The Fighting Seabees (1944) User Reviews (45)

"We Build So That Others Can Fight"..........."We Fight For What We Build"

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 9 July 2006]

Before writing this review I took a quick look at Wikipedia and the article they have on the Seabees. Despite the fanciful story that Borden Chase wrote here about how the service was founded, the Seabees were actually an idea already thought of by Admiral Ben Morreell the Chief of Navy Supply even before Pearl Harbor.

Unlike the war in Europe where the Allies would be looking to take an hold cities with facilities already there, like air fields for example, those planning the war in the Pacific knew that they would be starting from scratch. Airfields, fuel depots, etc. would have to be constructed on jungle islands in the Pacific. So the idea of a separate service for the construction trade was born.

Now that we know that the plot of The Fighting Seabees is so much hogwash, let me say that what the film does do very well is show the hazards of what the men in that service faced. Trying to build facilities at the same time as the enemy is firing on them. The scenario in this film is repeated many times over on the islands of the Pacific.

As to the story of this film, John Wayne reverses roles here. In most of his war films he's usually the professional military man, here he's the tough, but inpatient civilian who never seems to learn the value of military discipline. Of course being this is the Duke, he does redeem himself in the end in a spectacular manner.

A love triangle is tossed in here, rather unnecessarily in my opinion, a straightforward account of Seabee heroism would have been sufficient. Wayne and Navy Commander Dennis O'Keefe are both interested in war correspondent Susan Hayward. This was Hayward's second film with John Wayne, who along with Clark Gable, and Dean Martin, she once described as her three favorite leading men. Her big scene is when she's wounded and thinks she's cashing in, she declares her love for the Duke. Susan Hayward has always been a favorite of mine, but it's on the strength of her performances in her starring roles in the Fifties, not as the sex object in The Fighting Seabees.

The Fighting Seabees isn't one of the Duke's top 10 or even top 20, but it's a decent enough film to sit through even with the World War II heroic bravado that was obligatory at the time this was made. You even get to see John Wayne attempt the jitterbug. During that scene, the Duke looks mighty uncomfortable. He was never going to compete with Fred Astaire for roles.

If it is worth fighting for...fight.

[michaelRokeefe · 6/10 · 22 August 2001]

John Wayne is the boss of a civilian construction company building for the Navy in WW2. While working on a remote Pacific island the attacking Japanese forces interrupt construction and Wayne must convince the Government to let his men help the Navy fight back; thus the world renowned 'fighting Seabees'. This is a very good war drama and a fine cast that also features Susan Hayward, Dennis O'Keefe and William Frawley.

Take it for what it is

[Brundledan · 5/10 · 12 November 1999]

Having watched this in the wee hours of Veterans' Day, I just wanted to point out that rating it and other WWII propaganda films on the basis of artistic merit is beside the point entirely. The people that made these didn't have the luxury of crafting meticulous stories and memorable characters; most of the movies had been contracted by the government and had to be turned out QUICKLY. Movies like "The Fighting Seabees" were made for one reason alone: as propaganda pieces designed to bolster public support for our fighting men overseas. As such, they were an important part of the war effort, and helped ensure that fifty years later, we'd have the luxury of sitting at our computers and hashing about their qualities as movies.

With all that in mind, "The Flying Seabees" is really pretty good.

99% Rubbish

[robertguttman · 6 December 2009]

My father, who was a Seabee in the Pacific during World War II, always considered this film to be 99% absolute rubbish. He insisted that the only aspects of this movie that had any basis in fact were that the Seabees actually did recruit professional engineers and construction workers, that many of them were considerably older than other service men, that they were occasionally called upon to defend themselves, and that they really could build anything. In his day the Seabees did not yet have their own training facilities, so they did their basic military training not with the Navy but with the Marines. The way to tell the difference between a Marine base and a Seabase base was that the Marines were all 18 years old and lived in pup tents, while the Seabees were mostly in their forties and fifties and their encampments always had heat, hot and cold running water, washing machines, shower facilities, stills, and all the other comforts of home, all of which the Seabees manufactured themselves in their spare time.

