They Were Expendable

On the eve of war, Lt. John Brickley (Robert Montgomery) is assigned to take his Patrol Torpedo Boat Squadron to Manila Bay to defend against a possible Japanese attack in the Philippines. Once there, he finds that the top brass--amused by the idea that small crafts can be useful in combat--relegates the PT boat to messenger duty. Angered by that reaction, Brickley and his crew wait for an opportunity to show just what they're capable of. An attack on their base gives them the green light to shoot down three Japanese planes. But when the base is closed, Brick's squadron is reassigned to Bataan, where they are once again ordered to run messages. Fed up with such meaningless duty, Brickley's fiery executive officer Lt. Rusty Ryan (John Wayne) asks to be transferred to a destroyer. Considered by many as John Ford's greatest, most poetic work, EXPENDABLE pays tribute to all who donned a uniform during the war, whatever their role. Montgomery, who shared in the film's direction, gives the best non-comic performance of his career as the even-handed CO, while Wayne creates a unique portrait of patriotic resolve. But it's the eloquent compositions of director of photography Joseph H. August that resonate most powerfully.