Sunday, November 06, 2022

Tonight's Movie: Greyhound (2020)

I enjoyed the World War II film GREYHOUND (2020) as much as anything I've seen this year.

It's 1942, and Captain Krause (Tom Hanks) has his first navy command shepherding a convoy of ships from North America across the Atlantic. His destroyer, call sign "Greyhound," leads several other escort ships protecting troop ships, tankers, and supply ships.

The story particularly focuses on the perilous few days when the convoy is in the "pit" in the mid-Atlantic, too far from either the U.S. or England for air cover to protect them from German submarines.

Hanks also wrote the screenplay, based on C.S. Forester's novel THE GOOD SHEPHERD, and he did an outstanding job. It's not your typical war film, in that it's a "procedural" focusing on one man's point of view. Most of the film depicts the captain giving commands; I note that at least a couple of reviewers wanted to see a different movie, but I found the drama of making life and death decisions under duress, often based on limited information or guesswork, fascinating.

The theme of the loneliness of command called to mind one of my favorite World War II films, THE GALLANT HOURS (1960), a profile of Admiral Halsey, played by James Cagney. While THE GALLANT HOURS differs in its lack of battle scenes, in other respects the films are very much alike. Both movies have a "you are there" intimacy seeing events through the eyes of the commander, with little insight into surrounding characters.

GREYHOUND also called to mind bits and pieces of other favorites. The most obvious comparison is probably ACTION IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC (1943), a film about the heroism of the Merchant Marine and perilous convoys which was released during the heart of the war. THE ENEMY BELOW (1957), focused on a destroyer battling a U-boat in the Atlantic, also crossed my mind, as did COMMAND DECISION (1948), about the stress of leadership.

The technical aspects of fighting the war made me think of SINK THE BISMARCK! (1960), in which naval commanders in London moved markers around on a huge map as they received intelligence and plotted out plans. I learned after the movie ended that it just so happens that SINK THE BISMARCK! was based on a book by the same author, so the comparison turned out not to be accidental.

The final film I thought of while watching this was a favorite comedy, YOU'RE IN THE NAVY NOW (1951), depicting Gary Cooper in his first naval command. Although the films are very different in tone, the themes of the stresses of wartime promotion are quite similar.

One aspect of GREYHOUND I especially liked is the film's respectful depiction of the captain as a man of faith. He starts and ends the day kneeling in prayer, and the way he lives his faith is revealed in moments large and small, whether it's saying grace -- I loved the mess man (Rob Johnson) echoing his captain's "amen" -- or the way he clearly struggles with knowing his ship's survival means others must die.

I also very much appreciated the patience he showed with his crew despite his personal stress. A pair of men who've been brawling are simply instructed to make up, with the warning that hell will rain down on them if a fight happens again.

When a nervous young man blurts out incomplete information at a key moment, the captain could have yelled or cursed with impatience, but instead the captain steadily tells him "Remember your training" and what he needs to know, and from there on, the young sailor regroups and performs perfectly. That's true leadership. It made me think of yet one more WWII film, THE LONGEST DAY (1962), and the great scene where Robert Mitchum encourages a young soldier to retrieve his rifle, later saying "Good for you, son!"

Speaking of the fact he could have cursed, another consequence of the captain's faith is that the men actually try not to swear in his presence, and when they do, they apologize. I loved that that was not depicted as any sort of ironic joke, but in a serious and respectful way.

The film is rated PG-13, mostly for stressful battle scenes in which boats and submarines are sunk and lives are lost. In that regard it's not for young children.

Otherwise the film is relatively family-friendly compared to the typical release these days; in addition to very limited cursing, the film is not graphic, with only the very briefest glimpses of injured sailors. The story of men performing heroically while their lives are on the line is inspiring.

The movie is also unusual these days in that it's only 91 minutes -- and several minutes of that is the end credits. The dramatic action is closer to 80 minutes.

GREYHOUND was directed by Aaron Schneider and filmed by Shelly Johnson. The supporting cast includes Stephen Graham, Matt Helm, Craig Tate, Travis Quentin, and Jeff Burkes. Elisabeth Shue has a brief flashback scene as the captain's sweetheart.

GREYHOUND is currently available for streaming on Apple TV+. It does not appear to be available on Blu-ray or DVD at this writing. I very much hope it will be available on physical media in the future.

With the many callbacks to other war films, one might think GREYHOUND could be written off as derivative, but that aspect actually delighted me, as the film emulates some of the best things about other favorites. 

I'd also particularly note that out of the countless World War II films made during the war and since, relatively few focus with this level of depth on the experience of leadership, and GREYHOUND is a unique and valuable entry in the genre. Recommended.

