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Operation Petticoat

Play trailer Poster for Operation Petticoat Released Dec 5, 1959 2h 4m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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81% Tomatometer 21 Reviews 81% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Lieutenant Commander Matt Sherman (Cary Grant) is in charge of the submarine "Sea Tiger," which was badly damaged at a Philippine shipyard by a Japanese air raid. Seeking to make sail before an oncoming invasion, Sherman enlists the help of newly transferred Lieutenant Nick Holden (Tony Curtis) to use his talents as a con artist to procure the needed supplies. Once they're underway, Sherman evacuates a group of beautiful nurses, but can't find anyone who will take them off his hands.
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Operation Petticoat

Critics Reviews

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Don Druker Chicago Reader Blake Edwards directs with his customary wit, breeziness, and acute sense of pacing. May 15, 2012 Full Review Variety Staff Variety Operation Petticoat has no more weight than a sackful of feathers, but it has a lot of laughs. Jul 7, 2010 Full Review Geoff Andrew Time Out Not unpleasant, but the situations (including the inevitable invasion of women aboard the sub) are horribly familiar, and the dialogue none too inspired. Jan 26, 2006 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com Woefully dated. Rated: 2/5 Aug 27, 2020 Full Review Sean Mulvihill FanboyNation.com While I think Operation Petticoat has a number of issues - it's too long, overstuffed, and rather buttoned down - I still respect as it a piece of cinematic history. Rated: 3/5 Oct 30, 2018 Full Review Nathan Rabin The Dissolve There's a distinct lack of forward momentum plaguing Operation Petticoat, which takes forever to get going, and even then only moves in fits and starts, plot-wise. Rated: 3/5 Aug 4, 2014 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Joey W It's an okay movie from 1959 Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/17/25 Full Review Andy B Hollywood doesn't have the talent to make them like this anymore! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 06/04/24 Full Review Michael W This classic comedy was pretty good. Cary Grant, Tony Curtis, Joan O'Brien, Dina Merrill, Gene Evans, and the rest of the cast did a pretty good job in this movie. The plot of the movie was kind of entertaining and humorous. It's a funny movie about fighting in WW2 on a submarine. If you haven't seen this movie yet, you may enjoy it. That's my opinion. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 04/26/23 Full Review Audience Member The best old-school comedy that will be remembered for centuries. This movie has everything, highly recommended. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/02/23 Full Review steve d The script is not great but the actors make it fun. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member I had doubts about this comedy military movie, but it only took the first 10 minutes of this truly hilarious and delightful movie to convince me that this was a gem. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Operation Petticoat

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Cast & Crew

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Blake Edwards

Director

Cary Grant

Lt. Cmdr. Matt T. Sherman

Tony Curtis

Lt. JG Nicholas Holden

Dina Merrill

Lt. Barbara Duran RN

Joan O'Brien

Lt. Dolores Crandall RN

Arthur O'Connell

Chief Mechinist's Mate Sam Tostin

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Operation Petticoat

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Movie Info

Synopsis Lieutenant Commander Matt Sherman (Cary Grant) is in charge of the submarine "Sea Tiger," which was badly damaged at a Philippine shipyard by a Japanese air raid. Seeking to make sail before an oncoming invasion, Sherman enlists the help of newly transferred Lieutenant Nick Holden (Tony Curtis) to use his talents as a con artist to procure the needed supplies. Once they're underway, Sherman evacuates a group of beautiful nurses, but can't find anyone who will take them off his hands.
Director
Blake Edwards
Producer
Robert Arthur
Screenwriter
Stanley Shapiro, Maurice Richlin
Distributor
Universal Pictures
Production Co
Universal/Universal Int
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 5, 1959, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 6, 2018
Runtime
2h 4m
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