MartinHafer The story in "The Sea Wolves" is based on a real and rather strange episode in World War II history. Not wanting to provoke an international incident with neutral Portugal, the British decide to attack a German ship docked in Goa (an Indian city controlled at the time by the Portuguese) using civilians....elderly non-coms at that! They need to destroy or capture the boat because the ship is being used against Allied shipping. And, the film starred a lot of older stars--the likes of Gregory Peck, David Niven, Roger Moore and Trevor Howard! This really sounds like an interesting story, right? Well, oddly, it wasn't. In fact, after a while I was just looking forward to the film ending. Why? Well, I think the problem is mostly because none of the characters were very interesting. They had a nice idea but the writer simply didn't instill enough in the characters to make them the least bit endearing or realistic. Sad. As a result, it's a film that you could watch if you have nothing better to do or you could just skip it. My vote? Flip a coin.

mikcomserv (spoilers ahead) Although the cast was A list, the writing and direction was a bit over the top and cheesy at times, and hard to follow at other times. No matter how talented the cast, weak writing and direction still leave us with a mediocre story. Some of the cloak and dagger scenes were over-acted, to the point of being funny -- sort of like a kid trying to be sneaky, and we won't go into Roger Moore's love scenes, where he looked like he was puckering up to suck her face off.) However, of all the facets that detracted from an essentially good story, the campy musical score was at the top. It sounded like someone edited in some old background music used for a silent era film. I'm sorry, but playing upbeat or breezy music during a scene of intrigue or suspense tends to distract from the mood. Did the composer even score the music while the scenes played out in post-production? In the end, the film wound up looking like a low budget TV movie.

Dark Jedi I have to admit that I am probably a bit biased when it comes to this movie which sometimes is referred to as The Last Charge of The Calcutta Light Horse by the way. It is a classical war movie that I saw, and liked, as a kid. It also has several of my favorite actors since I was a kid in it. So needless to say I really do like this movie.When re-watching it yesterday I really enjoyed seeing characters like Gregory Peck and David Niven again. They are part of a time when movie characters could be funny, strong and quite macho without being totally overdone and foul-mouthed. David Niven as well as a few of the other characters are just great with their British "stiff upper lip" attitude and British humor.The story is a rather classical World War 2 adventure story even though it is based on an actual event. Most of the movie is the initial spy-adventure with Gregory Peck and Roger Moore followed by the preparations and boat ride into the neutral harbor of Goa. These are really the best part of the movie where the characters are really making the movie.When the action starts at the end of the movie the characters themselves kind of get hidden behind the action which, quite frankly, is not top quality. Like many older movies these parts are a bit cartoonish, illogical and certainly not very realistic. The special effects are also, not surprisingly, up to modern standards. I never figured out what the German captain really expected to achieve with oil drums on the deck by the way. I guess it made some nice fiery scenes at the end though.For me, watching this movie again yesterday, that was two very enjoyable hours.

buiger What great escapist fun! This movie is excellent as long as you don't take it seriously, like the above critics did. Anyone who knows the Brits will understand. The two critics main complaint is that the movie is too slow getting where it is headed. My answer to them is: 'It is not reaching the goal that counts but the journey itself!' Today's 'modern' movies are far too fast-paced for their own good in my opinion.Granted, it is strange to make almost a parody out of a true WW II exploit, but then again, making fun of serious matters and of oneself is the basis of British humor... The cast of course is great, how enjoyable is it to watch the likes of Gregory Peck, David Niven, Roger Moore and many others really having fun filming this flick! I very much enjoyed this cross between 'Bridge on the River Kwai', James Bond and 'Monty Python'. They don't make them like this any more... Highly recommended, as long as you don't expect a 'real' WW II film.