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Plot Summary
President John F. Kennedy kept a unique inauguration gift on his White House desk: a coconut encased in plastic. The tale of that coconut is the heroic story of PT 109. Academy Award winner* Cliff Robertson stars in this stirring saga of Kennedy's wartime exploits as skipper of a PT boat in the Solomon Islands. The assignment: harass the enemy and buy time for a U.S. Navy still on the drawing boards. In August 1943, PT 109 was sliced in half by a Japanese destroyer. Kennedy led his surviving crew through a sea aflame from gasoline, towing a badly burned sailor miles to the nearest island. There seemed little hope of rescue from the Japanese-dominated area...until a strategy involving a coconut emerged. The triumphant outcome was unbelievable - and all true!
Customer Reviews
PT 109
A very well done war movie from the early 60s. A few chronological inaccuracies in the interest of storyline (the beach rescue of Marines from Choisul island was actually done with Kennedy's second boat (PT 59) and crew AFTER the loss of the 109) but nonetheless historically accurate. The application of the 37mm antitank gun was unusual for a PT boat . Kennedy somehow commandered the gun just before the patrol into Backett strait on the night of August 2nd 1943 - the details of said transaction no doubt lost to history. Outstanding scene of the Japanese destroyer colliding with the 109 killing two of Kennedy's crew. Kennedy then leads the crew to two islands in search of food and water. Tensions among the crew reach a peak after hunger and thirst take their toll. Surprisingly honest portrayal (for the 1960s) of leadership in the face of fear, and doubt from his own shipmates. The application of period humor helps make the movie interesting for the general public. Overall first class film. The soundtrack is great too. A tribute to a fallen President and his wartime crew. Two thumbs up
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- $14.99
- Genre: Drama
- Released: 1963
- © 1963 A Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.