THE SAND PEBBLES Movie Review
1966 Robert Wise
Robert Wise's anti-imperialist epic is a sort of blue-collar Lawrence of Arabia. When it was made in 1966, its implicit criticism of American participation in the Vietnam war was more significant than it is today, but the film remains entertaining, complex, and notably lacking in propaganda. At one point, the film seems to finger communists as the villains, but before it's over, everyone has a share of the blame for a violent, tragic situation.
The setting is China, 1926, “a country of factions trying to unite to become a nation through revolution.” Freshly arrived Navy machinist Jake Holman (Steve McQueen) wants nothing to do with politics. He's had a hard-luck career and wants nothing more than to settle down and work on the engine of his new assignment, the gunboat San Pablo. But, as another character tells him, “American gunboats in Central China are a painful local joke, Mr. Holman, and the most painful is the San Pablo. I think she is something you chaps inherited from Spain after the Spanish-American War.”
When Jake finally arrives, he finds that Capt. Collins (Richard Crenna) runs a strange ship, operating under a military-civilian caste system that mirrors the larger colonial-political organization of the country. Much of the work is done by local Chinese who actually live on board. Instead of doing their assigned jobs, the sailors' main duty is to maintain a presence, to present a brave front. In short, their role is as much political as it is military. If Jake is to do his job properly, it means “breaking someone else's rice bowl” and nobody wants to upset the delicate balance of power.
Of course, it is upset, first by Jake, then by his friend Frenchy (Richard Attenborough), who falls in love with Maily (Marayat Andriane). At the same time, Jake begins a tenuous romance with Shirley Eckert (Candice Bergen), a missionary. But Jake's first love is his engine, and that's the strongest emotional relationship in the film. The long scenes in which he learns about the machines and then teaches his assistant Po-Han (Mako) about them are touching and memorable.
But director Robert Wise and writer Robert Anderson mean to show that the world has become too complex for such simple answers. Jake may retreat to the safe confines of his engine room, but he cannot escape what's going outside—the deepening conflicts between Chinese and American, between officers and enlisted men, between military and civilian, between men and women, between insiders and outsiders.
The first half of the film is fairly slow, as all of those relationships are established, but the action picks up sharply in the second half. Chaotic political unrest on land sets the stage for a superbly staged and very violent naval battle between the San Pablo and a barricade of junks. That, in turn, sets up the long conclusion in an open courtyard. The film ends with a famous line—“What the hell happened?”—that has been taken as a comment on American intervention in Vietnam. That's exactly what it means and the line becomes even clearer when you realize that it's used twice in the film, both times in the same circumstances.
Today, The Sand Pebbles might be nothing more than an interesting period piece if the performances weren't so strong. McQueen's role is letter perfect for a young actor who's establishing a rebellious image, and he plays it to perfection. In the right moments he seems gawky, stiff, and uncomfortable, just as he should be. (This was the only time he'd be nominated for a Best Actor Academy Award.) Richard Crenna's slightly unhinged Captain should have been nominated, but wasn't. For her part, Candice Bergen is mostly called upon to look beatific and she does. In this role, she's got beatitude down cold.
More importantly, though, the film's politics have aged gracefully and well. Without resorting to preaching or comfortably “correct” positions or easy villains, Wise and Anderson stress the human costs of war and revolution.
Cast: Steve McQueen (Jake Holman), Richard Crenna (Capt. Collins), Richard Attenborough (Frenchy Burgoyne), Candice Bergen (Shirley Eckert), Marayat Andriane (Maily), Mako (Po-Han), Larry Gates (Jameson), Gavin MacLeod (Crosley), Simon Oakland (Stawski), James Hong (Victor Shu), Richard Loo (Maj. Chin), Barney Phillips (Chief Franks), Tommy Lee (Chien), Ford Rainey (Harris), Walter Reed (Bidder), Gus Trikonis (Restorff), Joe Turkel (Bronson), Glenn Wilder (Waldron); Written by: Robert Anderson; Cinematography by: Joe MacDonald; Music by: Jerry Goldsmith. Producer: Robert Wise, 20th Century-Fox. Awards: Golden Globe Awards '67: Best Supporting Actor (Attenborough); Nominations: Academy Awards '66: Best Actor (McQueen), Best Art Direction/Set Decoration (Color), Best Color Cinematography, Best Film Editing, Best Picture, Best Sound, Best Supporting Actor (Mako), Best Original Score. Running Time: 193 minutes. Format: VHS, Beta, LV.