''Beneath the 12-Mile Reef'' is a 1953 American

Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...

adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, ani ...

directed by Robert D. Webb and starring

Robert Wagner Robert John Wagner Jr. (born February 10, 1930) is an American actor of stage, screen, and television. He is known for starring in the television shows '' It Takes a Thief'' (1968–1970), ''Switch'' (1975–1978), and '' Hart to Hart'' (1979� ...

, Terry Moore and

Gilbert Roland Luis Antonio Dámaso de Alonso (December 11, 1905 – May 15, 1994), known professionally as Gilbert Roland, was a Mexican-born American film and television actor whose career spanned seven decades from the 1920s until the 1980s. He was twice no ...

. The screenplay was by

A.I. Bezzerides Albert Isaac "Buzz" Bezzerides ( August 9, 1908 – January 1, 2007) was an American novelist and screenwriter, best known for writing films noir and action motion pictures, especially several of Warners' "social conscience" films of the 1940 ...

. The film was the third motion picture made in

CinemaScope CinemaScope is an anamorphic lens series used, from 1953 to 1967, and less often later, for shooting widescreen films that, crucially, could be screened in theatres using existing equipment, albeit with a lens adapter. Its creation in 1953 by ...

, coming after ''

The Robe ''The Robe'' is a 1942 historical novel about the Crucifixion of Jesus, written by Lloyd C. Douglas. The book was one of the best-selling titles of the 1940s. It entered the ''New York Times'' Best Seller list in October 1942, four weeks later ...

'' and ''

How to Marry a Millionaire ''How to Marry a Millionaire'' is a 1953 American screwball comedy film directed by Jean Negulesco and written and produced by Nunnally Johnson. The screenplay was based on the plays ''The Greeks Had a Word for It'' (1930) by Zoe Akins and ' ...

''. The supporting cast features J. Carrol Naish,

Richard Boone Richard Allen Boone (June 18, 1917 – January 10, 1981) was an American actor who starred in over 50 films and was notable for his roles in Westerns, including his starring role in the television series '' Have Gun – Will Travel''. Early li ...

Peter Graves Peter Graves (born Peter Duesler Aurness; March 18, 1926 – March 14, 2010) was an American actor. He was best known for his role as Jim Phelps in the CBS television series ''Mission: Impossible (1966 TV series), Mission: Impossible'' from 1967 ...

, Jay Novello,

Harry Carey Jr. Henry George Carey Jr. (May 16, 1921 – December 27, 2012) was an American actor. He appeared in more than 90 films, including several John Ford Westerns, as well as numerous television series. Early life Carey was born on a ranch near ...

and

Jacques Aubuchon Jacques Georges Aubuchon (October 30, 1924 – December 28, 1991) was an American actor who appeared in films, stage, and on television in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. Aubuchon, who grew up in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, was the son of Art ...

Plot

Mike (

) and Tony Petrakis (

) are

Greek American Greek Americans ( el, Ελληνοαμερικανοί ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. The lowest estimate is that 1.2 million Americans are of Greek descent while the highest e ...

father and son sponge-diving entrepreneurs who find themselves in competition with the Rhys family,

Conch Conch () is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point at both ends). In North Am ...

fishermen who are prepared to resort to violence and murder to maintain their established fishing grounds off the

Gulf Coast The Gulf Coast of the United States, also known as the Gulf South, is the coast, coastline along the Southern United States where they meet the Gulf of Mexico. The list of U.S. states and territories by coastline, coastal states that have a shor ...

of Florida. Run-ins between the two clans lead to an exchange of threats and all-out brawls. Further complications ensue when Tony Petrakis meets Gwyneth Rhys ( Terry Moore), and the two fall in love.