Another excellent Wayne wartime propaganda piece

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 26 January 2006]

Saying this film is "propaganda" is not an insult. No, it was deliberately crafted to encourage Americans that we can and will win the war if we stand firm. And what better image of this than the ever-vigilant John Wayne--the embodiment of the Hollywood image of heroism.

This film reminds me a lot of The Flying Tigers, though the plot isn't so melodramatic. It's about a crew of civilian engineers sent overseas to do construction for our troops (such as building runways and other projects). BUT, the evil Japanese in the movie take advantage of the fact that these are unarmed civilians and butcher them at every opportunity. So, what is The Duke and his trusted pals to do? Take up arms and use their own equipment when necessary to beat the stuffing out of the Japs! Yes, guys with bulldozers and clubs NEVER could have inflicted the casualties you witness in the movie, but man if it isn't entertaining to watch--particularly the explosive ending.

OK for what it is

[nick_elliston · 7/10 · 28 June 2006]

Picked this up as a cheap DVD as I am a sucker for 40's/50's WW2 films.

Taken as a bit of propaganda and entertainment, and not reflecting in any way historical fact, it achieves it's aim. IMO, it is not up to the standard of some of Wayne's other WW2 films of this period such as Sands of Iwo Jima and They Were Expendable.

It is somewhat disjointed, but I can imagine it having a positive effect on recruitment for the US Forces. Some earlier threads have commented on the reasons why Wayne did not have active war service. Whatever the reason, I would think he had a more positive effect on by being on film rather than seeing active service.

"You make with the pencils, and we'll make with the shovels."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 3 August 2005]

There should be no doubt that this film is a highly over simplified account of how the U.S. Navy Seabees came into existence. John Wayne portrays the hot headed owner of Donovan Construction Company, who offers his services to the government in building airfields and related support fortifications for the war effort. The story centers on Wedge Donovan's single mindedness in getting his men armed so they can defend themselves under attack; as civilians they have no such authority. Boiled down, Wayne's role was to make a lot of foolish mistakes that got many of his men killed, both out of uniform and as soldiers.

Complicating matters for Donovan is a three way love triangle supplied by reporter Connie Chesley (Susan Hayward) and her fiancé Lieutenant Commander Robert Yarrow (Dennis O'Keefe). When Connie suffers a near fatal wound following a Japanese invasion of Island X-371, Yarrow overhears Donovan and Chesley exchanging "I Love You's" together. Ever the stalwart military man, Yarrow doesn't seem to take it personally, even as he continues to pine for his woman.

The fight scenes offer some unique twists that one would not expect. As Japanese tanks advance on the island, the Seabees combine ingenuity with resolve by battling the enemy with bulldozers and cranes. The surreal nature of the exchange makes one wonder if such fighting actually could have taken place, though I imagine it would have been possible.

Only John Wayne could go into battle without a weapon, and in seconds take out three attacking Japanese while securing a rifle in the process. It comes as a surprise then when his character dies on the battlefield, first shot and then blown up by enemy fire. Most of his men suffer the same fate, a colorful supporting cast that includes William Frawley, Leonid Kinskey, Grant Withers, Paul Fix and Ben Welden.

With no sense of a time dimension for the history of the Seabees, and a hit and run approach to the Wayne/Hayward/O'Keefe romance, the movie has a disjointed feel and is best approached as an entertainment piece and not a serious exploration of it's subject matter. The film closes on an appropriately patriotic note, with Commander Yarrow reading a presidential citation for the heroes of X-371. The movie's theme is formalized with the line - "We build for the fighters, we fight for what we build".

About The Stupidest War Movie Ever Made, But............

