The Last Voyage (1960)

This movie has some spectacular scenes but too much about it makes no sense.Why should the captain be so obcessed about making a record trip in a ship headed for the scrap heap? And all the things in the boiler room that were defective, no matter how old the ship was or what was its intended fate, passenger ships were carefully inspected before each voyage, No inspector would have failed to make sure something as critical as a steam gage or safety valve was working. That kind of thing was constantly checked.Nor would an engineer in charge have to worry about begging a higher up for taking action immediately.He would have immediately cut off the fuel oil supply to all boilers to reduce pressure until he had checked everything out.Nobody in this thing uses the least common sense.And as far as the woman trapped, the sensible thing,AGAIN" would be to round up some strong male passengers to help.get a heavy beam or oron bar to use as a lever, with something to use as shims to prevent the wall from falling back down as pressure was released.FIRST clearing all the depris out of the room so you could see what you were doing,you could have leavered the wall clear in a fraction of the time,far more quickly than bothering with the cutting torch,which could never have cleared things in the few minutes shown.At the time people regarded the trashing of the fine old liner as desecration to make this thing,It is a great pity that no one thought of preserving it as a hotel like the Queen Mary.

"The Last Voyage" is a 1960 film starring Robert Stack, Dorothy Malone, George Sanders, Edmond O'Brien and Willy Strode. It's a film of firsts.The ship used as the Claridon was the Isle de France, and that includes the interiors, which the producers partially sunk. After that, the ship, which had been in service for 33 years, was scraped. The Isle de France was part of the rescue of passengers from the Andrea Doria, the first ship on the scene.The story concerns, like the Isle de France, an old ship, the SS Claridon, on his final voyage before retirement after 33 years of service. Unfortunately for the ship, the crew, and the passengers, the ship is ill-equipped to handle a boiler room problem and the ship starts to take on more water than it can handle. The Captain (George Sanders) refuses to listen to reason, believing that his ship is invincible.When fires break out and ceilings start falling, one family is especially affected, the Hendersons (Stack, Malone, and Tammy Manhugh - more on her later). Laura Henderson (Malone) is trapped under debris and can't move, and Jill is trapped on one side of a huge, cavernous hole, and her father is on the other. Henderson desperately tries to find someone on the sinking ship who can assist him in freeing his wife.This is a very exciting and suspenseful film, with great effects and overall good acting, particularly from Sanders, Strode, O'Brien, and Malone. Woody Strode is oiled up, muscular, and has no shirt on - definite eye candy. He plays a compassionate, hard-working man determined to help. Interestingly, Stack, Malone, Sanders, and O'Brien were all best-supporting actor nominees, and all except Stack won.I had a couple of problems with this movie, which is loosely based on the happenings on the Andrea Doria. First of all, when Henderson tries to save Jill, he gets a board and stretches it across the cavernous space. When he tries to crawl on it, it weakens and cracks. Why didn't he just have her crawl to him (which he ultimately does) instead of trying to get to her? And were they then going to cross on that board together? I don't think so.The other problem I had is that Malone, after being in intolerable pain and her legs probably broken and pinned under this steel debris was able to run like hell once she was carried off the boat (which certainly seemed unnecessary in light of later activity) and tread water to the lifeboat.This film was made before all the huge disaster films and does a good job of focusing on the plight of one family that needs aide in the midst of total panic. Also, in 1960, traveling by ocean liner was much more common than it is today, and it was just about to end and be taken over by the jet. So "The Last Voyage" represents a form of travel today used for vacationing, provided the passengers don't get food poisoning and the captain doesn't abandon the ship as it's heading for the rocks.On to the rather annoying daughter, played by Tammy Manhugh. Manhugh was a prolific child actress who retired from show business and became an exotic dancer. She ultimately married a bodybuilder named Rodney Lawson, who was ten years her junior. He was an abusive husband, and in 1996, she shot him in the back. She was sentenced to probation.Totally worth seeing.

One of the Best Disaster and Action Movies that has, Unfortunately, been Overlooked and Under-Appreciated. But Certainly not by those who have Seen it. Anyone who has had that Unforgettable Experience is Impressed.It is a Film that was Ahead of its Time and was Uncharacteristically so Intense and Fast Paced that it is Quite Remarkable for a Film of its Period. Probably Because it was an Independent Production Without Studio Interference. Director and Producer Andrew Stone was able to Make this Exciting Movie with a Relatively Low Budget and turn it into a Forgotten Film that is One of the Genre's Gems.From the Opening Frame in the Dining Room where the Ships Captain is handed a note that says Simply "fire in the engine room", the Audience is Sucked into a High Voltage Survival Story of Passengers and Crew Racing to Save the Ship and Themselves. The Cast of Robert Stack, Dorothy Malone, George Sanders, and Woody Strode are all Excellent, but the True Star of the Film is the Pacing, the Authenticity, the High-Stakes Melodrama, and an All Around Production that is Awe Inspiring. Humanity in Crisis, where They Often Shine, is also on Board in this Fantastic Film. Highly Recommended for Anyone.Note...There has been a bit of whining from some old salts about using and abusing a real antiquated ship about to be euthanized, to make this Movie. If She could talk maybe She would be proud to play a role in a drama that reflected some of her real-life sisters tragedies. An homage to their dignity and memory.

it is a special film. not only for story or for cast. but for extraordinary care for details. for the art to give soul to a spectacular subject but almost common in a period of catastrophic scenes. a kind of gem , realistic, touching, fresh at each new discover. because a gray story becomes, in this case, a lesson about powerful art. a splendid contribution - George Sanders in an ambiguous - convincing role. the other - the admirable work of Woody Strode. its virtue - science to transform the story in a different case by disaster movies. and brave science to transform a personal case in key of tragedy. impressive, admirable, perfect work, it remains a brilliant model for this genre of movie.