I don't know if the screenwriters just didn't know what to do with Clyde Brion Davis's novel, or they didn't know how to improve it for the screen version, but the finished product of Adventure was terrible. Contrasting lengthy, poetic speeches with a choppy story that didn't know its point or its leading man, this "adventure" was Clark Gable's first picture after he returned from the war. Couldn't they have given him anything better? Back to Bataan, China Sky, Objective, Burma!, or They Were Expendable, would have been great vehicles for the returning soldier - or if he wanted a change of pace, Love Letters or This Love of Ours could have been made available.
In this movie, Clark plays a merchant mariner with a girl in every port. He's always after a good time and cares for no one's feelings but his own. Settling down is his worst nightmare. His best friend and fellow sailor is Thomas Mitchell, and when their ship gets torpedoed and only a handful of men (including Tom Tully, John Qualen, and Richard Haydn) survive on a life raft, Thomas makes four promises to God if He rescues them. They are rescued, and when Thomas breaks all four promises, he sees his immortal soul leave his body. He's terrified and doesn't know what to do with the rest of his life- Wait a minute! This is supposed to be a romance with Greer Garson, isn't it?
Well, it's a very long movie. And it doesn't really know what it wants to be, either. Thomas Mitchell seemed like the lead to me, and when he shares a tender moment with Greer as he tells her of his plight, I thought they made a far better match than she and Clark. Clark and Greer disagree on everything, small and large, and have terrible arguments. They clearly can't stand each other, and Clark even goes so far as to plan to spend the weekend with her roommate and best friend, Joan Blondell - until for no reason, they decide they can't keep their hands off each other and they spend the weekend together.
Trust me; it would have been a far better movie if she'd spent the weekend with Thomas Mitchell. I didn't understand this movie, and I didn't like it enough to try to. Save your two hours and fifteen minutes and rent The Valley of Decision instead. At least it's dramatic when it's supposed to be, and the point of the movie is clear.
In this movie, Clark plays a merchant mariner with a girl in every port. He's always after a good time and cares for no one's feelings but his own. Settling down is his worst nightmare. His best friend and fellow sailor is Thomas Mitchell, and when their ship gets torpedoed and only a handful of men (including Tom Tully, John Qualen, and Richard Haydn) survive on a life raft, Thomas makes four promises to God if He rescues them. They are rescued, and when Thomas breaks all four promises, he sees his immortal soul leave his body. He's terrified and doesn't know what to do with the rest of his life- Wait a minute! This is supposed to be a romance with Greer Garson, isn't it?
Well, it's a very long movie. And it doesn't really know what it wants to be, either. Thomas Mitchell seemed like the lead to me, and when he shares a tender moment with Greer as he tells her of his plight, I thought they made a far better match than she and Clark. Clark and Greer disagree on everything, small and large, and have terrible arguments. They clearly can't stand each other, and Clark even goes so far as to plan to spend the weekend with her roommate and best friend, Joan Blondell - until for no reason, they decide they can't keep their hands off each other and they spend the weekend together.
Trust me; it would have been a far better movie if she'd spent the weekend with Thomas Mitchell. I didn't understand this movie, and I didn't like it enough to try to. Save your two hours and fifteen minutes and rent The Valley of Decision instead. At least it's dramatic when it's supposed to be, and the point of the movie is clear.