I read Nicholas Monserrat's book several years ago and thought it was one of the best war books ever written. I didn't realize until just recently that there had been a film adapted from this great book. I bought the film without having seen it first and I was not disappointed with my purchase. The performances of the entire cast make this one of the best WW2 films ever. Filmed in black and white, the film conveys the dark mood of the Battle of the Atlantic. I felt as if I were aboard HMS Compass Rose as she fought the UBoats and the cruel sea. The fact that Capt. Ericson and his crew ultimately get only 2 UBoats after 5 years of war is realistic (instead of having them win the war singlehandedly). The crew has trouble ashore as all crews will and there was sufficient character development to understand the men and their problems. A couple of those problems were left out of the film, but there wasn't time for them. An altogether thoroughly enjoyable film. I highly recommend it to anyone.
Review of The Cruel Sea
