Western Approaches

This highly respected documentary tells the story of a group of British merchant seamen adrift in the Atlantic after their ship has been torpedoed by a German U-Boat. In essence it's a fictionalised account (using men on active naval service rather than actors) of a typical World War Two disaster, whereby merchant ships returning to Britain with vital supplies of food and goods from America ran the gamut of the Nazi subs in their attempt to beat the blockade. As a tribute to heroism, it's easier to take than many from the same period, and the outstanding colour camerawork by Jack Cardiff is all the more remarkable when you consider that it was shot under dangerous conditions similar to those portrayed in the film.