WPCNR SCREEN GEMS. From National Amusements. (Edited). October 8, 2004: City Center Cinema De Lux Theatre will present one of the great Alfred Hitchcock dramas at its monthly Silver Screen Classics Matinee Tuesday. It's LIFEBOAT, released in 1944, which brought home the horrors of the Battle for the North Atlantic to folks on the homefront in the era of 25 cents admissions, JujyFruits and Good and Plenty. The Story:
In the Atlantic during WWII, an Allied ship and a German U-boat are involved in a battle and both ships are sunk. The survivors from the torpedoed ship hurry to gather in one of the remaining lifeboats and find they are from a variety of backgrounds: an international journalist; a rich businessman; the radio operator; a nurse; a steward; a sailor and an engineer with communist tendencies. Trouble starts when they pull a man out of the water who turns out to be a German from the sunken U-boat. This drama was directed by Alfred Hitchcock and stars a host of Hollywood legends: John Hodiack and Constance Porter, with Tallulah Bankhead, William Bendix, Walter Slezak.
One critic said, "more drama per square inch. The entire picture takes place in a small lifeboat, with a bickering crew of castaways." Tallulah Bankhead is characterized as "superb, dahling."
Silver Screen Classics is a monthly series offered at City Center 15: Cinema de Lux. Enjoy a classic film, popcorn and a soft drink for only $1.00. This month’s feature is Lifeboat (1944).
