Q-Ships (1928)
Directors:
Geoffrey Barkas, Michael Barringer
Writer:
Michael Barringer
Stars:
J.P. Kennedy, Roy Travers, Douglas Herald
The British silent Q Ships is set during World War I. The ships of the title are British war vessels, disguised as merchant ships to throw the Germans off guard. Much of the film is devoted to the war of nerves between British admiral Sims (J.P. Kennedy) and German U-boat captain Von Haag (Roy Travers) as they square off in the English Channel. Originally titled Blockade, Q Ships was one of the biggest British moneymakers of the silent era (outside of theHitchcock films of the period, that is). The film was reissued in 1932, with a music and sound effects score and a few dialogue sequences tacked on.