Hellcats of the Navy (1957)

Great Film overall

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

In general, I really like films about submarines. They seem to have a great sense of drama and tension. However, many years ago when I first saw "Hellcats of the Navy", my reaction was not very positive. Fortunately, now that I've re-watched it, I found it was much better and is actually a worthwhile film. Cerebral and understated...but still worthwhile.The film is about an American sub and its commander, Casey Abbott (Ronald Reagan). His task is to try to discover a way through the Japanese anti-ship defenses (in other words, mines and nets) so that the Americans can cut off the Japanese supply lines to the mainland. However, his job is made tougher because his first officer doesn't particularly like or respect him. He sees Commander Abbott as too emotionless and cold when it comes to his decisions---and this all begins be a problem after the Commander leaves one of his men behind during a mission. This is the one and only movie that pairs Reagan with his real life wife, Nancy Davis. That alone is reason to watch it. But the loneliness of command and the life and death decisions made by the captain of a vessel also makes this worth seeing. Could this have been better? Sure...it is a bit too cerebral at times. But still, it is a watchable war film and kept my interest.

It seems to me a few reviewers are letting their feelings for Reagan as a president seep into their views on the movie. Probably doesn't help matters that this was his only on-screen pairing with his future first lady, Nancy Davis.This movie is pretty generic in its conflicts. A captain has to make tough decisions in wartime, decisions that cost people their lives. Considering the budget, the scenes were well shot.This was one of Reagan's last movies, before he went on to be a pitchman and then a politician.Also surprising is the participation of Admiral Chester Nimitz playing himself. perhaps Nimitz felt the submariners didn't get their due, with all the war movies being made about pilots and infantry, so he lent his credibility to this film.If you check your feelings about President Reagan at the door, you can enjoy this film for what it is.

Routine submarine warfare film engaged in the old story of how one reacts when one is in command. Obviously, when the shoe is on the other foot, we act accordingly.Nancy Davis did a poor job here. She was certainly no Jane Wyman. Thank the lord that she just said no to a further movie career and went on her way with her Ronnie and the rest is history!Reagan is a real commander here. Am surprised he didn't want to cut men in his never ending assault on cuts. O yes, this was the military and he was strong on defense.No wonder, after seeing this tedious film, that it is said that Jack Warner told Reagan that his career was over. Look what Jack didn't know what was in store for us.The film itself has some strengths, particularly where the bombs go off. It ably showed that team effort will pay off, especially when the code of discipline is enforced.The film might have worked better if it were in color and Ann Sheridan was the nurse. That would have made a 15 year reunion between the future president and Ann, after the marvelous King's Row. That was President Reagan at his best in his movie career.

Most of the comments about this very ordinary war film concerns the fact that it is the only film that co-starred Ronald and Nancy Reagan. Both of them did better work in Hollywood.The real story is that Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, CINCPAC Pacific Theatre in World War II chose to make a personal appearance in this film about submarines. That's like having Eisenhower or MacArthur make a personal appearance in an army war film. Unheard of.Nimitz's background was in submarines and our submarine fleet may very well have been the tipping factor in the Pacific War. We did to Japan what the Nazis tried to do to Great Britain, cut off their raw material and food. Nimitz was no hypocrite however. He admitted as much during the Nuremberg trials and that fact saved the Nazi U-Boat commander Karl Doenitz from the hangman for war crimes.All the clichés about submarine warfare in the pre-atomic era are present in this film. It's a B Picture made just as B Pictures were being phased out of existence. The cast is competent enough, but it's all been done before.I think the real story is why did Admiral Nimitz choose this submarine film to make an appearance in.