# Movies set on US Navy ships **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 24, 2014, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209 "2014-05-24T20:50:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/1 "2014-05-24T20:50:05Z")
In honor of Memorial Day (and because my old man served in the Navy), what are your favorite movies set mostly or partly aboard US Navy ships? I expect most will be WWII movies, but if you can find any about John Paul Jones, bring 'em on! I will start off with _[Mister Roberts](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGEGZjkC-ZU)_. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/2 "2014-05-24T20:52:17Z")
The Hunt for Red October! ---
**Author:** ![LC\_Strawhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@LC\_Strawhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LC_Strawhouse)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/3 "2014-05-24T20:52:30Z")
Quality movie - **The Caine Mutiny** Guilty pleasure - Steven Seagal’s **Under Siege** ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/4 "2014-05-24T20:57:43Z")
Quality movie - Up Periscope! Guilty pleasure - Down Periscope! ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/5 "2014-05-24T21:01:04Z")
An under-appreciated gem is [The Final Countdown](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Final_Countdown_%28film%29). It’s a WWII time-travel what-if, but none the worse for that, ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/6 "2014-05-24T21:01:22Z")
The Enemy Below, U-571 ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/7 "2014-05-24T21:01:54Z")
_American Warships_, the mockbuster released by Asylum Pictures to try to ride the coat-tails of _Battleship_ and is much better than _Battleship_. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/8 "2014-05-24T21:04:33Z")
_Flight of the Intruder_ ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/9 "2014-05-24T21:05:25Z")
In Harm’s Way - John Wayne & Patricia Neal & Kirk Douglas > **[In Harm's Way (1965) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059309/)** > > In Harm's Way: Directed by Otto Preminger. With John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Patricia Neal, Tom Tryon. A Naval officer, reprimanded after Pearl Harbor, is later promoted to Rear Admiral and gets a second chance to prove himself against the Japanese. Much better than average - IMDB rated it at 7.3 Enjoy! Mr. Roberts (1955) Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell IMDB rated at 7.9 > **[Mister Roberts (1955) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048380/)** > > Mister Roberts: Directed by John Ford, Mervyn LeRoy, Joshua Logan. With Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, Jack Lemmon. In the waning days of World War II, the cargo officer of a Navy supply ship chafes at its role far from the action in the... Captain Phillips (2013) Tom Hanks IMDB rated 8.0 > **[Captain Phillips (2013) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1535109/)** > > Captain Phillips: Directed by Paul Greengrass. With Tom Hanks, Catherine Keener, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman. The true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the U.S.-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first... ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/10 "2014-05-24T21:21:35Z")
1. The Wackiest Ship in the Army (1960) - rated 6.2 - Jack Lemmon & Ricky Nelson [The Wackiest Ship in the Army (1960) - IMDb](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054453) 2. The Enemy Below (1957) - rated 7.6 - Robert Mitchum & Curt Jurgens [The Enemy Below (1957) - IMDb](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050356) This is one of my most favorite movies. I’m not sure why. But I just really enjoyed it. 3) Run Silent Run Deep (1958) - rated 7.4 - Clark Gable & Burt Lancaster > **[Run Silent Run Deep (1958) - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052151/)** > > Run Silent Run Deep: Directed by Robert Wise. With Clark Gable, Burt Lancaster, Jack Warden, Brad Dexter. A U.S. sub commander, obsessed with sinking a certain Japanese ship, butts heads with his first officer and crew. Oops. Sorry. The Enema Below is a dupe. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/11 "2014-05-24T21:45:48Z")
The Philadelphia Experiment. Star Trek IV, (partly set on board the nuclear wessel _Enterprise_). ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/12 "2014-05-24T21:51:49Z")
_The Sand Pebbles_ is set aboard the USS _San Pablo_. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/13 "2014-05-24T21:54:33Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > I expect most will be WWII movies, but if you can find any about John Paul Jones, bring 'em on! Robert Stack as [John Paul Jones](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052946/). Cliff Robertson as [The Man Without a Country](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070364/). ---
**Author:** ![Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c68b51/32.png) [@Ashley\_Pomeroy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashley_Pomeroy)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/14 "2014-05-24T22:02:45Z")
As the chap above in post three points out, _The Caine Mutiny_ springs to mind. Humphrey Bogart gave an iconic, atypical performance as a man who had cracked: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIKQkJz-C5k](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIKQkJz-C5k) Veeringly slightly off-topic, I’d cite _Silent Running_, the (very much of its time) 1972 enviro-sci-fi film. It’s not really _set_ on a US Navy ship - they seemed to be private vessels owned by American Airlines - but it was filmed on board the USS Valley Forge, a US aircraft carrier that was about to be scrapped. The film had a low budget and this was a neat way of getting detailed, plausible-looking sets without spending a fortune, e.g. the shot at the top here: [http://www.scifimoviezone.com/silentrunning01.shtml](http://www.scifimoviezone.com/silentrunning01.shtml) As a consequence it has some of the dark and grimy look of _Alien_ several years before Alien came out. ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/15 "2014-05-24T22:20:10Z")
\*Follow the Fleet \* All together now: [We joined the Navy…to see the world…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVYxekAaFRU) ([See also](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JtCuxbrAu8)) ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/16 "2014-05-24T22:21:44Z")
I thought The Hunt for Red October took place on a Russian sub. Didn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/17 "2014-05-24T22:48:02Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > I thought The Hunt for Red October took place on a Russian sub. > > Didn’t it? And the _USS Dallas_ a Los Angeles class US submarine. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/18 "2014-05-24T22:55:45Z")
_They Were Expendable_ - If you want to include boats. _Top Gun_ ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/19 "2014-05-24T23:26:46Z")
[Crimson Tide,](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112740/) another modern submarine movie contemporary with _Hunt for Red October._ (made 5 years apart) WW2 vintage: [Operation Petticoat](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0053143/?ref_=nv_sr_2) None of these can be streamed on Netflix. Not _Run Silent,_ either. What does Netflix have against sub flicks? ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2014, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209/20 "2014-05-24T23:38:42Z")
Grey Lady Down The Bedford Incident [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/movies-set-on-us-navy-ships/689209.md?page=2)