[verbusen · 7/10 · 20 February 2006]

About the stupidest war movie ever made, but boy did I eat it up as a kid! This movie put a whole lot of glamour into building shacks and paving airfields so it really is excellent propaganda. My experience with this film is watching it in bits and pieces as a kid growing up. This is, in my opinion, probably William Frawley's best picture. I love the battle scenes with him on a bulldozer blasting Japs, its an American icon for me. I just started watching some of it sans thirty plus years later on TCM and it is sooooo stupid I just had to comment on it here. I'm actually thinking of the real life civilians that were captured on Wake Island and their horrific life and execution in Jap captivity, that movie is totally unwatchable for me after I learned of those facts. Anyway, I was attached in real life shortly with Seabees waiting for my next assignment and I was making sandbags and painting old shacks, thats the real Seabees. That and talking with some whose unit were killed while in morning formation in the middle east, some of whom went on door to door combat missions with Marines. The Seabees are quasi ground troops for the Navy, with skills that are necessary to establish beachheads and airfields and ports. They do a hard unglamourous job, but they do have a great cohesion among themselves and I'm sure they are proud to have the name Seabee, no doubt in part to being associated with this John Wayne comic book tale and that great fight song that you hear in the beginning (and that cool bee mascot with the machine gun). The movie is great for kids maybe like it was for me but wont stand for anyone now other than war movie junkies. When they are on island X something the whole combat compliment is Navy, where were the Marines? Hey I know my place in this military system and I know they are the ones who are their to fight on land. I'll do my fighting in the sea and the air, thats why I joined the Navy, lol. 7 of 10 for the gung ho propaganda tale and the way its told. It must have had them lining up to enlist.

Been there & Done that!!

[bigdogbarkin1 · 9/10 · 9 April 2006]

I was a "Seabee" w/ MCB 4, from 1964-1970!! In basic training in Port Hueneme California, during our first week of training we were marched to the post theater, and were shown this movie. We for the most part thought it was a good movie, but thought it might have been a little overplayed as a promotional thing to peak our interests in becoming a "SeaBee!? ..Well after two full tours in Viet Nam, with my battalion! I have come to the realization. That this is one of the few Wayne war movies of the WW2 time frame that is as close to accurate as they could portray a unit of the Armed Forces! A bunch of Construction workers doing their damndest to get a job done no matter the adversity or dangers ! the only real link they had to being in the military was the fact they were wearing uniforms! they Build and Fight! and Party hard !! just as we did and as the Bees still do !!

Why did you shoot him for? I was afraid that the fall might kill em!

[sol1218 · 7/10 · 12 February 2006]

***SOME SPOILERS*** One of John Wayne's best WWII movies has him in charge of the first Seebee construction battalion in the Pacific building airfields and port facilities for the US Navy and Air Force as well as fighting off hundreds of wild eyed and charging Japanese soldiers.

Things at first didn't go too well from the men of the Wayde Donovan, John Wayne, Corps. Construction Company. Searving the US military in the Pacific their easy marks for Japanese snipers who pick off the unarmed construction workers. while the US Army and Marine Corps. are busy fighting the main Japanese forces on the many islands contested by in that theater of war.

Demanding to be armed and part of the US military, not contract workers, has Donovan's men incorporated into the Army. Donovan's Seebees are then sent fully armed to island X-214 to build a base for the US Navy to refuel it's war-ships. Right from the start Donovan doesn't have the discipline thats demanded of him and is men by engaging the enemy. When told by his superior Lt. Cmdr. Yarrow,Dennis O'Keefe, to stay in the barracks and, in what looks like an American version of a Bonzai charge, Donovan has almost his entire construction company wiped out by the invading Japanese forces! Donavon, now a Lt. Commander, also screws up an ambush that the US Army had set up to stop the Japanese. That resulted in his, and Yarrow's, girlfriend war corespondent Constence Chesley, Susan Hayward,to be gunned down but not killed by a wounded Japanese soldier.

Back in the states Donovan tries to make amends with the US Navy Lt. Cmdr. Yarrow and Constance over his bullheadedness on the battlefield that cost scores of US military and Seebee's lives. His relationship with Constance is handicapped by her also being in love with Wayde's commander Lt. Cmdr. Yarrow who, unlike Wayde,is a handsome and refined spit and polish Annapolis Navy man. Given a second chance to show his, and his Seebees, worth on the field of battle Wayde Donovan's construction battalion is sent ashore on island X-371. Not only to build a fuel depot and airfield but to defend if against a possible Japanese invasion of the island.

