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Hell and High Water

Play trailer Poster for Hell and High Water Released Feb 6, 1954 1h 43m Adventure Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 5 Reviews 36% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Mercenary sub commander, Captain Adam Jones (Richard Widmark), sells his services to noted atomic scientist Professor Montel (Victor Francen) and his daughter, Denise (Bella Darvi). Professor Montel is convinced the Communists are about to launch a nuclear attack on Korea from an island in the Arctic and blame it on the United States. Captain Jones does not care about politics, but the earnest Professor and his supporters win him over to their cause and they try to thwart the Communist's plans.

Critics Reviews

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Fernando F. Croce Slant Magazine Hell and High Water more than holds its own with such other all-business '50s naval flicks as The Enemy Below and Run Silent Run Deep. Rated: 3/4 May 23, 2007 Full Review Francois Truffaut Arts (France) Fuller’s direction is merely adequate; color has been used in an amusing way, but without taste. Richard Widmark is prodigiously bored; Victor Francen, with his feverish chin, parodies himself. May 6, 2022 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy In the annals of cinematic submarine sagas, this one rests toward the middle of the pack. Rated: 2.5/4 Nov 8, 2021 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com A definite find for Fuller fans, Hell and High Water is the antithesis of 1950s studio era action cinema, outfitted with the director's usual grim demeanor and pronounced pessimism. Rated: 3.5/5 Sep 8, 2020 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews This is a tepid film by Sam Fuller standards, but still has enough salt in it to burn. Rated: B- Nov 24, 2003 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member a good cold war submarine movie. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Fair action-adventure with the underwater scenes better and more tense than those on land. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member The Submarine and their Scientists race to try to save the world--It's a bread and butter Sci-fi adventure that happens to involve a submarine. If you're a fan of both, you will enjoy this movie. If you're looking for great artful movie that sings to your humanity, then go watch 'The Shawshank Redemption'!! Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Dull and predictable flag-waver in which brave and hardy Americans, assisted by a few rest-of-the-world experts, save the planet from the Red Menace. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Audience Member Not as well written or engaging as other fuller flicks. But still Watchable. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Samuel Fuller n'a pas totalement tort en disant que son film a des airs de BD : une organisation secrète qui tente d'empêcher les communistes d'utiliser la bombe atomique contre des innocents, un équipage de baroudeurs, un vieux scientifique et sa jeune assistante... Rien de vraisemblable là-dedans. Fuller n'aimait pas non plus ce film, et ça se sent : le scénario est faible (tant en intrigue qu'en action), mais le Cinémascope est toutefois utilisé de manière habile à défaut d'être géniale : les plans du sous-marin rendent justice à cette image fortement rectangulaire, par exemple. Richard Widmark est bien sans être inoubliable, mais c'est surtout Victor Francen qui m'a emballé. Gene Evans est un peu trop effacé, et Bella Darvi n'est pas terrible. Un Fuller en demi-teinte, même pour une oeuvre de commande. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/05/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Hell and High Water

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Cast & Crew

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Samuel Fuller

Director

Richard Widmark

Capt. Adam Jones

Bella Darvi

Denise Montel

Victor Francen

Prof. Montel

Cameron Mitchell

'Ski' Brodski

Gene Evans

Chief Holter

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Hell and High Water

Hell and High Water (1954) Hell and High Water (1954) Hell and High Water (1954) Hell and High Water (1954) Hell and High Water (1954) Hell and High Water (1954) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Mercenary sub commander, Captain Adam Jones (Richard Widmark), sells his services to noted atomic scientist Professor Montel (Victor Francen) and his daughter, Denise (Bella Darvi). Professor Montel is convinced the Communists are about to launch a nuclear attack on Korea from an island in the Arctic and blame it on the United States. Captain Jones does not care about politics, but the earnest Professor and his supporters win him over to their cause and they try to thwart the Communist's plans.
Director
Samuel Fuller
Producer
Raymond A. Klune
Screenwriter
Samuel Fuller, Jesse Lasky Jr.
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Production Co
Twentieth Century Fox
Genre
Adventure
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 6, 1954, Original
Release Date (DVD)
May 22, 2007
Runtime
1h 43m