrick Davis	...	Pilot (uncredited)
	Gary Delmar	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Larry Dods	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Ernest Dominguez	...	Filipino Boy (uncredited)
	Frank Donahue	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	William 'Red' Donahue	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	George Economides	...	Bartender's Child (uncredited)
	Michael Economides	...	Bartender's Child (uncredited)
	Blake Edwards	...	Boat Crewman (uncredited)
	Frank Eldredge	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	John Epper	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Jim Farley	...	(uncredited)
	Charles Ferguson	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Leonard Fisher	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Lee Tong Foo	...	Asian Bartender (uncredited)
	Art Foster	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Almeda Fowler	...	Officer's Wife (uncredited)
	Mary Jane French	...	Lost Nurse (uncredited)
	Jon Gilbreath	...	'Snuffy' Submarine Commander (uncredited)
	James Gonzalez	...	Sailor (uncredited)
	Duke Green	...	PT-41 Boat Starboard Torpedoman (uncredited)
	Sherry Hall	...	Marine Major (uncredited)
	Stuart Hall	...	Bar Patron (uncredited)
	Del Hill	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Robert Homans	...	Bartender at Manila Hotel (uncredited)
	Vincent Isla	...	Filipino Schoolteacher (uncredited)
	Dick Karl	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Michael Kirby	...	Boat Crewman (uncredited)
	Michael Kostrick	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Paul Kruger	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Stubby Kruger	...	Boat Crewman (uncredited)
	Jack Lee	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Donald S. Lewis	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Jack Lorenz	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Leota Lorraine	...	Officer's Wife (uncredited)
	Trina Lowe	...	Gardner's Girlfriend (uncredited)
	Jack Luden	...	Naval Air Captain (uncredited)
	Ted Lundigan	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	James Magill	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	George Magrill	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Eve March	...	Nurse (uncredited)
	Maurice Marks	...	Soldier (uncredited)
	Kermit Maynard	...	Airport Officer (uncredited)
	Merrill McCormick	...	Wounded Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Frank McGrath	...	'Slim' - Bearded CPO (uncredited)
	Leonard Mellin	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Robert Milasch	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
	Karl Miller	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Henry Mirelez	...	Filipino Boy (uncredited)
	Margaret Morton	...	Bartender's Wife (uncredited)
	Jack Mower	...	Officer (uncredited)
	Charles Murray Jr.	...	Jeep Driver (uncredited)
	Forbes Murray	...	Navy Captain (uncredited)
	Bill Neff	...	Submarine Skipper / Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Bill Nind	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Wedgwood Nowell	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Robert Emmett O'Connor	...	Silver Dollar Bartender (uncredited)
	Max Ong	...	Mayor of Cebu (uncredited)
	Franklin Parker	...	Naval Officer (uncredited)
	Frank Pershing	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Nino Pipitone Jr.	...	Bartender's Child (uncredited)
	Dan Quigg	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Robert Shelby Randall	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Clifford Rathjen	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Joey Ray	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	William McKeever Riley	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Jack Ross	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	John Roy	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Harold Schlickenmayer	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Phil Schumacher	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Ernest Seftig	...	Naval Officer (uncredited)
	Jack Semple	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Brent Shugar	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Sam Simone	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Reginald Simpson	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Leslie Sketchley	...	Marine Orderly (uncredited)
	Ralph Soncuya	...	Filipino Orderly (uncredited)
	Les Stanford	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Larry Steers	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Sammy Stein	...	Sammy - Boat Crewman (uncredited)
	Jack Stoney	...	Boat Crew Member (uncredited)
	Robert Strong	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Bob Thom	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Roy Thomas	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Richard Thorne	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Pacita Tod-Tod	...	Nightclub Singer (uncredited)
	Brad Towne	...	Man in Admiral's Office (uncredited)
	Jack Trent	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	Tom Tyler	...	Captain at Airport (uncredited)
	Emmett Vogan	...	Naval Doctor (uncredited)
	Eleanore Vogel	...	Officer's Wife (uncredited)
	Hansel Warner	...	Officer at Airport (uncredited)
	William Wilkerson	...	Sgt. Smith (uncredited)
	Roque Ybarra Jr.	...	Bartender's Child (uncredited)