Rip roaring battle scenes, some of the best ever put on film without the benefit of computer enhancement, makes "The Fighting Seebees" stand out among the score of war movies released during WWII by the major Hollywood studios. In fact the film was released by Republic Pictures which only specialized in low budget B and C movies up until then.

Taking heavy casualties from Japanese fire Donovan decides, against orders, to take it, the fight, to em' and organizes another Banzai-like charge on the Japanese forces, which seems like a full division, that are invading island X-371. The US forces, Army & Marines, deafening the island are badly chopped up with Lt. Cmdr. Yarrow seriously wounded in the fighting and Donovan's Seebees are on the verge of being overrun by the fanatical Japanese troops.

Having nothing but earth-moving and construction equipment to fight off the hoards of highly motivated and heavily armed Japanese troops supported by tanks the Seebees still hold on to the fuel tanks that's desperately needed for the US Navy Task Force in the area. Donavan told by the wounded Lt. Cmdr. Yarrow that he'll see to it that's he's court-martial-ed if he survives this action takes matters into his own hands. With a steam shovel loaded with explosives Donovan drives it into one of the fuel tanks causing it to explode and smoke out and drive into the open the attacking Japanese troops, their then mowed down by the Seebees and US Army and Marines.

Donovan for his bravery got a medal, posthumously, not a court-martial at the end of the film, Let. Cmdr Yarrow gets the girl that both he and Donovan left behind Constance Chesely.

Ham Handed Propaganda

[theFoss · 4/10 · 7 June 2007]

This movie is one of my favorite John Wayne movies for all the wrong reasons. The Duke here is portrayed as a dull witted hothead until he bends to the will of the Navy, which, of course, in 1944, could do no wrong on the silver screen. The caricatures of the Japanese soldiers as grinning psychopaths who lived to take American lives seems ridiculous even when compared to other period movies. The film shows a medium close up of each Japanese sniper and tanker who then proceeds to grin for a full second before taking aim to kill yet another American, often unarmed civilian Americans at that! (Spoiler Warning!) The climactic scene has the Great American Hero so hacked off at the Japanese Army that he hops into a bulldozer and destroys an entire Japanese assault column and it's tanks as if pushing so much rubbish off the road! This one will never go into archives as the greatest war film of all time, but, is amusing in it's way as propaganda that approaches ridiculous in its depictions.

Great movie

[timgrimes · 9/10 · 10 January 2009]

A fine John Wayne movie and no WWII movie collector should be without it. This movie's great patriotic musical score is also a fine example of strong & very well-written harmonies for male chorus; the score sounds like the U.S. Navy Band's men's chorus (an astounding group of music professionals by the way) and is a dramatic performance that supports this very positive story of the Seabees. With some added drama along the way, this movie demonstrates some of the work done by the SeaBees - building facilities & runways on remote islands during WWII; massive runway construction with PSP grid materials, bulldozing, & hut construction, which were all representative of the basics that needed accomplishing during this campaign. This was a refreshing viewing experience in that the then media was supportive of the American fighting man, and while this may make some in today's culture wince, that's their problem. Today's warriors and sailors are just as honorable & deserving of the kind of support that surrounds this kind of movie, and watching this production reminds you of that fact. Very dramatic, perhaps over-acted at times, but a great story about our fine Seabees! If you are a patriot, I believe you'll enjoy this movie.

Some really good combat scenes

[smatysia · 6/10 · 27 May 2020]

Ended up being a pretty good war film. A bit more acting cred for John Wayne than in his Westerns, which is fine. Some really good combat scenes, by the standards of the time. And Susan Hayward provided the much-needed eye candy. Sitting here in the hyper-polarized polity of today, it's a little hard to wrap one's mind around the wartime unity. And yes, I noticed the depictions of Japanese soldiers that are considered racist in today's oh so sensitive times. But it's never fair to judge personages or art from the past by a politically correct standard of which they knew nothing. Sort of like criticizing Jesus for admonishing slaves to obey their masters.

