henryhertzhobbit This is just as bad and unconvincing as the other film "The Conqueror" that John Wayne made playing a Mongoliian war lord.First there has to be a note to the other inebriated reviewers of this film. The ship was in the German Merchant Marine. There is no North Sea storm. They are not heading for home in Germany and the captain played by John Wayne is not one of Hitler's supporters. The story line is ostensibly supposed to be that the captain heads out of Sydney harbor with a British naval captain in hot pursuit because the German captain takes his girl. Unbeknownst to the British naval captain "his girl" is suspected by the German captain as being a German spy for the Nazis. Where are they heading to? To Valparaiso, Chile where the captain and crew can hopefully wait out the war rather than rotting in some allied prisoner camp.Okay, what went wrong? The storyline should have been worked out well in advance for such a scenario. It wasn't. The captain should have been somebody like Curd (alias Kurt) Jurgens. Why didn't they do it? Because the director while maybe understanding naval matters was totally unversed in the intricacies of internaional politics. Lana Turner was eye candy that was totally unsuitable and should have been replaced by an unknown actress that was more convincing. The direction should have been nuanced with much greater subtlely so that you could believe it.John Wayne should have turned the role down and recommended Jurgens and another actress for the woman and said the director was unsuitable for anything other than an advisory capacity just to make sure they didn't pressure him into taking the part just for the money.In short, even if you are a John Wayne fan avoid this stinker if it comes your way.

Edgar Allan Pooh " . . . A liar, and a coward!" Warner Bros. calls out "Karl," as its thinly-disguised stand-in for America's self-appointed Real Life Snitch-in-Chief, John Wayne, cleverly cast as--who else?--"Il Duce" himself, John Wayne. No one ever accused Mr. Wayne as being the sharpest thorn in the Forehead, so Warner Bros. was able to fool him into playing himself by casting Lana Turner to represent his Real Life Henchwoman\Crime Partner, Hedda Hopper. Lana's "Elsa" and Wayne's "Karl" are made for each other here, as were John and Hedda in Real Life (please see TRUMBO). Early on in THE SEA CHASE, Karl rattles off a list of his four ship captain "friends" whom Nazi Master Spy Elsa has destroyed and driven to suicide. Any normal man would not be able to kiss the lips of the wench who offed so many buddies, especially AFTER telling her that hanging's too good for her. (This would be like seeing Samuel L. Jackson necking with Jennifer Jason Leigh in THE HATEFUL EIGHT.) But for closet sadist Wayne, this wasn't even acting--it was Second Nature. Along with REAP THE WILD WIND (on the set of which Wayne and Hopper hatched their Plot against the U.S. Constitution), THE SEA CHASE bookends a Full Confession by Wayne to his Fascist Crimes Against Humanity. It's no wonder that Il Duce hated screenwriters, after his drinking buddies saw these films and told him how he'd gotten hoodwinked into showing his True Colors.

gary-444 A hopelessly miscast and misconceived yarn Directed by the vastly experienced John Farrow who in the 1950's was turning out feature films at the rate of one every nine months contributing to a career tally approaching 50. John Wayne is a convincing character actor as the embodiment of the all - American hero, showcased by his performances in Westerns and WW2 adventures. But as a German Freighter captain he is hopeless.No effort is made to convince that Wayne, or his crew, are German. Instead he offers his best American drawl and the crew speak English without accents. Nazism is largely absent, as is the Nazi flag bar once. The British are awkwardly cast as the putative "baddies" pursuing Wayne after one of his (only)Nazi Officers commits onshore murder as the ship tries to escape from Australia to Valparaiso after the outbreak of war. This crude device means that the "bad" pursuers are also "good", because they are righting a wrong and ensures that although Wayne is "good", Nazis are bad.Lana Turner is bolted on as a love interest playing the part of a spy taking passage, but there is zero chemistry between her and Wayne and she ends up as mere window dressing.The action sequences, such as they are, are limp and the overall emotion is one of sheer incredulity that anyone would have thought that this was going to work.Anyone who bemoans that, "they don't make films like they used to " should check this out - and be grateful.

signalman57 This film is purely for entertainment and not of any historical background. Still, navy/sea warfare buffs will enjoy the story of the pursuit by a British destroyer of a German merchant ship across several oceans. The cast is so-so but with the "Duke" (John Wayne) in the lead role the story manages to limp along with some degree of success. The "destroyer" used in the film is in fact HMCS New Glasgow, a frigate then in service with the Royal Canadian Navy. I saw the movie shortly after it's release in 1955 while in my mid-teens; a number of years later I served on New Glasgow and recalled the part played by the ship and crew in the film. Shows how Hollywood will use any "prop" available to fill in scenes. The crew never did get any extra pay for their appearance (nor did the ship)but at least they have the satisfaction of knowing the true identity of the "destroyer." Despite all the above the film is good viewing and will be of interest to many.