Directed by

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John Ford	...	(as John Ford Captain U.S.N.R.)
Robert Montgomery	...	(uncredited)

Written by

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William L. White	...	(book)

Frank Wead	...	(screenplay) (as Frank Wead Comdr. U.S.N. {Ret})

Norman Corwin	...	() (uncredited)

George Froeschel	...	() (uncredited)

Jan Lustig	...	(screenplay) (uncredited)

Produced by

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John Ford	...	producer
Cliff Reid	...	associate producer

Music by

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Herbert Stothart

...

(musical score)

Cinematography by

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Joseph H. August

...

director of photography (as Joseph H. August Lt. Comdr. U.S.N.R.)

Editing by

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Douglass Biggs
Frank E. Hull

Art Direction by

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Malcolm Brown
Cedric Gibbons

Set Decoration by

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Edwin B. Willis

...

(set decorations)

Costume Design by

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Yvonne Wood

...

(uncredited)

Makeup Department

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Jack Dawn	...	makeup creator
Sam Palo	...	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management

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Gilbert Kurland

...

unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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James Curtis Havens	...	second units director (as James C. Havens Captain U.S.M.C.R.)
Edward O'Fearna	...	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department

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Ralph S. Hurst	...	associate set decorator
Neil Wheeler	...	props (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Douglas Shearer	...	recording director
James Z. Flaster	...	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
Lowell Kinsall	...	unit mixer (uncredited)
Robert Shirley	...	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
Newell Sparks	...	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
William Steinkamp	...	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)
Michael Steinore	...	sound effects (uncredited)
John A. Williams	...	re-recording and effects mixer (uncredited)

Special Effects by

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A. Arnold Gillespie	...	special effects
Donald Jahraus	...	special effects (uncredited)
R.A. MacDonald	...	special effects (uncredited)

Visual Effects by

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Mark Davis	...	matte paintings camera (uncredited)
Donald Jahraus	...	miniatures assistant (uncredited)
Warren Newcombe	...	matte paintings (uncredited)

Stunts

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Duke Green	...	stunts (uncredited)
Maurice Marks	...	stunts (uncredited)
Frank McGrath	...	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Stoney	...	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department

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Emillo Calori	...	assistant camera (uncredited)
Herbert Fischer	...	second camera operator (uncredited)
Vic Jones	...	gaffer (uncredited)
Harrold Weinberger	...	first assistant camera (uncredited)

Music Department

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Harold Byrns	...	orchestrator (uncredited)
Alberto Colombo	...	composer: additional music (uncredited)
Murray Cutter	...	orchestrator (uncredited)
Wally Heglin	...	orchestrator (uncredited)
Frederick Herbert	...	music mixer (uncredited)
M.J. McLaughlin	...	music mixer (uncredited)
Eric Zeisl	...	composer: stock music (uncredited)

Script and Continuity Department

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John Banse

...

script clerk (uncredited)

Additional Crew

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Robert Montgomery	...	director: rear projection plates (uncredited)
Gladys Norvell	...	assistant research director (uncredited)
George Richelavie	...	research director (uncredited)
Ernest Seftig	...	technical advisor (uncredited)

Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (controlled by Loew's Incorporated)

Distributors

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Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1945) (United States) (theatrical) (as Metro Goldwyn Mayer)
Regal Films (1945) (Canada) (theatrical) (as Regal Films, Ltd.)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1945) (United Kingdom) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1945) (Australia) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1946) (Argentina) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1946) (Sweden) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1948) (Belgium) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1949) (France) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1956) (West Germany) (theatrical)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (1956) (Austria) (theatrical)
MGM Home Entertainment (1986) (United States) (VHS)
MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1990) (United States) (VHS) (Black-and-White version)
MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1990) (United States) (VHS) (Colorized version)
France 3 (1988) (France) (tv) (dubbed version)
MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (United States) (VHS)
MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1992) (United States) (video) (laserdisc)
MGM Home Entertainment (1994) (United States) (VHS)
MGM Home Entertainment (1998) (United States) (VHS)
MGM Home Entertainment (1999) (United States) (DVD)
MGM Home Entertainment (1999) (United States) (VHS)
Warner Home Video (2000) (United States) (DVD)
Warner Home Video (2000) (United States) (VHS)
Warner Home Video (2005) (United States) (DVD)
Warner Home Video (2006) (United States) (DVD)
Warner Home Video (2007) (Germany) (DVD)
Warner Home Video (2007) (Switzerland) (DVD)
Warner Home Video (2016) (United States) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
HanseSound (2022) (Germany) (Blu-ray)
HanseSound (2022) (Germany) (DVD)