WW2 Propaganda Nonsense

[crewe49 · 2/10 · 20 October 2012]

Like all these ww2 propaganda films it was rubbish. Full of overblown heroics and racist name calling. I see lots of reviews saying movies like this were a product of their time. Well so were the propaganda movies the Nazis and the Japanese were putting out but I don't see anyone say what good films they were. Propaganda isn't just to bolster moral it's also supposed to engender hatred and demonize the enemy. It's OK to kill them because they are hateful and inhuman. Their soldiers don't have loved ones like ours they're just meat bags who deserve to die. We have wars today but nobody in their right mind would try to portray them as movies like this one and others of it's ilk does. People are far too sophisticated to buy this "war is glorious" rubbish. If it proves anything it's that people back then must have been pretty gullible to buy such nonsense as the true face of war.

Wayne's "War" Record

[twoot · 10 February 2005]

Werner's rather tepid 6 out of 10 evaluation of THE FIGHTING SEABEES notwithstanding (I'd have given the film much higher, but that is just opinion), the allegation that Wayne failed to perform military service during World War II owing to "disabling restrictions" is simply not true. Accounts vary in accounting for his lack of military service, but none of them have to do with disabilities of any kind. As a married man with four children, he was exempt from the draft. His daughter Ayssa reports that Wayne was eager for military service but that pressure from Republic Pictures (with whom he was making enormously profitable films) convinced him not to volunteer for military service. A less flattering picture emerges from Gary Wills JOHN WAYNE'S America: THE POLITICS OF CELEBRITY in which evidence seems to indicate that Wayne (who was no physical coward by any stretch of the imagination) made a complex decision based on his growing stature in the film industry, his value as a propaganda symbol, his increasing paycheck, and the fact that he found film-making so rewarding. Whether an outside observer finds this an appealing portrait or not, there is ample evidence to suggest that Wayne always regretted thereafter not having served on active duty.

John Wayne Dies

[spookym5 · 7/10 · 22 March 2005]

This is one of only 10 movies out of hundreds that He made that John Wayne actually dies or is killed in. The other nine are not seen that often on TV---but people cannot believe that "The Duke" even died or was killed in any of His movies. The list contains both westerns & action movies from almost all decades. 40s--50s--60s & 70s. The list includes: The Wake Of The Red Witch, Sands of Iwo Jima, The Cowboys, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, The Shootist, The Alamo, Reap The Wild Wind. It is widely know of a story which was told By a person who was there on the Tonight Show of the night that a man bragged of making Wayne back down in a Hotel lobby that He & Wayne were staying at while filming a Movie. A film crew member heard the boast & went too Wayne's room too inform him of the mans claim. Wayne walked up behind the man & In His most recognisable voice said "I Hear You Made Me Back Down From A Fight Pilgrim"--at which the man passed out in shock.

Typical John Wayne at War

[ParaGreen · 7/10 · 3 December 2001]

Typical WWII era movie in terms of fighting the Japs. You will laugh at the subhuman portrayals of the little yellow men especially in the two-man tanks, unless you're Japanese of course. Lot's of simple minded expressions and some buck teeth. It makes you want to see them killed!

Basically, any movie with John Wayne is appealing. The man simply commands respect, and the women always love him, especially Susan Hayward who's a doll. Love and War; Usually the best themes for big pictures.

"We're not fighting MEN any more . . . "

[oscaralbert · 7/10 · 8 October 2015]

" . . . we're fighting ANIMALS!" intones a U.S. military officer near the beginning of THE FIGHTING SEABEES. The current packaging for this 1944 film emphasizes the widely known fact that our U.S. War Department censors dictated every thought, word, and deed presented on screen by American movie studios from 1942 through 1945--especially the current event war dramas intended to boost morale on the Front Lines, as well as on the Home Front. The idea that America's Enemy in the South Pacific is some sort of sub-human creature (not unlike the Orcs in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middlearth Saga) is fleshed out during the Japanese attack on our valiant Seabees near the end of this story, when the demonic leering gargoyle-like visages of the lead tank crew are shown in close-up. No doubt the hideous jackal grimaces displayed here sent many of the younger 1940s movie goers home to nightmares. It's small wonder that the lead Seabee here, played by John Wayne, is no match for those declared to be barbaric beasts at best by the U.S. government. Both Wayne and the gal who loves him get gunned down by heartless Japanese snipers by the end of THE FIGHTING SEABEES.

