Destroyer (1943)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Such a frustrating disappointment

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

DESTROYER is another WW2 story from America with touches of propaganda as you'd expect from a contemporaneous wartime thriller. The story is designed to raise enthusiasm and loyalty for America's battleships in their vast stand-off with the Japanese. However, instead of following the usual gung-ho war film route, DESTROYER is very much a character piece without much in the way of battle action.The story is a two-hander with added trappings. The main character is Edward G. Robinson, always ready to get his teeth into a complex part, and he's very effective here too. He plays an engineer whose promotion goes badly when it turns out his inexperience has lost him the respect of his crew, in particular a youthful Glenn Ford, who lost his own promotion to make way for Robinson. Nearly the entire story is about these two guys and the differences between them. They insult, argue, and occasionally punch each other out, so the conflict is near-constant.Ford makes for a rather unpleasant individual here whom the viewer never warms to although there's some warmth in the supporting actors, even if they're limited to clichéd parts. More action-focused sequences don't really evolve until the second half, although things build to an effective against-the-clock climax in which the suspense is high. DESTROYER is no classic but it's watchable enough thanks to Robinson's inimitable presence.

"Destroyer" is a clearly a wartime propaganda film meant to encourage the troops and folks at home in the war effort. It also is a bit formulaic at the same time--with the familiar theme of the obnoxious braggart falling on his face and then redeeming himself by the end of the film. And, the film stars a way too old Edward G. Robinson (50 at the time) in the lead. Yet, despite these hits against it, the film works exceptionally well and is well worth your time.The film begins with learning that the old destroyer, the USS John Paul Jones, being sunk in action. Soon after, they order a replacement--a new John Paul Jones. At the shipyard, you see an old worker, Steve Boleslavski (Robinson) rallying the men and encouraging them to build the best fighting ship. After all, he served on the old John Paul Jones and plans on going back to active duty and serving aboard the new one if he can.So, Steve and his buddy 'Kansas' (Edgar Buchanan) sign up with the Navy (apparently they must have just begun the new 'geezer brigade'). And, after pushing the Commander of the ship (Regis Toomey), he's able to secure a spot aboard as the Chief.Now you'd think everything would go smoothly, but it doesn't. First, Steve is so gung ho and pig-headed that he manages to alienate himself from the crew. His talk of 'my ship' all the time and talk about the old days certainly didn't help. Second, the ship seems almost cursed--and during two shakedown cruises, it's riddled with problems. Eventually, the Navy is so sick of the repeated failures that the ship is given the ignominious task of delivering mail--not fighting. The crew, not surprisingly, is dispirited--after all, a destroyer should not be kept out of the action.During their time as a mail carrier, the ship is kept out of the action. However, the Japanese are sneaky and the attack ends up pulling the John Paul Jones into action anyway. Unfortunately, although the ship is able to fight off a squadron of Japanese planes, she's badly damaged in the process--listing and seemingly ready to go down during her first engagement with the enemy. When a sub is discovered nearby AND the engines go out, it looks like that's all she wrote for the ship. Can Steve and the crew manage to redeem themselves and the ship? Considering this was made during WWII, what would you think? The film works for two big reasons. The acting is very good and they manage to make the most of the material. And, more importantly, the film is action-packed and exciting. The final 15 minutes of the film were very well done (even if the Japanese planes were really American ones painted to look Japanese) and really leave the viewer breathless and excited. Well worth your time.By the way, in addition to seeing Glenn Ford in a major role, Lloyd Bridges (well before he became a star) can be seen VERY briefly. For example, he's lying in a bunk during a scene where the crewmen are talking about the ship becoming a mail ship. Look sharply or you'll miss him!

Edward G. Robinson and Glenn Ford star in Destroyer, a sentimental Navy tale of two different generations of Navy men. Though the film's World War II vintage somewhat dates it, the film is still good entertainment.The film begins with news of the USS John Paul Jones being sunk in the Pacific. That news is particularly hard for retired Navy chief Edward G. Robinson who now makes a living building ships in the navy yard. He gets to build the new John Paul Jones and decides that he ought to serve on her.But when he pulls some strings to get assigned to the JPJ II, someone gets displaced as the chief boatswain. That someone is Glenn Ford and that doesn't make for a harmonious ship. In addition Robinson's kind of behind the times in the newer improvements the US Navy has made since the last war. Complicating things is Marguerite Chapman, Robinson's daughter who Ford falls for. That really makes things bad on shore and off.Robinson's the show in this film. His portrayal of an old Navy fighting man who won't be beached in a second war is sentimental, but effective. His best moments are when he finally begins to win the crew's respect by telling them the story of the guy and the engagement that the guy fought for whom the ship is named after. In fact the final duel between the USS John Paul Jones and a Japanese submarine has a lot of similarity between what happened with the Bonhomme Richard and the Serapis of the Royal Navy. Rounding out a nice supporting cast are Regis Toomey, Edward Brophy, Edgar Buchanan, and Leo Gorcey who gives us a bit of New York street smarts for the ship.Destroyer is a dated propaganda film from the World War II era, but still entertaining because of the two leads.

Edward G. Robinson is a retired Navy officer who works on building a new ship. He succeeds in gaining a berth when it is ready to sail but he finds he is a bit out of touch with the young crew. He experiences a few highs and lows and faces several challenges throughout. Very good performance with a few memorable scenes. I rated it a 7.