What could have been


While watching the movie, I couldn't help but feel it the pieces just didn't fit together. Halfway through the film, it takes a tragic turn and the movie veers into a completely different direction. After about 20 minutes of this, I became confused. Did I miss something important? Fall asleep for a minute? It was very jarring. It was like watching two different movies, pre-accident and post-accident.

According to Robert Osbourne, the film was intended to begin with Lemmon trapped on the ship. The entire first half of the movie was to be told through flashbacks. The movie was actually prepared in this way until Columbia studio head Harry Cohn disapproved and re-cut the film into chronological order. Mitchum, Hayworth, and others disagreed and felt the re-cutting was a poor choice.

After hearing this, I then realized why I felt the movie was so disjointed. Glad to know it wasn't just me. The original concept would have been fantastic, while the movie as it is I would consider only mediocre. I was extremely confused about how Lemmon and Connor wash up on the beach, then Connor receives a letter from Lemmon saying he's arriving. It didn't seem like much time passed, but apparently it must have. Was Lemmon on the ship long? Possibly, because of the fondness the other sailors showed for him in his dire situation.

With linear storytelling, we expect these answers outright, whereas through flashbacks, we're glad to get any morsel we can to feed our curiosity. Flashbacks would have served the two halves of the story much better. It's a shame TPTB had different ideas.

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According to Robert Osbourne, the film was intended to begin with Lemmon trapped on the ship. The entire first half of the movie was to be told through flashbacks. The movie was actually prepared in this way until Columbia studio head Harry Cohn disapproved and re-cut the film into chronological order. Mitchum, Hayworth, and others disagreed and felt the re-cutting was a poor choice.


Oh wow, I didn't know that. Thank you. Although the trapped scene does go on a bit longer than it should have, Jack Lemmon still did a brilliant job of being able to handle that sort of scene in a confined area.

I like this film a lot.


Marilyn Monroe: I don't want to be rich. I just want to be wonderful.

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Regarding the "fondness of the other sailors" ....the guys who gave Lemmon the whiskey, knife and medal were US Navy guys trying to get him out. They were feeling sorry for the guy for the situation he was in.

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