Hell and High Water
29 men and one woman ... in the captive world of a submarine !
1954 | 103m | English
Popularity: 3 (history)
| Director: | Samuel Fuller |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Samuel Fuller, Jesse Lasky Jr., David Hempstead |
| Staring: |
| A privately-financed scientist and his colleagues hire an ex-Navy officer to conduct an Alaskan submarine expedition in order to prevent a Red Chinese anti-American plot that may lead to World War III. Mixes deviously plotted schoolboy fiction with submarine spectacle and cold war heroics. | |
| Release Date: | Feb 06, 1954 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Samuel Fuller |
| Writer: | Samuel Fuller, Jesse Lasky Jr., David Hempstead |
| Genres: | Adventure, Action, Drama |
| Keywords | submarine, alaska |
| Production Companies | 20th Century Fox |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $1,870,000 |
| Updates |
Updated: Aug 09, 2025 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Richard Widmark | Capt. Adam Jones |
| Bella Darvi | Denise Montel |
| Victor Francen | Prof. Montel |
| Cameron Mitchell | 'Ski' Brodski |
| Gene Evans | Chief Holter |
| David Wayne | Tugboat Walker |
| Stephen Bekassy | Neuman |
| Richard Loo | Hakada Fujimori |
| Robert Adler | Welles (uncredited) |
| Eugene Borden | French Reporter (uncredited) |
| Leslie Bradley | Mr. Aylesworth (uncredited) |
| Henry Kulky | McCrossin (uncredited) |
| Peter Ortiz | Crewman (uncredited) |
| Ray Stevens | Crewman (uncredited) |
| John Wengraf | Col. Schuman (uncredited) |
| Ben Wright | BBC Announcer (uncredited) |
| Harry Carter | |
| Harry Denny | |
| Frank Kumagai | |
| Eddie Lee | |
| Cactus Mack | |
| Rollin Moriyama | |
| Ron Nyman | |
| Don Orlando | |
| Beal Wong |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Samuel Fuller | Screenplay, Director |
| Jesse Lasky Jr. | Screenplay |
| Joseph MacDonald | Director of Photography |
| James B. Clark | Editor |
| David Hempstead | Story |
| Travilla | Costume Designer |
| Alfred Newman | Original Music Composer |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Raymond A. Klune | Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 5 |
| 2024 | 5 | 9 | 18 | 6 |
| 2024 | 6 | 7 | 12 | 4 |
| 2024 | 7 | 8 | 16 | 4 |
| 2024 | 8 | 6 | 11 | 4 |
| 2024 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 3 |
| 2024 | 10 | 8 | 17 | 3 |
| 2024 | 11 | 8 | 32 | 3 |
| 2024 | 12 | 5 | 8 | 3 |
| 2025 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 3 |
| 2025 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
Trending Position
Richard Widmark is on quite good form here, as the veteran naval officer hired by a group of scientists to take a ramshackle old submarine from Japan to investigate some mysterious goings-on on an island under Chinese control, and where they think atomic experiments may be taking place. Setting sail ... with "Prof. Montel" (Victor Francen) and his assistant "Denise" (Bella Darvi) it soon becomes clear that their scarcely functioning vessel is not going to be the captain's only concern as they have to dodge enemy patrols and reach their target. I like submarine films, and this one isn't bad. Samuel Fuller takes a while to get us underway, but once he does the trip is quite exciting despite the odd romantic interlude. The ending is a bit daft, but the whole film still holds up quite well as a decent adventure with quite a fun underwater duel, an unique rendition of "Don't Fence Me In" and a suitably rousing score, too.