Wonderfully shot Ford film with a lively look at the Pacific atoll life , including amusing scenes , humor , acting class , familiar drama , a love story and sentimental nostalgia with interesting character studio of a varied assortment of individuals . Entertaining and fun story with agreeable romance adding strong knuckles for spectacular fight between Wayne, Ford's favorite leading man, against brawling Lee Marvin . It deals with two WWII buddies Donovan (John Wayne) and Gilhooley (Lee Marvin , similar role to starred by Victor Mclagen) are supposed to share December 7th for their birthday and meet every years on a South Seas paradise to engage a perpetual bar-brawl until a stuck-up Bostonian maiden (Elizabeth Allen) appears to find her lovable dad (Jack Weston who played Elizabeth Allen's father, was only nine years her senior in real life) who has fathered a brood of intimate half-casts .
This amusing , good-natured film contains Ford's usual themes as familiar feeling , a little bit enjoyable humor , friendship and and sense of comradeship among people . Interesting screenplay portraying in depth characters and brooding events with interesting issues running beneath script surface was written by James Edward Grant and Frank Nugent , John Ford's habitual , and based on the story by James Michener . Here Ford goes to an atoll in an evocative and idealized portrait , paintstakingly constructed , about life in an idealized Pacific island .
The main heroes , Wayne and Marvin , are two mighty tough guys who break beer bottles , tables and brawling among them . As in a fight with Lee Marvin, John Wayne underestimated an uppercut , he crashed through a table and fell down and director John Ford decided to leave the scene in the movie . This rollicking film featuring a magnificent performance by whole casting and acting class mainly supplied by starring duo and an excellent plethora of secondaries . This is the technically last movie that John Ford and his favourite actor , worked on together, although Wayne later provided the voice-over narration for Ford's documentary Chesty: A Tribute to a Legend . Both of whom , swap the wide open spaces of the prairie for the spaces of a marvelous Pacific island . That's packed with many Ford's regulars a and familiar characters such as Mike Mazurki , Dick Foran , Mae Marsh , Chuck Roberson ,some of them are uncredited and Patrick Wayne, John Wayne's son, has a small cameo, he plays the Australian Shore Patrol officer that breaks up the final fight . Good and colorful cinematography by William H Clothier and evocative musical score in Hawaian style by Cyril Mockridge . This sprawling , brawling adventure story was well directed by John Ford in a personal style . It's a hight-spirited tale with a sensitive fresh-air feeling , and one of Ford's finest movies . Rating : Better than average . Well worth watching for John Wayne and Le Marvin fans .
This amusing , good-natured film contains Ford's usual themes as familiar feeling , a little bit enjoyable humor , friendship and and sense of comradeship among people . Interesting screenplay portraying in depth characters and brooding events with interesting issues running beneath script surface was written by James Edward Grant and Frank Nugent , John Ford's habitual , and based on the story by James Michener . Here Ford goes to an atoll in an evocative and idealized portrait , paintstakingly constructed , about life in an idealized Pacific island .
The main heroes , Wayne and Marvin , are two mighty tough guys who break beer bottles , tables and brawling among them . As in a fight with Lee Marvin, John Wayne underestimated an uppercut , he crashed through a table and fell down and director John Ford decided to leave the scene in the movie . This rollicking film featuring a magnificent performance by whole casting and acting class mainly supplied by starring duo and an excellent plethora of secondaries . This is the technically last movie that John Ford and his favourite actor , worked on together, although Wayne later provided the voice-over narration for Ford's documentary Chesty: A Tribute to a Legend . Both of whom , swap the wide open spaces of the prairie for the spaces of a marvelous Pacific island . That's packed with many Ford's regulars a and familiar characters such as Mike Mazurki , Dick Foran , Mae Marsh , Chuck Roberson ,some of them are uncredited and Patrick Wayne, John Wayne's son, has a small cameo, he plays the Australian Shore Patrol officer that breaks up the final fight . Good and colorful cinematography by William H Clothier and evocative musical score in Hawaian style by Cyril Mockridge . This sprawling , brawling adventure story was well directed by John Ford in a personal style . It's a hight-spirited tale with a sensitive fresh-air feeling , and one of Ford's finest movies . Rating : Better than average . Well worth watching for John Wayne and Le Marvin fans .