The message of this movie, then and now, is clear. You cannot have our leaders telling it like it is for five (or fourteen) years, and then suddenly capriciously turn on a dime and make out like everything's now Sweetness & Light, Peaches & Cream, FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS & LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA, Let-Bygones-Be-Bygones, it was all a big misunderstanding, let's just forget about it. John Wayne does not equate Abraham Lincoln with Adolph Hitler in ANY of his films. History is full of heroes and villains. We must never forget which is which. As UNBROKEN proved last Christmas, THE RAILWAY MAN should have driven the stake through the vampire's heart when he had the chance. It took millions of Americans to win WWII, and now nearly all of them are dead from Japanese snipers (as documented in THE FIGHTING SEABEES) or from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder disease. Show THE FIGHTING SEABEES to your family each Pearl Harbor or VJ Day. Better yet, run it by them on both!

Fine Story of our Navy in World War II, Tops in Action, True to Life an d very well Written, Casted Directed and Acted!

[redryan64 · 10/10 · 11 January 2009]

CONTINUING in the Hollywood tradition and fine custom of rendering a fine line of films which were used as a means of communications and edification to the American People; we find the folks over on "Poverty Row" chipping in and pulling more than their weight. With the release of THE FIGHTING SEABEES (Republic Pictures, 1945) not only filled the bill, but also turned out to be one of the finest movies to come out of that studio.

BEING the Studio which had the (deserved) reputation of producing mostly attractions for the Saturday Matinée crowd; these of course being mainly the "B" Western Series and the Serials;Republic did such titles as THE RED PONY, SANDS OF IWO JIMA and THE QUIET MAN;all "A" Films.

IN addition to those listed above, we must add what is today's analyzed specimen, the screen story of the Naval Construction Battalion, much better known as THE FIGHTING SEABEES. Although it was produced in time for a 1945 release, it still packed a punch with the morale of the Armed Forces; as well as that of those at home.

SENSING that they had a very important story to tell, the Production Team set out to "Bulk up" the headliners of the cast. First of all they needed a male lead. They wanted someone who would have had experience in both the dramatic vein and in the action genre. He would have to be a 100% red blooded American Male. Well, the Republic Brain trust didn't have to look very far at all; for among their Contract Players one True Movie "Star" who would fit the bill to an absolute degree. Gee, I wonder just who that would be? ONE would certainly not have to be a film buff to come up with the answer in John Wayne.

DUKE had put in a lot of time and paid his dues with a long stint as the featured player in that series of Lone Star Western Productions, which of course was a subsidiary of Monogram Pictures. Mr. Wayne later signed on with Republic, where he was cast as the lead in their THREE MESKITEERS Western Series. More importantly, it was during this period that he was lent out to just about every studio for some movie or other. In one of his loan-outs, Director John Ford borrowed his services from Republic for the male lead in STAGECOACH (Walter Wanger Productions/United Artists, 1939) It gave a big boost to Duke's value and her saw his stock go sky high.

WORKING for about all of the other Studios in various types of roles (mostly those of a Man of Action of some sort or another), Wayne's name and reputation grew considerably. So for this time at least, there would be no going to 20th Century-Fox, Universal, Paramount or MGM for a starring role in a major motion picture. Duke would have only to stay on the Republic lot.

COSTARS for the production were a pair of most capable and popular Actors. Second lead went to Dennis O'Keefe, who while never ascending to the heights of Star, nonetheless had been most successful in many a lesser movie and as a capable, likable of a Second Lead. His casting proved to be well done as he and Wayne performed very well together, having several great scenes together.

ADDITION of Miss Susan Hayward, on loan from 20th Century-Fox (?) to the cast gave the film a great balance on the top of the bill. The insertion of her character (or any lovely lady) into the story would almost always be cause for an example of "the Eternal Triangle." And so it was; but this was Wartime and it would be handled in such a way as to remind all that this was a time of sorrow and self-sacrifice.

