Trying to find a similar film to Hitchcock's Lifeboat

Simon · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 3

Hi

trying to find the name of a film I saw years ago.
It is a lot like the Hitchcock film Lifeboat and was B&W as well

It starts off with survivors of a sunken ship clamoring into a lifeboat,
only it gets way overcrowded and some have to cling to it in the water.
Things get really desperate and towards the end they decide to 'let go'
of the survivors in the water and row off.
Only to be rescued by a passing ship soon after. The main character
ponders his decision as he climbs up the ladder onto the Ship.

Thanks

Simon

Kingo Gondo · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 447

"Simon" <simon.movies.RemoveThis@slingshot.co.nz> wrote in message
news:1166686384.692116@ftpsrv1...
> Hi
>
> trying to find the name of a film I saw years ago.
> It is a lot like the Hitchcock film Lifeboat and was B&W as well
>
> It starts off with survivors of a sunken ship clamoring into a lifeboat,
> only it gets way overcrowded and some have to cling to it in the water.
> Things get really desperate and towards the end they decide to 'let go'
> of the survivors in the water and row off.
> Only to be rescued by a passing ship soon after. The main character
> ponders his decision as he climbs up the ladder onto the Ship.
>
> Thanks
>
> Simon

This, I think:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050091/

Got remade as a TV movie with Martin Sheen, but that wasn't black and white.

Michael O'Connor · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 217

> Got remade as a TV movie with Martin Sheen, but that wasn't black and white.

The 1975 Martin Sheen MFTVM was called The Last Survivors, and Sheen
was an officer on the ship which sunk in shark infested waters. The
lifeboats were overloaded and Sheen started booting off the elderly and
injured people. They were rescued, and at the end of the movie there
was a court trial where Martin Sheen's character was tried for his
behavior on the ship. It was an interesting morality play.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073269/

David Oberman · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 83

Simon <simon.movies.RemoveThis@slingshot.co.nz> wrote:

>Hi
>
>trying to find the name of a film I saw years ago.
>It is a lot like the Hitchcock film Lifeboat and was B&W as well
>
>It starts off with survivors of a sunken ship clamoring into a lifeboat,
>only it gets way overcrowded and some have to cling to it in the water.
>Things get really desperate and towards the end they decide to 'let go'
>of the survivors in the water and row off.
>Only to be rescued by a passing ship soon after. The main character
>ponders his decision as he climbs up the ladder onto the Ship.

Think it's called "Abandon Ship" with Ty Power

Zeligg · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 6

On Thu, 21 Dec 2006 20:37:44 +1300, Simon
<simon.movies DeleteThis @slingshot.co.nz> wrote:

>Hi
>
>trying to find the name of a film I saw years ago.
>It is a lot like the Hitchcock film Lifeboat and was B&W as well
>
>It starts off with survivors of a sunken ship clamoring into a lifeboat,
>only it gets way overcrowded and some have to cling to it in the water.
>Things get really desperate and towards the end they decide to 'let go'
>of the survivors in the water and row off.
>Only to be rescued by a passing ship soon after. The main character
>ponders his decision as he climbs up the ladder onto the Ship.
>
>Thanks
>
>Simon

I'm not sure what the movie you're looking for is, but I did want to
say my great-uncle, William Bendix, was in Life Boat ;-D

MrBuddwing · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 247

Michael O'Connor wrote:
> The 1975 Martin Sheen MFTVM was called The Last Survivors, and Sheen
> was an officer on the ship which sunk in shark infested waters. The
> lifeboats were overloaded and Sheen started booting off the elderly and
> injured people. They were rescued, and at the end of the movie there
> was a court trial where Martin Sheen's character was tried for his
> behavior on the ship. It was an interesting morality play

I don't recall if any of them were rescued. Most, if not all of them,
died, including the ship's comedian, whose life the Sheen character
found wanting (e.g., no family of his own) and the father of a girl who
had already died - Sheen forced the body into the water, and the father
died trying to retrieve it. Although the man's wife screamed at Sheen
that he was a murderer, she ended up defending his actions in court,
saying he had saved the survivors' lives.

Frank R.A.J. Maloney · External Since: Jul 28, 2003 Posts: 1867

Zeligg wrote:

[deletions]

> I'm not sure what the movie you're looking for is, but I did want to
> say my great-uncle, William Bendix, was in Life Boat ;-D

Did you actually know him?

Bendix is absolutely one of my favorite 40s character actors. I never saw
him when I wasn't fascinated by his performance.

As a child I only knew him from "The Life of Riley" and _The Babe Ruth
Story_, which for some reason my grade school showed in an assembly every
year. But later on I got caught up on his earlier career.

Two of his many roles always stand out in my mind: Larry ("Monkey music") in
_The Blue Dahlia_ and Jeff ("He likes it, don't you sweetheart") in _The
Glass Key_.

--
Frank in Seattle
____

Frank Richard Aloysius Jude Maloney
"Millennium hand and shrimp."

Old Movie Fan · External Since: Jan 19, 2005 Posts: 163

William Bendix has appeared in several lesser known films on TCM this
year. Usually he's a fighter battling booze and 'head over heals' in
love with some dame.

