Hell Below
| Hell Below | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Directed by | Jack Conway |
| Produced by | Jack Conway |
| Screenplay by | Laird Doyle Raymond L. Schrock John Lee Mahin John Meehan |
| Based on |
Pigboats 1931 novel by Edward Ellsberg |
| Starring |
Robert Montgomery Walter Huston Madge Evans |
| Music by | William Axt |
| Cinematography | Harold Rosson |
| Edited by | Hal C. Kern |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
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Release date
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Running time
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101 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $895,000 |
| Box office | $1,389,000 |
Hell Below is a 1933 American MGM pre-Code film set in the Adriatic Sea during World War I about submarine warfare based on Commander Edward Ellsberg's novel Pigboats, starring Robert Montgomery, Walter Huston, Robert Young, Madge Evans, and Jimmy Durante.
When the commander of the United States Navy submarine AL-14 is wounded on its last cruise, Lieutenant Thomas Knowlton (Robert Montgomery), the second in command, hopes to be promoted and take his place. However, Lieutenant Commander T. J. Toler (Walter Huston) shows up and takes over.
Toler orders his officers to attend a ball. The young men dread having to dance with the wives of admirals, but Knowlton and his close friend and shipmate, Lieutenant Ed "Brick" Walters (Robert Young), are pleasantly surprised to discover the beautiful Joan Standish (Madge Evans) among the attendees. When an enemy air raid forces everyone to take shelter, Knowlton takes Joan to his apartment. Though she insists on leaving, he can tell she is attracted to him. However, before anything can happen, Toler shows up to collect his daughter.
On its next patrol, the AL-14 comes upon a German minelayer and hits it with torpedoes. After the Germans abandon ship, Toler sends Brick and a few men to search the sinking vessel for code books. When enemy fighters attack, Toler fights them off, but the arrival of a bomber forces him to leave his detachment behind. Knowlton disobeys his order and remains on deck, manning a machine gun, until he is knocked unconscious and carried below.
Upon returning to port, Knowlton goes to see Joan at the hospital. There he encounters patient Flight Commander Herbert Standish (Edwin Styles), Joan's disabled husband. Knowlton departs, but Joan follows him and confesses she loves him.
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