San Demetrio London

1943
PG
1h 44m

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Rescue of the tanker MV San Demetrio by parts of her own crew after she had been set afire in the middle of the Atlantic by the German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer and then had been abandone... Read allRescue of the tanker MV San Demetrio by parts of her own crew after she had been set afire in the middle of the Atlantic by the German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer and then had been abandoned.Rescue of the tanker MV San Demetrio by parts of her own crew after she had been set afire in the middle of the Atlantic by the German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer and then had been abandoned.

Directors
- Charles Frend
- Robert Hamer
Writers
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

569

YOUR RATING

Directors
- Charles Frend
- Robert Hamer
Writers
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Captain E.S.F. Fegen of HMS Jervis Bay received the Victoria Cross for his attack on the Admiral Scheer.

Goofs
The fires on the ship are clearly not burning oil, but gas. Otherwise, there would be thick black smoke and pouring water on it from buckets would result in an explosive spread (for that same reason one should never try to extinguish burning fat in a frying pan by pouring water on it). Addendum: the oil on board was aviation fuel, not crude oil. There would have been no other way to put the fires out than to use water. I am not sure the original criticism is valid, particularly so as the Chief Engineer was the technical adviser on the film.

Quotes
[last lines]
Mr. Justice Langton: It is right and proper, and a part of my duty which I shall gladly discharge, to recognise to the full the courage, devotion and sacrifice of each of these men. I should not like to leave this case without thanking everybody concerned for having given me the best working day of my life, in listening to the very modest recital of some gallant gentlemen concerning a memorable achievement.

Crazy credits
Closing credits: This story is based on fact and most of the characters in the film are portrayed from life with their permission. The remaining characters are fictitious, and in such cases any similarity to any incident, name or individual is coincidental.

Connections
Featured in Tuesday's Documentary: The Ealing Comedies or Kind Hearts and Overdrafts (1970)

Soundtracks
Say Si Si
(uncredited)
Music by Ernesto Lecuona

User reviews18

Review

Featured review

6/10

This Film Needs a Remake!

Just amazed this film has never been remade. It's true story, certainly as seen in this low budget British wartime production, seems a perfect fit to get the 21st century, much bigger budget treatment. In the right hands, it could be a terrific cinematic spectacle as the story behind the film has really got it all. Merchant naval convoys and battles, heroism demonstrated not just on the part of the crew of the San Demetrio, but that of other ships too, especially the Jervis Bay, North Atlantic tempests, humour, pathos and in general a wonderfully marine-based, collective survival story.

In the interim, I guess we'll have to be satisfied with this low key instalment featuring a very young Gordon Jackson (as the mess boy would you believe) and regular Welsh mainstay character actor of British 40's and 50's films, Mervyn Johns (father of Glynis), playing the stoic, ill-fated, but delightfully named Greaser Boyle, who demonstrates on more than one occasion, that he was always prepared to take one for his fellow crew mates without complaint.