Cast

as Tony Petrakis * Terry Moore as Gwyneth Rhys *

as Mike Petrakis * J. Carrol Naish as Socrates Houlis *

as Thomas Rhys * Angela Clarke as Mama Petrakis *

as Arnold Dix * Jay Novello as Sinan *

as Demetrios Sofotes * Gloria Gordon as Penny Petrakis *

as Griff Rhys * Rev. Theophilus Karaphillis as Greek Priest at Epiphany

Production

The film originally was called ''Twelve Mile Reef'' and was announced in September 1952, with the leads to be played by Robert Wagner and

Kathleen Crowley Kathleen Crowley (born Betty Jane Crowley; December 26, 1929 – April 23, 2017) was an American actress. She appeared more than 100 times in movies and television series in the 1950s and 1960s, almost always as a leading lady. Biography E ...

. By December, the female lead was going to be Debra Paget. In February 1953, Fox announced the film would be shot in CinemaScope. That month, the first CinemaScope movie, ''The Robe'', began filming. ''Beneath the 12 Mile Reef'' was the third film shot in that process, after ''How to Mary a Millionaire'', and the first shot underwater. Also that month, Terry Moore was given the female lead. Filming started 6 April 1953. The film was shot on location in

Key West Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it cons ...

and

Tarpon Springs, Florida Tarpon Springs is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. The population was 23,484 at the 2010 census. Tarpon Springs has the highest percentage of Greek Americans of any city in the US. Downtown Tarpon Springs has long been a focal po ...

. There were rumors during filming that Moore and Wagner had a romance. In reality, Wagner secretly was seeing

Barbara Stanwyck Barbara Stanwyck (; born Ruby Catherine Stevens; July 16, 1907 – January 20, 1990) was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic sc ...

, and Moore was seeing

Howard Hughes Howard Robard Hughes Jr. (December 24, 1905 – April 5, 1976) was an American business magnate, record-setting pilot, engineer, film producer, and philanthropist, known during his lifetime as one of the most influential and richest people in t ...

. Wagner almost drowned during filming at Tarpon Springs when he was accidentally kicked in the stomach by another actor. He sank to the bottom of the water and had to be rescued by a crew member. Gloria Gordon, who had a small role, was signed to a seven-year contract.

Critical reception

Bosley Crowther of ''The New York Times'' observed "Another and further extension of the range of

... is handsomely manifested in ''Beneath the 12-Mile Reef'' ... But that, when you come right down to it, is just about the only novelty provided by this third employment of the anamorphic lens. For the scenes shot above the surface, while large and imposing, are routine, and the drama developed in the screen play is hackneyed and banal. And, unfortunately, most of the picture takes place above, not below, the reef ... There is nothing at all fascinating or edifying here." ''Variety'' wrote " e squeeze-lensing gives punch in the display of underwater wonders, the seascapes and the brilliant, beautiful sunrises and sunsets of the Florida Gulf coast. In handling the young cast, Robert D. Webb's direction is less effective, particularly in the case of Robert Wagner and Terry Moore. Both are likable, so the shallowness of their performances is no serious handicap to the entertainment."

Awards and nominations

Edward Cronjager Edward Cronjager (21 March 1904 – 15 June 1960) was an American cinematographer whose career spanned from the silent era through the 1950s. He came from a family of cinematographers, with his father, uncle, and brother all working in the film ...

was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Cinematography The Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work on one particular motion picture. History In its first film season, 1927–28, this award (like others such as the acting awards) w ...

, and Robert D. Webb was nominated for the Grand Prize at the

1954 Cannes Film Festival The 7th Cannes Film Festival was held from 25 March to 9 April 1954. With Jean Cocteau as President of the Jury, the Grand Prix went to the '' Gate of Hell'' by Teinosuke Kinugasa. The festival opened with '' Le Grand Jeu'' by Robert Siodmak. Th ...

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Beneath the 12-Mile Reef 1953 films 1953 romantic drama films 1950s adventure drama films American adventure drama films American romantic drama films CinemaScope films Films based on Romeo and Juliet Modern adaptations of works by William Shakespeare Seafaring films Sponge diving Films featuring underwater diving Films set in Florida Films shot in Florida 20th Century Fox films Films directed by Robert D. Webb Films scored by Bernard Herrmann 1950s English-language films 1950s American films