Underplayed Gems

Western Approaches (1944)

Western Approaches poster
Directed by
Pat Jackson
Genre
documentary film
Country
United Kingdom
Runtime
1h 23m
Rating
6.4 of 10 from 5 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A crew of British merchant sailors are stranded in a lifeboat in the North Atlantic during World War II. They signal for help and a nearby German U-boat tries to ambush their rescuers. The sailors must spot the submarine before it attacks.

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What happens

Western Approaches is a 1944 docufiction film directed by Pat Jackson and was Crown Film Unit's first Technicolor production. The music is by Clifton Parker. It is the fictional account of 22 British Merchant Navy sailors adrift in a lifeboat. They are able to signal by Morse code their position. A nearby U-boat receives the signal along with a friendly vessel which changes course to go to their rescue. The captain of the U-boat decides to wait in ambush with its two remaining torpedoes. Before the rescue ship arrives, the U-boat's periscope is spotted by the lifeboat. The U-boat fires its torpedoes just as the rescue vessel is alerted to the U-boat's presence. Although set in the North Atlantic, much of it was shot in the Irish Sea. Sailors rather than professional actors were used. Trade papers reported that the film among those "doing well" at the British box office in 1945. It was called "the outstanding documentary release" of January 1945. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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