Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Disaster movies from this era are, in general, fairly forgettable, but "The Last Voyage" rises above the norm in several ways. The stars of this film are well cast with Robert Stack in fine form as the heroic husband out to save his wife, George Sanders excelling as Captain Robert Adams, and Dorothy Malone doing a generally good (though occasionally over the top) job as the imperiled heroine. Stack and Malone had worked together before, and have an excellent onscreen chemistry. While football star turned actor Woody Strode does an excellent job as a selfless crewman, the downside to the casting was Tammy Marihugh who played the daughter of Stack and Malone, and who is one of the most shrill and annoying child actors in memory. I gave this film four stars, and a good part of the reason it didn't get five was due to that one piece of casting.
The real star of the film, of course, was the "S.S. Claridon" which sank due to a fire, boiler explosion, and aged bulkheads. Most movies from the 1960s have poor special effects, but "The Last Voyage" is different because there are no real special effects here. The actual star of the film turns out to be no other than the beautiful art deco French Line ship, the "Ile de France," a ship more famous than most people realize. The "Ile de France" was the first ocean liner completed after world war one, and served through many years of service on the Atlantic (including as a troop transport during world war two.) Her most famous accomplishment, though, was coming to the aid of the "Andrea Doria" which sank in 1956: "Ile de France" was key to the rescue operation, but was retired and this film was made just four years later.
The film was shot onboard the ship, which is why the sets look so realistic and why the sinking is so realistic (she was actually sunk for the film.) While the plot itself is a bit contrived (really, an acetylene delivery by rowboat?) the story is generally well done and the shots of the ship are magnificent, although the mechanics of the funnel collapse might be questioned by marine architects.
I recommend the film as an above average suspense drama, and especially for the beautiful shots of a magnificent liner in her final days.
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