REPIUBLIC spared no expense in adding to the cast in a great number of tried and true character actors in supporting roles. The task was accomplished with the employ of such names as: William Frawley (Fred Mertz and 'Bub', later on TV), Grant Withers, Chief Thundercloud, J.M. Kerrigan, Leonid Kinskey, Paul Fix (Mica), Ben Welden and many others.

WHILE Republic gave THE FIGHTING SEABEES a much larger budget than most, they still got their money's worth in every respect; for while the movie called for a great deal more outdoor shooting on location than most any other of what they usually made in their Westerns and Serials. Their remedy was to stick to what they always did the best; that being to put their 'Thrill Factory Assembly Line" into working on the production.

THIS meant that they merely went to doing what they did best. They could use some of their own stock scenes of explosions, floods, fires and volcanic eruptions in movie after movie, without any adverse effect. These were always convincing and had served them well for years in lesser films.

THE reason because of their great Special Effects department, the scenes of train & airplane crashes or what have you, were done by the best guys in the business; being the Brothers Lydecker, Howard and Theodore. Their work was as fine as any in Hollywood and much better than in most cases. Even the 'Big 5' Studios of MGM, Paramount, 20th Century-Fox, RKO Radio and Warner Brothers all looked covetously at Republic's Special Effects team.

OUR STORY…………………Following the events of December 7, 1941 the need to have an all military construction unit; as the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces had no respect for unarmed civilian workers who were employed in building air strips, military compounds, etc., all throughout the Philippines and other locales in the South Pacific, They waste not a frame of film in giving background, the problems and the solution.

POUND for pound or rather frame for frame, we can't think of a better example of a great World War II Movie, BAR NONE!

POODLE SCHNITZ!!

Wartime propaganda trying convincing Americans to die!!!

[elo-equipamentos · 6/10 · 6 November 2017]

It's quite understandable that wartime this ultra nationalism propaganda make sense, war is war including this unreliable movie even more with John Wayne leading the process, works to Americans who needed to be convincing your people to die for the country, typical movie that doesn't adds to much in nothing, only to Americans whose are blind about the war!!

Resume:

First watch: 1993 / How many: 2 / Source: TV-DVD / Rating: 6

Mostly war, but a little romance thrown in

[HotToastyRag · 4/10 · 24 July 2018]

John Wayne and Dennis O'Keefe butt heads in The Fighting Seabees, and not just over military strategy. This WW2 war movie is also a love triangle, as both men fight over the beautiful and smart Susan Hayward. I thought the romance was the most interesting part of the movie, but unfortunately for me, the war scenes were more frequent. However, if you're looking for a straight war movie, you'll probably think the romantic scenes are the unnecessary ones!

The film was made during WW2, and it was mostly a pro-American propaganda film to boost morale and ensure the folks at home, "Have no fear, we'll lick this thing!" The Duke is the head of a construction company building in the South Pacific. When the Japanese invade, the "fighting" Seabees must come together and protect the island. If you're a John Wayne fan, which I am not, you probably won't find any problem with this one. If you're looking for a young Susan Hayward flick, rent Adam Had Four Sons instead.

Great Tribute To The Hero Seabees

[frank4122 · 10/10 · 24 July 2019]

It didn't seem like there was much action until the last part of the film but that was well worth the wait. Hard to imagine all the gun fire while Seabees were trying to build on a remote island in WW ll and seeing their crew get blown up all around them. The first part was mostly John Wayne and Dennis O'Keefe dealing with the mundane bureaucratic red tape from the army. But that's where my favorite actress of all time, Susan Hayward saves the day. She is brilliant in playing the love interest of the leading men. This is why she is an Oscar winner and a star of many outstanding films. William Frawley was outstanding as Wayne's foreman and top man in rallying the troops. Also great to see Sascha, the bartender at Rick's Cafe Americaine, in Casablanca, Leonid Kinskey. Hayward, O'Keefe and John Wayne were exemplary in depicting the passion of our heroes, The Fighting Seabees.

