The 1950's New Hero As Seen In The Film The Cruel Sea

An excellent documentary style film- The Cruel Sea directed by Charles Frend is about a British ship in the north Atlantic during the Second World War. It was released during the war years and was extremely successful with both the critics and the public . In contrast to the carefully balanced class divisions of the characters in, In Which We Serve, The Cruel Seal is unrelenting about its middle class characters, which

There is a different kind of heroism being played out in the film-The Cruel Sea, it was heroism not for egotism, but to save others from hardship and danger, personal sacrifices had to be made whether the seamen of The Compass Rose chose them or not. War on the home front saw many of the crewmen coming home to lost homes and destroyed families. Overcoming the loss of a loved one became just another battle which had to be won for the sake of the nation. This is a film that succeeds in telling how dangerously close to the edge the British came during the Battle of the Atlantic and of the enormous impact it had on ordinary individuals. It forced ordinary men, such as Captain Ericson to make horrific choices such as ones endangering the lives of his crew or risking the lives of innocent men. The closing scene leaves the audience with a real sense of how, after five long years of war, a nation was left exhausted and emotionally drained.

The making of a true hero was a man who had overcome all adversaries, defied the exceptional, did not give in to personal weakness, overcame all fears, made personal sacrifices and chose to live in a world changed and manipulated by war. He was a man who adapted and accepted a new today to help build a better England for the good of tomorrow.

On the evening on what would become Mr. Morell;s last shore visit he pleads with his wife to reschedule a 'business meeting' so they can share a last meal together before his leave, she abruptly refuses his offer "business needs to go on" she replies and causally walks out the scene. Before Mr. Morell has time to feel sorry for himself the phone rings unable to get a word in edge ways he hears a mans voice on the other end of the line "have you managed to get rid of that intangible husband of yours I'm ready to go for dinner" without another word uttered in the scene Mr. Morell picks up his packed bag takes one long, final look around their room, accepting the news like a true man should, and proudly walks out the door, never looking back. The adulterous events of this scene are beautifully summed up by Captain Ericson "It's no-ones fault" he says, "It's the war, the whole bloody war." A hero had to understand that with war came change, and one of the ways for the 'bigger picture' to succeed was through personal sacrifices. The making of a hero was marked by personal scars.

The most traumatic scene in the film occurs after a submarine has caused havoc to the convoy and the ASDIC (sonar detector) reveals that it is beneath a group of British sailors who are struggling in the water, hoping to be rescued. "There are men in the water just there," Captain Ericson murmurs, realizing that as Captain he is alone in making an agonizing decision. Faced with an appalling choice, he chooses to drop the depth charges that will not only destroy the enemy but will also kill his fellow countrymen. The attack is pressed home, not only killing the defenseless men but also failing to hit the U-boat, "bloody murderer" is yelled out from a member of his crew. This leads to a moving scene where Captain Ericsons' resolute professionalism crumbles in a brief but heartfelt show of drunken emotion. This scene is not only crucial in the making of a hero but it reinforces the antiwar sentiment, which runs throughout the film. Captain Ericson had to choose between a few shipwrecked British solders or risk the lives of all the seamen on board his ship. His decision to attack the U-boat at the expense of the men was one that could only have been made by man changed through war. Only a hero had the courage to risk lives of the innocent for the better of the nation, and, though he pays the price later (in the scene of drunken emotion) he is able to overcome his moment of weakness, and restrain from

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