Up Periscope (1959)

In 1942, Navy Lieutenant Kenneth Braden from the underwater demolition team is sent to a Japanese island to photograph secret radio codes.

Director:

Gordon Douglas

Writers:

Richard H. Landau (screenplay) (as Richard Landau), Robb White (novel)

Stars:

James Garner, Edmond O'Brien, Andra Martin

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Garner	...	Lt. J.G. Kenneth M. Braden
Edmond O'Brien	...	Commander Paul Stevenson
Andra Martin	...	Sally Johnson
Alan Hale Jr.	...	Lt. Pat Malone (as Alan Hale)
Carleton Carpenter	...	Lt. Phil Carney
Frank Gifford	...	Ensign Cy Mount
William Leslie	...	Lt. Doherty
Richard Bakalyan	...	Seaman Peck
Edd Byrnes	...	Pharmacist Mate Ash (as Edward Byrnes)
Sean Garrison	...	Seaman Floyd
Henry Kulky	...	Chief Petty Officer York

Storyline

Lieutenant Braden discovers that Sally, the woman he's been falling in love with, has actually been checking out his qualifications to be a U.S. Navy frogman. He must put his personal life behind him after being assigned to be smuggled into a Japanese-held island via submarine to photograph radio codes.

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Plot Keywords:

submarine | u.s. navy | secret mission | underwater | south pacific | 

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Taglines:

The Underwater Saboteur Who Hit Like No Man Hit Before!

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Romance | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a separately filmed trailer, James Garner talks to the audience about the film, and urges them to come see him on "the big screen".

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Goofs

Braden exits the sub at 4:00 AM to swim to shore, 500 yards away. This should have taken no more than 30 minutes (about the same time it took him to return to the sub.) Therefore, his arrival time would have been no later than 4:30 AM -- before sunrise. However, Braden steps ashore in broad daylight..

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Quotes

Commander Paul Stevenson: Oh, uh, one more thing, Mr. Braden, you don't get captured.
Lt. j.g. Kenneth M. Braden: Mm-hmm. I wouldn't think of it, sir.

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Crazy Credits

Opening credits: SOMEWHERE IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC - 1942

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Connections

Referenced in Down Periscope (1996)

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Soundtracks

The Sailor's Hornpipe
(uncredited)
Traditional
Played as the submarine returns

User Reviews

pretty good

I was expecting a fairly mediocre and routine "sub flick" and was pleasantly surprised to find an above average and pretty engrossing movie. The story has some grit and conflict, especially in the hostility of the crew for its "by the book" captain, played with convincing war-weariness by the always-reliable Edmond O'Brien, whose efforts are matched by a very young James Garner. Production values are high, and it's worth catching it in letterbox format. Some of the mistakes in commando procedures have been noted, to which I would add the lack of facial camouflage, as Garner's strikingly white face floats conspicuously above the water in his nighttime swim, an easy target for lookouts. None the less, a pretty good war flick.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 April 1959 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Up Periscope!

Filming Locations:

Pacific Ocean

Company Credits

Production Co:

Aubrey Schenck Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Technicolor) (as Technicolor®)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1