Fox never balked at plundering the Marine Hymn for titles - a few short years after this hit the screen they used the preceding line (From) The Halls of Montezuma, for an early Richard Widmark vehicle. There's little original here; playboy John Wayne enlists in the marine core shortly before Pearl Harbor so it's light on action. Payne's old man had served and remained friends with Randolph Scott and prevails upon him to whip son Payne into shape. Payne meanwhile falls heavily for nurse Maureen O'Hara (they co-starred in four films, including Miracle on 43nd Street) and helmer Bruce Humberstone gets a lot of mileage out of the on-again off-again affair. William Tracey scores heavily as does Harry Morgan in his movie debut. Watchable but that's about all.
Review of To the Shores of Tripoli
