The Sea Wolves

{{Infobox film

| name = The Sea Wolves

| image = The Sea Wolves.jpg

| caption = Original film poster by Arnaldo Putzu

| director = Andrew V. McLaglen

| based_on = {{based on|Boarding Party
1978 book by James Leasor}}

| screenplay = Reginald Rose

| starring = Gregory Peck
Roger Moore
David Niven
Trevor Howard
Barbara Kellerman
Patrick Macnee

| producer = Euan Lloyd

| cinematography = Tony Imi

| music = Roy Budd

| studio = Lorimar Productions
Richmond Light Horse Productions
Varius Entertainment Trading A.G.

| distributor = Rank Film Distributors
Paramount Pictures
Elite Films (Switzerland)

| released = {{Film date|1980|07|03|London|1980|08|22|Switzerland|df=yes}}

| runtime = 120 minutes

| country = United Kingdom
United States
Switzerland

| language = English

| budget = $12 million{{cite magazine|magazine=Variety|title=Euan Lloyd Preems 'Sea Wolves'; After Europe, Then U.S.|last=Kindred|first=Jack|url=https://archive.org/details/sim_variety_1980-08-27_300_4/page/42|date=27 August 1980|page=42|via=Archive.org|access-date=27 August 2023}}

| gross = $220,181 (USA){{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=seawolves.htm|title=Sea Wolves (1981)|website=Box Office Mojo}}

}}

The Sea Wolves is a 1980 war film starring Gregory Peck, Roger Moore and David Niven. The film, which is based on the 1978 book Boarding Party by James Leasor, is the true story of Operation Creek during the Second World War. In the covert mission, the Calcutta Light Horse, part of the Cavalry Reserve in the British Indian Army, successfully sank a German merchant ship in Mormugão Harbour in neutral Portugal's territory of Goa, India, on 9 March 1943. The ship had a secret radio which was transmitting information about Allied shipping to U-boats operating in the Indian Ocean.

The film, which starred veteran American and British actors, was produced by Euan Lloyd and directed by Andrew V. McLaglen; both had previously worked together on the successful 1978 British-Swiss war film The Wild Geese.

Plot

During World War II, German U-boats are sinking thousands of tons of British merchant shipping in the Indian Ocean. British intelligence, based in India, believes that information is being passed to the U-boats by a radio transmitter hidden on board one of three German merchant ships interned in Goa, then a colony of Portugal. Since Portugal is neutral, the ships cannot be attacked by conventional forces.

The head of the Indian section of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) authorises attempts to kidnap and interrogate two known German agents, but these operations both fail. An approach is then made to a Territorial unit of British expatriates, the Calcutta Light Horse, to carry out the mission on its behalf. They all volunteer – all are trained in military skills and keen to 'do their bit'.

Whilst the volunteers are trained, Stewart and Cartwright travel covertly to Goa. By a mixture of blackmail and bribery, they arrange diversions on the night of the raid. A party is to be held in the Governor's palace, a brothel will offer free entry to sailors from ships in the port and a Carnival with fireworks will be held. Stewart has a brief affair with Mrs. Cromwell, a mysterious and socially well-connected woman, who turns out to be a German agent and the main conduit to the German 'Master Spy', known to the Germans and the British by the code-name Trompeta (Trumpet). She is eventually killed by Stewart after she attempts to kill him, but not before she has killed Jack Cartwright.

The raiding party sail around the coast in a decrepit and barely seaworthy barge; they set limpet mines on the hull of the German ships in Goa. They then board one which is being used to transmit signals to U-boats, catching the depleted crew off-guard. Despite Pugh's order that there be no shooting, several German sailors are killed. The ship is set alight and the party withdraws, watching as the ship sinks. The final scene shows a surfacing German U-boat which is expecting to hear a signal from the now sunken ship.

=Differences from actual raid=

While certain elements are faithful to the real-life raid, in reality the ships were not blown up by limpet mines but scuttled by their own crew. It is widely believed the intention was the capture of the ships rather than their destruction. Only four German crew died, with the rest swimming ashore.

The German spy known as Trumpet was in reality not a single person but a couple. Captured by Pugh and Stewart, they were interrogated by British Intelligence but all trace of them was removed from the records and their fate is unknown.

Cast

{{castlist|

Gregory Peck as Lieutenant-Colonel Lewis Henry Owain Pugh, Royal Artillery (who later rose to the rank of major-general)
Roger Moore as Captain Gavin Stewart (the real Gavin Stewart was a colonel)
David Niven as Colonel W.H. Grice
Trevor Howard as Jack Cartwright
Barbara Kellerman as Mrs. Agnes Cromwell
Patrick Macnee as Major 'Yogi' Crossley
Kenneth Griffith as Wilton
Patrick Allen as Colin Mackenzie
Wolf Kahler as Trompeta
Robert Hoffmann as U-boat Kapitän
Dan van Husen as U-boat First Officer
George Mikell as Kapitän of Ehrenfels
Jürgen Andersen as First Officer of Ehrenfels
Bernard Archard as Underhill
Martin Benson as Mr. Montero
Faith Brook as Mrs. Doris Grice
Allan Cuthbertson as Dickie Melborne
Edward Dentith as Lumsdaine
Clifford Earl as Sloane
Vice Admiral RKS Ghandhi as the Governor
Percy Herbert as Dennison
Patrick Holt as Barker
Donald Houston as Hilliard
Glyn Houston as Peters
Victor Langley as Williamson
Terence Longdon as Malverne
Michael Medwin as Radcliffe
W. Morgan Sheppard as 'Patch' Lovecroft
John Standing as Finley
Graham Stark as Don Manners
Keith Stevenson as Manuel
Jack Watson as Maclean
Moray Watson as Breene
Brook Williams as Butterworth
Marc Zuber as Ram Das Gupta
Mohan Agashe as the Brothel Keeper

