The Sand Pebbles (1966)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

Richard McKenna (novel)
Robert Anderson (screenplay)

Release Date:

20 December 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

THE STORY OF MEN...men who disturbed the sleeping dragon of China as the world watched in terror!

Plot:

Engineer Jake Holman arrives aboard the gunboat U.S.S. San Pablo, assigned to patrol a tributary of...

Plot Keywords:

Hate | Asia | Asian | USA | Roadboatmovie

Awards:

Nominated for 8 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 10 nominations

Cast

Steve McQueen	...	Jake Holman
Richard Attenborough	...	Frenchy Burgoyne
Richard Crenna	...	Captain Collins
Candice Bergen	...	Shirley Eckert
Emmanuelle Arsan	...	Maily (as Marayat Andriane)
Mako	...	Po-han
Larry Gates	...	Jameson
Charles Robinson	...	Ensign Bordelles
Simon Oakland	...	Stawski
Ford Rainey	...	Harris
Joe Turkel	...	Bronson
Gavin MacLeod	...	Crosley
Joe Di Reda	...	Shanahan (as Joseph di Reda)
Richard Loo	...	Major Chin
Barney Phillips	...	Franks

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for violence and sexual material.

Runtime:

179 min | UK:243 min (BBFC submission before censorship) | Sweden:193 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Norway:11 (DVD rating) (2006) | Iceland:16 | Canada:14A (video rating) | USA:Approved (certificate #21310) (original rating) | Brazil:14 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 (re-rating) (2000) | West Germany:16 | UK:A (original rating) (cut) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

20th Century Fox Studios - 10201 Pico Blvd., Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Robert Wise Productions

Trivia:

Opening scenes were shot on the battleship USS Texas in Houston, Texas. These shots of Machinist Mate First Class Jake Holman (Steve McQueen) transferring off the battleship did not make it into the final print.

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Apparatus for simulating the gunshot wound in Richard Crenna's back, called a squib, is quite visible as he runs away from the camera in the China Light courtyard.

Quotes:

Jake Holman: [Holman enters the engine room after boarding the San Pablo. He looks around the room, smiles and places his hand on the machinery] Hello, Engine; I'm Jake Holman.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Monster Squad Forever! (2007) (V)

Steve McQueen's best performance.

Steve McQueen felt an affinity for the role of Jake Holman in "The Sand Pebbles" like few others in his career. In this unsparing war drama, he plays the consummate loner, bonded to machinery more than people, inarticulate but imbued with a powerful sense of right and wrong. It's a part that plays perfectly to McQueen's strengths as an actor, personifyng his lifelong quest to hone physical performance into character while jettisoning all but essential dialogue. All his emoting comes subtly -- a slight shift of gaze; how he cocks his head to listen; his complete stillness before action. It also brought him his only Academy Award nomination. (And in retrospect, it's easy to make the case that he should have won over Paul Scofield's showier portrayal in "A Man For All Seasons.")

Scripter Robert Anderson had the tough job of distilling Richard McKenna's sprawling novel of conflict set aboard a U.S. Navy gunboat ('San Pablo'; hence her sailors called themselves 'Sand Pebbles') at the start of the civil wars and revolution that would ultimately tear China asunder, transforming it into the post WWII behemoth we know today. Fortunately, he and director Robert Wise knew enough to keep the plot's underpinnings solidly on the compelling, central irony of McKenna's story: that it is Jake's very disconnectedness from his fellows that leads him inevitably to sacrifice and redemption. The ending is shocking and powerful; a reminder of better, more mature days in American film.

Wise directed on locations in Hong Kong and Taiwan with his customary mastery of both intense personal confrontation and epic sweep. In excellent support are Richard Attenborough, Richard Crenna and Mako. The film also features one of Jerry Goldsmith's most memorable scores.

I must again mention Richard McKenna's novel. It is superb; sadly, the only full-length work he finished before his untimely death. It may be out of print but is well worth an online used book search.