Considering the many masterful perspectives that the British film industry provided during the WWII era of England's role in the conflict-- movies such as In Which We Serve (1942), One of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942), 49th Parallel (1941) and Went the Day Well? (1942), it's perhaps unsurprising that Anthony Asquith's submarine warfare procedural We Dive at Dawn (1943) has often been lost in the shuffle. It's unfortunate as well, since the film's semi-documentary tone and engaging performances provide compelling entertainment for audiences of subsequent generations.

The scenario by J.B. Williams and Val Valentine introduces us to the crew of HMS Sea Tiger, who have just docked in London to enjoy some well-deserved leave. For the craft's youngish and supremely self-confident skipper, Lt. Freddie Taylor (John Mills), he's looking forward to the type of R&R that the contents of his burgeoning black book can bring. For the rank and file, it's got a series of challenges. Torpedo gunner's mate Mike Corrigan (Niall MacGinnis) is looking for any excuse to dodge his planned wedding ceremony, while feigning enthusiasm for the benefit of his brother-in-law-to-be, ship's coxwain Dickie Dabbs (Reginald Purdell). For his part, the taciturn veteran leading seaman Jim Hobson (Eric Portman) heads home to make a last-ditch plea to his estranged wife (Josephine Wilson) in order to salvage their marriage.

Real life abruptly intrudes, as the crew is summoned back to port with critical orders. The German battleship Brandenburg is putting out for the Baltic Sea via the Kiel Canal of the Danish peninsula, and the Sea Tiger has been charged with intercepting and sinking her before the canal can be reached. With the rescue of a trio of German airmen from a buoy, the Sea Tiger is delayed from the intercept, and Taylor takes the gambit of circling Denmark, and braving nets and minefields, in order to confront the Brandenburg on its emergence from the canal.

The plan pays off, and the German warship is subjected to torpedo fire; without a chance to find out if the target has been hit, the Sea Tiger takes its own damage from the Brandenburg's escort. Taylor has the crew crash-dive and jettison debris, which dupes the Germans into believing they have a kill. However, the skirmish has left the British sub without enough fuel for the return home. The officers are ready to let their men choose capture over death when the fatalistic (and handily Deutsch-speaking) Hobson offers to don one of the German pilot's uniforms and run a distraction while the ship puts in at an occupied Danish port for refueling. The execution of this audacious scheme carries the narrative to a rousing conclusion.

Top billing went to Portman, whose brooding presence and skill in portraying damaged personalities spoke to wartime British filmgoers, and who had gained popularity for his efforts in the aforementioned 49th Parallel and One of Our Aircraft Is Missing. Mills, who had burnished his own resume during the era with In Which We Serve and Waterloo Road (1945) brought his signature fortitude and grace under fire to the role of the cocksure captain.

The Royal Admiralty's cooperation with the Gaumont-British production is reflected in the scrupulous detail, and Mills prepped for his role by accompanying a submarine crew on a voyage down the Clyde. The actor recalled the moment that the sub took a crash dive in his 1980 autobiography Up in the Clouds, Gentlemen Please: "The ship then seemed to stand on her nose and I felt her speeding like an arrow towards the sea bed; charts and crockery went flying in all directions; I hung on to a rail near the periscope trying to look heroic and totally unconcerned; the only thing that concerned me was the fact that I was sure that my face had turned a pale shade of pea-green."

Producer: Edward Black
Director: Anthony Asquith
Screenplay: J.B. Williams, Val Valentine (story and screenplay); Frank Launder (uncredited)
Cinematography: Jack Cox
Art Direction: Walter Murton
Music: Hubert Bath (uncredited)
Film Editing: R.E. Dearing
Cast: John Mills (Lt Freddie Taylor - Captain), Louis Bradfield (Lt. Brace, First Officer), Ronald Millar (Lt. Johnson, Third Officer), Jack Watling (Lt. Gordon, Navigating Officer), Reginald Purdell (Coxwain, C/P.O. Dabbs), Caven Watson (Chief Engine Room Artificer, C/P.O. Duncan), Niall MacGinnis (Torpedo Gunner's Mate, C/P.O. Mike Corrigan).
BW-98m.

by Jay Steinberg