San Demetrio, London

2390.SAN DEMETRIO, LONDON (1943-ENGLAND). WITH mervyn johns, Robert Beatty, GORDON JACKSON. Directed by CHARLES FREND. Truth can be stranger and more thrilling than the most elaborate and imaginative work of fiction. Such is the case in this taut based-on-fact account of a dramatic episode which occurred during World War II. A major portion of the action unfolds aboard the San Demetrio, a British oil tanker which is first seen setting sail from England to Galveston Texas where it will load and transport precious oil back home for the war effort The perÂsonalities of the San Demetrio’s officers and crew and their everyday lives are depicted. As one might guess, however, this will be no ordinary, and uneventful trip. An unlikely series of events are generated upon the San Demetrio’s tangling with a German battleship. The crux of the story ultiÂmately involves the crew’s re-boarding their burning vessel (which is “more like a volcano than a ship”) and attempting to bring it to its homeport before it blows up in their faces. The result is a stirring drama of fortitude and heroism against all odds, a tale of courage and sacrifice that is packed with excitement. For very good reason. It is “dedicated to the officers and men of the British Merchant Navy.” 94 minutes. War Drama