Comments on: Lifeboat (1944)

By: Herb Behrens

Herb Behrens — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 18:42:07 +0000

On JANUARY 10, 1944 Steinbeck sent a wire to 20th Century-Fox: “I have just seen the film lifeboat…and billed as written by me. …while it is certainly true I wrote a script for Lifeboat, it is not true that in that script as in the film there were any slurs …” & on 2/19/1944 he instructed his agent, Annie Williams to write ” …because the picture seems to be dangerous to the American war effort, I request my name be removed from any connection with any showing of this film”

By: Joe Valdez

Joe Valdez — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 20:59:01 +0000

Damian: I remembered Lifeboat being a lot better when I saw it on VHS in my early 20s. Maybe I’m just getting more jaded in my mid 30s. Hitchcock actually planned on being a corpse floating in the sea, but the dummy proved impractical, leading to the alternative which as you point out, was clever. It totally brings the movie to a standstill, but, it’s funny.

By: Damian

Damian — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 02:44:39 +0000

While certainly not one of the director’s best (and in spite of the many flaws which you point out here in your piece, Joe), I still rather like Lifeboat. At the very least it features what I think may be Hitch’s most clever cameo appearance.