Fast-paced, satisfying tribute to U.S. civilians in warfare

[shakercoola · 6/10 · 6 October 2019]

An American war film; A story about a rebellious head of a civilian construction company in the South Pacific who defies military orders to train his men for combat which leads to tragic circumstances and a new military intiative for fight-back. This is a patriotic fictional story about the creation of the United States Naval Construction Battalions, better known as the Navy Seabees. It has a theme about heroic sacrifice and expiation of past mistakes. Nevertheless, there is some implausability for those aware of historical accuracy to the period. Character-development is lean and the romantic subplot is a deviation from the main story thrust, but there is good chemistry between a forceful John Wayne and a vivacious Susan Hayward. The Academy Award nominated film score lends an atmosphere of foreboding but it also falters to sappy in the scenes of romance.

John Wayne World War II drama with an Oscar nominated Score

[jacobs-greenwood · 5/10 · 19 December 2016]

Directed by Edward Ludwig, based on a story by Borden Chase, who wrote the screenplay with Aeneas MacKenzie, this average war drama about the formation of Construction Battalions (C.B. - get it?) by the U.S. Navy during World War II also includes a love triangle subplot involving its three top-billed actors: John Wayne, Susan Hayward, and Dennis O'Keefe. Wayne plays a well known (and well liked, by his crews) construction company owner Wedge Donovan, who's recruited by Lieutenant Commander Robert Yarrow (O'Keefe) to help sell his idea to train and arm the construction specialists to his superiors.

But Wayne's character (who dances the Jitterbug with Adele Mara, uncredited) is a bit of a hothead who doesn't take direction nor orders from others very well and that, in addition to his interest in Yarrow's girlfriend Connie Chesley (Hayward), is the basis for the story's conflict. The film's Score was nominated for an Academy Award.

After Donovan's construction crew returns from doing a job for the Navy, during which several of his men are killed, Lt. Cmdr. Yarrow asks him to help go before some admirals to arm these specialists against the enemy. But when Donovan learns that the Navy wants to do more than just provide his men with weapons, that they want to train them (to fight properly) for perhaps 3 months or more, Wedge is impatient and refuses to cooperate further.

Donovan decides to go with his men - William Frawley plays foreman Eddie Powers, Leonid Kinskey, J.M. Kerrigan, Grant Withers, Paul Fix, and Ben Welden (among others) - on their next job for the Navy, and Yarrow's newspaper reporter girlfriend Connie is assigned to go along for the story. She tells Donovan that the Lt. Cmdr. had been sent ahead to keep Wedge and his men from getting into trouble (e.g. the war). Their convoy heads for a Pacific island that's later invaded by the Japanese. During the invasion, when a few of his men are killed (because they weren't in the Navy's provided shelter), Donovan's temper gets the best of his judgment and he leads his construction crew into the middle of the crossfire that Yarrow had set–up to contend with Japan's invading force. The result is not pretty: a large number of Donovan's crew is killed or injured, including Connie, who'd been spending a considerable amount of time with Wedge.

While Donovan is tending to her wound, she tells him that she loves him and Wedge proclaims the same before she passes out. Yarrow heard it all, but that doesn't keep him from forgiving and apologizing to Donovan's men for his error when, after realizing what he'd wrought, Wedge is at a loss for words.

Wedge seems to have learned his lesson because he then helps Yarrow to form the Seabees, by recruiting construction specialists into training by the Navy for specific battalions (e.g. to build and repair runways and other requirements). Donovan's even given the rank of Lieutenant Commander in the Navy, working for Yarrow. When Connie's better, she's as upset to learn that Wedge doesn't want her as Yarrow is that she doesn't want him.

Donovan and Yarrow then ship off to another Pacific island to build and secure a runway with a fuel depot. Unfortunately, his men make easy targets for the (smiling) Japanese snipers that still infest the "jungle". Naturally, this leads Donovan, who had changed and learned to perform within the Navy's system, to ignore Yarrow's orders once again and nearly cause the depot to fall into the now invading enemies' hands. But, like the cavalry, Donovan and his men who had been hunting the snipers return just in time to save the day (tractors & cranes in combat!), causing Wedge to lose his life heroically.

After a ceremony honoring the brave Seabees and their successful defense, Yarrow and Connie decide that they can be together once again.