Special Effects

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Other Companies

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United States Navy (we hereby tender our deep appreciation to, whose splendid cooperation made this production possible)
U.S. Army (we hereby tender our deep appreciation to, whose splendid cooperation made this production possible)
United States Coast Guard (we hereby tender our deep appreciation to, whose splendid cooperation made this production possible)
U.S. Office of Strategic Services (we hereby tender our deep appreciation to, whose splendid cooperation made this production possible)
American Film Technologies (colorization)

Storyline

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Plot Summary	In the wake of Pearl Harbor's surprise attack, World War II hero, Lt. John Brickley's experimental squadron of agile fast-attack Patrol Torpedo boats is sent to warm and humid Manila to avert a potentially imminent Japanese invasion. As he and his second-in-command, Lieutenant "Rusty" Ryan, desperately try to prove the newly-founded naval unit's worth, the enemy launches a devastating all-out attack--and despite the PT boat flotilla's undeniable success--the considerably outnumbered and outgunned American soldiers are fighting a losing battle. Little by little, the Philippine campaign is doomed to cave in, as comrades-in-arms perish in the sea. Is there glory in defeat? Written by Nick Riganas Plot Summary Plot Synopsis
Plot Keywords	taking-off-pants reference-to-franklin-d.-roosevelt mash-unit u.s.-military american-colony See All (100) »
Taglines	A Spine-Tingling Thundering Saga Of The Sea! See more »
Genres	Drama War
Parents Guide	View content advisory »
Certification	Argentina:13 Australia:G Canada:G (video rating) Finland:K-12 France:Tous publics Italy:T Norway:7 (recommended rating) Norway:12 (cinema rating) South Korea:All South Korea:15 Sweden:15 United Kingdom:A United Kingdom:U (video rating) United States:Approved United States:Passed (The National Board of Review) West Germany:12 (f)

Additional Details

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Also Known As	Les sacrifiés (France) Schnellboote vor Bataan (Germany) No eran imprescindibles (Spain) Nosotros fuimos los sacrificados (Spain) 菲律宾浴血战 (China, Mandarin title) See more »
Runtime	135 min
Official Sites	Official site
Country	United States
Language	English
Color	Black and White
Aspect Ratio	1.37 : 1 See more »
Sound Mix	Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Filming Locations	Key Biscayne, Florida, USA See more »

Did You Know?

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Trivia	Robert Montgomery was a real-life PT skipper in World War 2. He helped direct some of the PT sequences for the film after John Ford broke his leg three weeks into filming. Montgomery finished the film and was complimented by Ford for his work. Ford claimed he couldn't tell the difference between his footage and Montgomery's, who took no screen credit. See more »
Goofs	A frame at the end of the movie said, "We shall return - General Douglas MacArthur". In fact, the White House tried to get the general to change his famous quote to "we" but he refused, saying he failed to see the purpose. It should read, "I shall return." See more »
Movie Connections	Edited into Malaya (1949). See more »
Soundtracks	The Monkeys Have No Tails in Zamboanga See more »
Crazy Credits	Closing quote: "We Shall Return" Douglas MacArthur, General of the Army See more »
Quotes	Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: [as they watch the inspectors drive away] Wonderful the way people believe in those high powered canoes of yours. Lt. John Brickley: Don't you believe in them, Rusty? Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: And I let you sell me that stuff about a command of my own. Lt. John Brickley: You're skipper of the 34 boat, aren't you? Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: I used to skipper a cake of soap in the bathtub, too. [He walks off] See more »

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