}}

Production

=Development=

The film was originally known as Boarding Party.{{cite news|title=Scripting Joan Crawford as Mom|work=Los Angeles Times|date=17 Aug 1978|page=j16}} According to the documentary The Last of the Gentleman Producers, producer Euan Lloyd says that he originally planned to reunite Moore with Wild Geese co-stars Richard Burton and Richard Harris as Pugh and Grice.{{cite news|title=Hustling with the Best|newspaper=The Irish Times|date=22 May 1979|location=Dublin, Ireland|page=10}}

Fifty percent of the budget was provided by Lorimar. They fell out with United Artists, their distributor, before the film was delivered. Lorimar subsequently formed a new relationship with Paramount but producer Euan Lloyd thought that studio regarded the film as "the poor cousin" and as a result it "wasn't sold properly".{{cite news|author=Mills, N.|date=May 9, 1982|title=MOVIES|work= Los Angeles Times|id={{ProQuest|153125767}}}}

=Casting=

The film reunited much of the cast and crew from 1978's The Wild Geese, including actors Roger Moore, Kenneth Griffith, Jack Watson, Percy Herbert, Patrick Allen, Brook Williams, Patrick Holt and Terence Longdon, writer Reginald Rose, producer Euan Lloyd, director Andrew V. McLaglen, designer Syd Cain, and composer Roy Budd.

=Filming=

Filming took place on location in Goa, India.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article47121325 |title=The day the Weekly was invited to go on location. |newspaper=The Australian Women's Weekly | date=14 May 1980 |access-date=10 December 2015 |page=26 |via=National Library of Australia}}

Soundtrack

The title music for The Sea Wolves was adapted by Roy Budd from the famous Warsaw Concerto of composer Richard Addinsell.{{Cite web|title = The Sea Wolves (Original Soundtrack Recording) – Roy Budd {{!}} Songs, Reviews, Credits {{!}} AllMusic|url = http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-sea-wolves-original-soundtrack-recording-mw0000205953|website = AllMusic|access-date = 2016-01-16}} Budd had, at the time, already composed or arranged numerous other film scores, notably those of The Wild Geese and Get Carter. For The Sea Wolves, Budd added lyrics by Leslie Bricusse to his, Budd's, arrangement of the Warsaw Concerto music, the resulting song being entitled The Precious Moments,{{Cite web|title = PRECIOUS MOMENTS, THE – Lyrics – International Lyrics Playground|url = http://lyricsplayground.com/alpha/songs/p/preciousmomentsthe.shtml|website = lyricsplayground.com|access-date = 2016-01-16}}{{Citation|title = The Sea Wolves|url = https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081470/soundtrack|date = 1981-06-05|access-date = 2016-01-16|first = Andrew V.|last = McLaglen}} sung by the British baritone Matt Monro, who had also sung title tracks for many other films.{{citation needed|date=June 2024}}

Incidental music is from the Warsaw Concerto.{{citation needed|date=June 2024}}

Release

The film had its world premiere on 3 July 1980 at the Leicester Square Theatre in London before opening to the public the following day there and at the Odeon Marble Arch.{{cite news|newspaper=Evening Standard|date=3 July 1980|page=20|title=Entertainment Guide}}

Reception

Film critic Robert Roten gave the film a "C+," and described it as "a workmanlike film told in a non-flashy, straightforward way, featuring an all-star cast."{{cite web| url=http://www.lariat.org/AtTheMovies/old/seawolves.html|title=The Sea Wolves: The Last Charge of the Calcutta Light Horse| author= Robert Roten|accessdate=2 February 2022|website= Laramie Movie Scope }}

References

External links

{{IMDb title|id=0081470|title=The Sea Wolves}}
{{Rotten Tomatoes|1018440_sea_wolves}}
{{TCMDb title|id=89337}}
{{AFI film|id=56867|title=The Sea Wolves}}
[https://www.jamesleasor.com/non-fiction/boarding-party/#=true Boarding Party] by James Leasor, 1978, 2011. {{ISBN|978-1-908291-02-8}}
O Espião Alemão em Goa: SOE operation "Longshanks", 2nd edition – José António Barreiros
[https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=sukq0zpO&id=16F9E528A358777F86EEF36B1123E9F6ABC78EED&thid=OIP.sukq0zpOPmJk-Vd2spnm1wHaK0&mediaurl=http%3a%2f%2fimages.moviepostershop.com%2fthe-sea-wolves-movie-poster-1980–1020466814.jpg&exph=847&expw=580&q=movie+poster+the+sea+wolves&simid=608005021830875978&selectedIndex=1&qpvt=movie+poster+the+sea+wolves&ajaxhist=0 A comic movie poster of The Sea Wolves]

Category:1980 films

Category:1980s historical films

Category:1980s war adventure films

Category:British historical films

Category:British war adventure films

Category:Films based on British novels

Category:Films directed by Andrew McLaglen

Category:Films set in the British Raj

Category:Films set in Goa

Category:Films set on ships

Category:Films set in 1943

Category:Films about submarine warfare