The Long Voyage Home
(1940)
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The clouds of World War II are looming in this tense drama. John Wayne plays a young Swede aboard a cargo ship, where the threat of mortal danger evokes fear, loneliness and suspicion amongst the volatile crew. |
This near masterpiece from director John Ford was scripted by Stagecoach's Dudley Nichols from four one-act seafaring plays by Eugene O'Neill, and it bears that satisfying streak of grim melancholy that typifies the finest work of one of America's greatest writers. Although the film is relentlessly studio bound, the magnificent photography of Gregg Toland (Citizen Kane) captures the dangerous atmosphere as a freighter transports a cargo of dynamite across the Atlantic during the Second World War. Top billed is John Wayne, playing a Swedish merchant seaman, accent and all, and he's backed up by an extremely effective all-male supporting cast. This movie was said to be O'Neill's favourite film — Ford gave him a copy and the playwright allegedly wore it out through repeated screenings.
Halliwell's Film Guide
Stagey-looking but dramatically interesting amalgam of four one-act plays by Eugene O'Neill, with talent abounding.