11 Comments:

Blogger Jerry Entract said...

This sounds very much like a movie I would enjoy, Laura. Its whole tone sounds like the kind of film Tom Hanks likes to make (and I like to watch!). If it was ever shown over here on the big screen I missed it sadly but I will keep an eye out for it turning up on TV.

Another war film with a similar subject and treatment would be the Ealing Studio classic 1952 film "THE CRUEL SEA", one of the finest war films ever made IMHO. That starred the wonderful Jack Hawkins and was from a novel by Nicholas Monserrat. The loneliness and stress of command was the core of that film too.

It's always good to hear of a new film made for 'grown-ups' - few are.

11:23 PM  
Blogger DKoren said...

This is one I wanted to see when I first heard about it, but it hasn't crossed my path yet. I was very pleased to read this review. Definitely one I want to see even more now!

8:54 AM  
Blogger Margot Shelby said...

I'm a big fan of this movie. Highly recommended. In a good way a very old-fashioned movie.

Tom Hanks as an actor I can take of leave, but he was perfect in this role. He had the gravitas required of a captain commanding a battle ship.

The short length was another plus. 80-85 minutes was enough for the story to be told without useless padding and endless fillers.

12:20 PM  
Blogger Laura said...

Thank you all so much for your comments! I really enjoyed this and am glad you got to see it, Margot. I hope the rest of you have a chance to see it! I feel like you would all enjoy it, knowing your other film interests.

Jerry, thanks for the mention of THE CRUEL SEA. I recorded that from TCM quite some time ago (it's on a VHS tape!) but have yet to see it, simply due to "So many movies, so little time" syndrome.

Margot, I agree, it was really nice the movie wasn't pointlessly padded. I actually could have stood a couple more minutes of backstory on his romantic relationship -- I was curious that neither of them were attached at that point in their lives and it did add a bit of fleshing out Hanks' character. But at the time time, that information wasn't necessary so I guess they decided to give us a hint of his life prior to the command and leave it at that.

Best wishes,
Laura

9:45 AM  
Blogger Laura said...

PS These articles fill in a little more on Hanks' character and relationship from the book, along with book-to-film comparisons. (Those who have not seen the movie may want to wait to read these later.)

https://www.cinemablend.com/news/2549872/greyhound-ending-what-happened-and-what-it-means

https://slate.com/culture/2020/07/greyhound-world-war-ii-movie-accuracy-book-cs-forester.html

Best wishes,
Laura

9:50 AM  
Blogger Margot Shelby said...

Laura, thanks for the articles. I think they may be written for millennials though. It is made clear in the movie that Captain Krause has been passed over for command several times. On top of that I can't believe the following needs to be stated:

"Ernest Krause and his crew surviving the dangers of their transatlantic crossing. If you leave it at that, it’s a standard happy ending, and you can walk off happy....Taking place in February 1942, Greyhound happens towards the beginning of U.S. involvement in World War II. As such, there’s plenty of war ahead for the crew of the Keeling, and knowing how dangerous their duties depicted in the film were, there’s a good chance their losses won’t end there."

Really??? They need to explain that to people?? Good grief.

5:49 PM  
Blogger Laura said...

Exactly right, Margot. While I was interested in what I could glean about the original book, the way they state the obvious is kinda funny.

In fact, while feeling relief at the ending, the first thing I wondered as the film concluded was how future crossings would go for Krause and his crew and how many of them would ultimately survive their wartime service.

Best wishes,
Laura

7:22 PM  
Anonymous David Wyman said...

Thank you for taking such a great insightful view of this movie. We had a lot of fun and hard work making this movie. Technically it was a marvel considering we were never “at sea”. I was the production sound mixer and was honored with an Oscar Nomination for this work. Thank you for continuing to support movies in all their success and flops. Remember you work just as hard to make a good movie as a bad one!!!

8:22 PM  
Blogger Laura said...

David, what a delight to hear from someone who worked on the film! Thank you so much for the kind words and for taking the time to comment, and my thanks to you and everyone who worked on this. It's remarkable it was done without going "to sea," and unlike some recent films the wizardry isn't obvious.

I truly enjoyed GREYHOUND and know I will be watching it again in the future.

Thank you again!

Best wishes,
Laura

8:49 AM  
Blogger Vienna said...

Would like to see this. Wonder why it isnt out on dvd

12:12 AM  
Blogger Laura said...

Hi Vienna!

I suspect Apple is trying to lure people to subscribe to their streaming service by keeping the movie an "exclusive." I really hope they'll turn it loose one day - I'd like to own it to watch again and be able to lend it to my parents, etc.

Best wishes,
Laura

7:39 PM  

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