Run Silent Run Deep (1958)

A U.S. sub commander, obsessed with sinking a certain Japanese ship, butts heads with his first officer and crew.

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

John Gay (screenplay), Edward L. Beach (based on novel by) (as Commander Edward L. Beach)

Stars:

Clark Gable, Burt Lancaster, Jack Warden

1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Clark Gable	...	Cmdr. 'Rich' Richardson
Burt Lancaster	...	Lt. Jim Bledsoe
Jack Warden	...	Yeoman 1st Class Mueller
Brad Dexter	...	Ens. Gerald Cartwright
Don Rickles	...	Quartermaster 1st Class Ruby
Nick Cravat	...	Russo
Joe Maross	...	Chief Kohler
Mary LaRoche	...	Laura Richardson
Eddie Foy III	...	Larto
Rudy Bond	...	Sonarman 1st Class Cullen

Storyline

The captain of a submarine sunk by the Japanese during WWII is finally given a chance to skipper another sub after a year of working a desk job. His singleminded determination for revenge against the destroyer that sunk his previous vessel puts his new crew in unneccessary danger.

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Plot Keywords:

submarine movie | submarine | submarine crew | captain tyrannical | war at sea | 

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Taglines:

In all the seven seas never two like these!

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Genres:

Action | Drama | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

Eight actors in this movie would be future stars in Rod Serling's The Twilight Zone. Jack Warden, Don Rickles, Joe Maross, Mary LaRoche, Ken Lynch, HM Wynant, Nick Cravat and John Close.

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Goofs

In the early part of the film where Lancaster meets Gable, who is pruning a tree, in the background you see the same half dozen cars driving back and forth constantly. Amongst the vehicles appears to be a '49 Buick convertible.

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Quotes

Lt. Jim Bledsoe: If you should fail, and somehow come out of this alive, there won't be a desk small enough for you this time.
Commander Richardson: That's strange, Jim. I never even thought of failing.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits: "Bungo Straits Near the Coast of Japan 1942"

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Connections

Referenced in Married... with Children: Married... with Who (1991)

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Soundtracks

It's Been a Long, Long Time
(uncredited)
Music by Jule Styne
Played on Tokyo Rose's radio broadcasts to American ships

User Reviews

Wartime clash of the titans...Gable and Lancaster...

A submarine story that sticks to a simple "clash of wills" storyline without the inclusion of sub-plots and worn-out clichés that existed in so many WWII war stories is RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP. It proves without a doubt that CLARK GABLE and BURT LANCASTER were not only genuine classic stars but extremely good actors when given a solid script. And under Robert Wise's no nonsense direction, the cast of submarine sailors delivers the goods in realistic fashion, avoiding the sort of stereotypes often seen in these kind of war stories.

The main action involves Gable's revenge motif. He's like a Captain Ahab, fervently determined to sink the Japanese destroyer that took the lives of his former crew members a year earlier, just as Ahab ran after the whale. His motives are questioned by the man originally selected to be Captain, his second in command Burt Lancaster. It's the clash of wills between these strong personalities that gives the film its punch and keeps the situation tense and taut until the final battle.

Franz Waxman's score is almost non-existent, one of the chief shortcomings for me, as I always expect great things from Waxman. Here he opted for silence on the soundtrack when the situations get tense, as when the depth charges are sinking to the bottom of the ocean, barely missing the submarine. Perhaps this was a wise decision, since the sounds we do hear are those the sailors aboard the sub are experiencing while waiting tensely in their claustrophobic surroundings.

It's an admirable war film, graced by two excellent performances from Gable and Lancaster, both convincing in their display of authority and command. Although models are used in the battle scenes, all of the action looks very realistic thanks to some excellent B&W photography. Kudos to Robert Wise for keeping the whole story brisk and supercharged.

It never drags for a moment, as some of the other big wartime movies like DESTINATION TOKYO did. The script is taut and concise without resorting to any arbitrary love interest or humorous shenanigans which would have weakened the drama--and it's all told in a tense running time of 94 minutes.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

27 March 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

Run Silent, Run Deep

Filming Locations:

Salton Sea, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hecht-Hill-Lancaster Productions, Jeffrey Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1