''La Grande Speranza'' (''The Big Hope''), retitled ''Submarine Attack'' and ''Torpedo Zone'' in English, is a 1954 Italian
anti-war film
An anti-war film is a sub-genre of war film that is opposed to warfare in its theming or messaging.
Characteristics
Anti-war films typically argue that war is futile, unjust, a loss for all involved, only serves to benefit few in society (us ...
starring
Lois Maxwell
Lois Ruth Maxwell (née Hooker; February 14, 1927 – September 29, 2007) was a Canadian actress. She was best known for portraying Miss Moneypenny in the first 14 Eon Productions, Eon-produced James Bond in film, ''James Bond'' films (1962–1 ...
,
Renato Baldini
Renato Baldini (18 December 1921 – 5 July 1995) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 87 films between 1950 and 1983. He was born in Rome, Italy.
Selected filmography
* ''It's Forever Springtime'' (1950) - Un carabiniere al processo
...
Senate of Berlin
The Senate of Berlin (; unofficially: ) is the executive body governing the city of Berlin, which at the same time is a state of Germany. According to the Constitution of Berlin the Senate consists of the Governing Mayor of Berlin and up to ten ...
, and the OCIC Award at the
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...
.Marcantonio Bragadin was an adviser on the film, which was shot inside and on the deck of a real submarine.
Plot summary
An
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
submarine
A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...
captain conducts successful attacks on enemy merchant shipping in the eastern
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, and then rescues the survivors of his victims, including a member of the
Canadian Women's Army Corps
The Canadian Women's Army Corps was a non-combatant branch of the Canadian Army for women, established during the Second World War, with the purpose of releasing men from those non-combatant roles in the Canadian armed forces as part of expandi ...
(and a
dog
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the gray wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred from a population of wolves during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. ...
). The captain's compulsion to save his victims culminates in his taking aboard 24 additional Danish merchant seamen; with no space down below, they are accommodated under the walkway outside the hull, at risk of drowning if the submarine is forced to submerge. He then sails the survivors hundreds of miles across the open ocean on the surface to put them ashore in the
Azores
The Azores ( , , ; , ), officially the Autonomous Region of the Azores (), is one of the two autonomous regions of Portugal (along with Madeira). It is an archipelago composed of nine volcanic islands in the Macaronesia region of the North Atl ...
.
Cast
*
Lois Maxwell
Lois Ruth Maxwell (née Hooker; February 14, 1927 – September 29, 2007) was a Canadian actress. She was best known for portraying Miss Moneypenny in the first 14 Eon Productions, Eon-produced James Bond in film, ''James Bond'' films (1962–1 ...
- Lt. Lily Donald
*
Renato Baldini
Renato Baldini (18 December 1921 – 5 July 1995) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 87 films between 1950 and 1983. He was born in Rome, Italy.
Selected filmography
* ''It's Forever Springtime'' (1950) - Un carabiniere al processo
...
- The Submarine Commandanti
* Carlo Bellini - Officer
*
Aldo Bufi Landi
Aldo Bufi Landi (7 April 1923 – 2 February 2016) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1947 and 2013.
Selected filmography
* ''Malaspina (film), Malaspina'' (1947)
* ''Madunnella'' (1948)
* ''Assunta Spina ...
Carlo Delle Piane
Carlo Delle Piane (2 February 1936 – 23 August 2019) was an Italian film actor. From 1948 until his death, he appeared in more than 100 films.Edward Fleming - Jean Cartier
*
José Jaspe
José Jaspe () (10 August 1906 – 5 June 1974) was a Spanish film actor.
He played Konev the conductor in '' Horror Express'' (1972), Ahmed in '' House of 1,000 Dolls'' (1967), Henneker in '' The Man Called Noon'' (1973), the traitor in '' The C ...
- Spanish POW
*
Paolo Panelli
Paolo Panelli (15 July 1925 – 18 May 1997) was an Italian comedian and film actor. He appeared in 55 films between 1948 and 1996. He was married to Bice Valori.
Selected filmography
* '' Guarany'' (1948)
* ''Arrivederci, papà!'' (1948)
* ...
Henri Vidon
Henri is the French form of the masculine given name Henry, also in Estonian, Finnish, German and Luxembourgish. Bearers of the given name include:
People French nobles
* Henri I de Montmorency (1534–1614), Marshal and Constable of France
* ...
- Robert Steiner
*
Folco Lulli
Folco Lulli (3 July 1912 – 23 May 1970) was an Italian partisan and film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1946 and 1970.
Life and career
Born in Florence, the son of the baritone Gino Lulli and the elder brother of actor ...