Rich Wagner

Zeligg · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 6

On Thu, 21 Dec 2006 11:52:44 -0800, "Frank R.A.J. Maloney"
<frajm RemoveThis @blarg.net> wrote:

>Zeligg wrote:
>
>[deletions]
>
>> I'm not sure what the movie you're looking for is, but I did want to
>> say my great-uncle, William Bendix, was in Life Boat ;-D
>
>Did you actually know him?
>
>Bendix is absolutely one of my favorite 40s character actors. I never saw
>him when I wasn't fascinated by his performance.
>
>As a child I only knew him from "The Life of Riley" and _The Babe Ruth
>Story_, which for some reason my grade school showed in an assembly every
>year. But later on I got caught up on his earlier career.
>
>Two of his many roles always stand out in my mind: Larry ("Monkey music") in
>_The Blue Dahlia_ and Jeff ("He likes it, don't you sweetheart") in _The
>Glass Key_.

He died two years before I was born, but there are a lot of pictures
of him playing with my dad. My dad never even mentioned it until he
came over while I was watching Lifeboat one night, I had no idea! I
had watched reruns of Life of Riley, so I knew who he was when I
watched lifeboat, but no idea that he was my great-uncle.

Zel

Frank R.A.J. Maloney · External Since: Jul 28, 2003 Posts: 1867

Zeligg wrote:

[deletions]

> He died two years before I was born, but there are a lot of pictures
> of him playing with my dad. My dad never even mentioned it until he
> came over while I was watching Lifeboat one night, I had no idea! I
> had watched reruns of Life of Riley, so I knew who he was when I
> watched lifeboat, but no idea that he was my great-uncle.

I hope your father spoke well of him. I want to think he was a good guy.

--
Frank in Seattle
____

Frank Richard Aloysius Jude Maloney
"Millennium hand and shrimp."

leo86 · External Since: Aug 08, 2005 Posts: 558

On Mar 27, 2:08 pm, Zeligg <zel... DeleteThis @guessagain.com> wrote:
> On Mon, 26 Mar 2007 13:11:01 -0700, "Frank R.A.J. Maloney"
>
> <f... DeleteThis @blarg.net> wrote:
> >Zeligg wrote:
>
> >[deletions]
>
> >> He died two years before I was born, but there are a lot of pictures
> >> of him playing with my dad. My dad never even mentioned it until he
> >> came over while I was watching Lifeboat one night, I had no idea! I
> >> had watched reruns of Life of Riley, so I knew who he was when I
> >> watched lifeboat, but no idea that he was my great-uncle.
>
> >I hope your father spoke well of him. I want to think he was a good guy.
>
> Absolutely, he was one of his favorite uncles. A very nice, laid back
> guy, according to my pop.

Bendix was one of the great unsung film actors of Hollywood history.
Just look at the range of his work: THE GLASS KEY, THE BLUE DAHLIA THE
HAIRY APE, DETECTIVE STORY, WAKE ISLAND, GUADALCANAL DIARY, all the
comedies he did, "The Life of Riley," etc. I'm missing some great ones
since this is off the top of my head, but Bendix was never as
appreciated as he ought to have been.

Zeligg · External Since: Dec 21, 2006 Posts: 6

On Mon, 26 Mar 2007 13:11:01 -0700, "Frank R.A.J. Maloney"
<frajm RemoveThis @blarg.net> wrote:

>Zeligg wrote:
>
>[deletions]
>
>> He died two years before I was born, but there are a lot of pictures
>> of him playing with my dad. My dad never even mentioned it until he
>> came over while I was watching Lifeboat one night, I had no idea! I
>> had watched reruns of Life of Riley, so I knew who he was when I
>> watched lifeboat, but no idea that he was my great-uncle.
>
>I hope your father spoke well of him. I want to think he was a good guy.

Absolutely, he was one of his favorite uncles. A very nice, laid back
guy, according to my pop.

Dave in Toronto · External Since: Sep 23, 2005 Posts: 1168

On Mar 27, 3:35 pm, l....RemoveThis@my-deja.com wrote:
> On Mar 27, 2:08 pm, Zeligg <zel....RemoveThis@guessagain.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> > On Mon, 26 Mar 2007 13:11:01 -0700, "Frank R.A.J. Maloney"
>
> > <f....RemoveThis@blarg.net> wrote:
> > >Zeligg wrote:
>
> > >[deletions]
>
> > >> He died two years before I was born, but there are a lot of pictures
> > >> of him playing with my dad. My dad never even mentioned it until he
> > >> came over while I was watching Lifeboat one night, I had no idea! I
> > >> had watched reruns of Life of Riley, so I knew who he was when I
> > >> watched lifeboat, but no idea that he was my great-uncle.
>
> > >I hope your father spoke well of him. I want to think he was a good guy.
>
> > Absolutely, he was one of his favorite uncles. A very nice, laid back
> > guy, according to my pop.
>
> Bendix was one of the great unsung film actors of Hollywood history.
> Just look at the range of his work: THE GLASS KEY, THE BLUE DAHLIA THE
> HAIRY APE, DETECTIVE STORY, WAKE ISLAND, GUADALCANAL DIARY, all the
> comedies he did, "The Life of Riley," etc. I'm missing some great ones
> since this is off the top of my head, but Bendix was never as
> appreciated as he ought to have been.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Veronica Lake spoke very well of him in her autobiography and my
mother has something of a crush on him I think (although she'd never
met him).

Dave in Toronto