They Were Expendable

1945
Approved
2h 15m

IMDb RATING

7.2/10

9.5K

YOUR RATING

John Wayne, Donna Reed, and Robert Montgomery in They Were Expendable (1945)

The PT boat unit Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three defends the Philippines from Japanese invasion during World War II.

Play trailer1:36

1 Video

99+ Photos

Drama War

A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.A Navy commander fights to prove the battle-worthiness of the PT boat at the start of World War II.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.2/10

9.5K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 2 Oscars
- 2 nominations total

Videos1

Trailer 1:36

Watch Original Theatrical Trailer

Photos109

+ 101

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
By the time the film was finished the Japanese had surrendered, so MGM pushed the release date back to December 1945. With the war over, the film opened to enthusiastic reviews but low turnout at the box office. As John Wayne later said, "People had seen eight million war stories by the time the picture came out, and they were tired of them."

Goofs
A frame at the end of the movie said, "We shall return - General Douglas MacArthur". In fact, the White House tried to get the general to change his famous quote to "we" but he refused, saying he failed to see the purpose. It should read, "I shall return."

Quotes
Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: [as they watch the inspectors drive away] Wonderful the way people believe in those high powered canoes of yours.
Lt. John Brickley: Don't you believe in them, Rusty?
Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: And I let you sell me that stuff about a command of my own.
Lt. John Brickley: You're skipper of the 34 boat, aren't you?
Lt. 'Rusty' Ryan: I used to skipper a cake of soap in the bathtub, too.
[He walks off]

Crazy credits
Closing quote: "We Shall Return" Douglas MacArthur, General of the Army

Alternate versions
MGM produced a different version, dubbed and with credits in Spanish, probably to be used by television stations. This version omits the final sequence (nearly more than 15 minutes of running time) and the film ends a previous scene with Robert Montgomery and John Wayne saying farewell to the soldiers that had to remain in the Phillipines, then the scene cuts to a plane leaving the island and to a "The End" title in Spanish. This version aired in Argentina in a cable station called "Space". Turner Network Televsion, in all Latin American countries, used to air the film in its original form. However, they lifted the Spanish language dubbing from the old version and, without any explanation why, the last minutes of the film play in English.

Connections
Edited into Malaya (1949)

Soundtracks
The Monkeys Have No Tails in Zamboanga
(uncredited)
Music adapted from the official march of the Philippine Constabulary
Written by by G. Savoca (lyrics)
[Sung in the officer's club at the beginning of the movie.]

User reviews111

Review

Featured review

8/10

Ford WWII epic

Stirring WWII film, directed by John Ford, about the contributions of the Navy torpedo boat squadron to the war effort. In addition to the action and wartime heroics, there are subplots about the rivalry between Navy lieutenant Robert Montgomery and frustrated subordinate John Wayne, and a romance that blossoms between Wayne and nurse Donna Reed.

Montgomery, a gleeful ham when the role calls for it, offers one of his most subtle and successful performances as the sober squadron commander. Wayne does a great job, as well, playing a character with more layers to him than just a gung-ho war hero. His character is brave, to be sure, but he's also ambitious to rise in rank and a little petulant. Not attributes one immediately thinks of when they think John Wayne. Reed is lovely and charming as ever.

It's a little overlong, as many movies over two hours seem to be (then and especially now), but Ford makes the most of it and it never feels padded. Definitely worth a look for Ford and Wayne fans, or anyone who enjoys World War II films. It's one of the best.