Five Came Back

Five Came Back
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	John Farrow
Produced by	Robert Sisk
Written by	Jerry Cady; Dalton Trumbo; Nathanael West
Based on	story by Richard Carroll
Starring	Chester Morris; Lucille Ball
Music by	Roy Webb
Cinematography	Nicholas Musuraca
Edited by	Harry Marker
Production; company	RKO
Distributed by	RKO Radio Pictures
Release date	June 23, 1939;
Running time	73 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$225,000[1]
Box office	$721,000[1]

Five Came Back is a 1939 American black-and-white melodrama from RKO Radio Pictures, produced by Robert Sisk, directed by John Farrow, that stars Chester Morris and Lucille Ball. The film was photographed by cinematographer Nicholas Musuraca, and written by Jerry Cady, Dalton Trumbo, and Nathanael West. Although considered a B movie, the positive notices received by Ball helped launch her as an A-list actress.[2] Five Came Back is considered a precursor of the disaster film genre.[3]

In 1948 Five Came Back was remade (differing only in minor details) as the Mexican film Los que volvieron and again in 1956 by producer-director Farrow as Back from Eternity, starring Robert Ryan and Anita Ekberg.

Plot

Nine passengers board a commercial flight from Los Angeles to Panama City: wealthy Judson Ellis (Patric Knowles) and Alice Melhorne (Wendy Barrie), eloping because their parents disapprove; an elderly couple, Professor Henry Spengler (C. Aubrey Smith) and his wife Martha (Elisabeth Risdon); Tommy Mulvaney (Casey Johnson), the young son of a gangster, and his escort, gunman Pete (Allen Jenkins); Peggy Nolan (Lucille Ball), a woman with a shady past; and Vasquez (Joseph Calleia), an anarchist being extradited and facing a death sentence for killing a high-ranking politician, and his deportation guard, Crimp (John Carradine), who expects a substantial reward for delivering him. The crew comprises pilot Bill (Chester Morris), co-pilot Joe Brooks (Kent Taylor), and steward Larry (Dick Hogan).

Chester Morris, John Carradine, Lucille Ball and Joseph Calleia in Five Came Back

On their way to Panama, a fierce nighttime storm buffets their airliner, The Silver Queen. A gas cylinder is shaken loose and knocks a door open and little Tommy falls against it; steward Larry attempts to close it and hands Tommy up to one of the other passengers, just before he falls through the open door to his death. An engine fails and the pilots are forced to crash-land in jungle terrain. In the morning the professor recognizes plants of the Amazon rainforest: the aircraft has been blown far south of where rescuers will search; the nearest civilization is across the mountains. But there is water, and enough fruit and game for everyone to live on.

Weeks go by while Bill and Joe struggle to repair the damaged airliner, while the others clear a runway and lighten the aircraft by removing all unnecessary weight. The experience changes everyone. The Spenglers rediscover their love for each other. Bill warms to an appreciative Peggy, although she tells him about her sordid past. Judson falls apart, staying drunk much of the time, while Alice toughens up and begins to feel attracted to Joe. The biggest change is to Vasquez. Seeing how well most of the group have coped with their situation, he reconsiders his radical beliefs.

On the 23rd day, Crimp disappears; Tommy eventually discovers his dead body. When Peggy and Pete go looking for Tommy, he leads them to Crimp's body, which has a poison dart stuck in it. Pete orders Peggy to take Tommy to safety while he covers their retreat, but he is quickly killed by unseen natives.

The remaining survivors board the now-repaired airliner, but as the engines turn over, an oil leak develops. Bill and Joe patch it, but realize that their repair will fail some time after takeoff, leaving only one running engine. As a result, the aircraft can only carry four adults and Tommy across the mountains. As everyone tries to decide how to choose who must stay behind, Vasquez suddenly grabs a pistol and announces that, since he is doomed no matter what, he is the only one without bias and will make the decision. While the leak repairs are being made, he is approached by Professor Spengler, who says that he and his wife have lived their lives and should stay; then Judson tries to bribe Vasquez by offering to pay for a top lawyer.

When the aircraft is ready, Vasquez announces that both pilots and both of the younger women will go along with Tommy. Judson attacks, and Vasquez shoots him dead. The airliner takes off, leaving behind Vasquez and the Spenglers. As the natives approach, Professor Spengler quietly informs Vasquez that they must not be taken alive, as they will be tortured. Vasquez lies to him, telling him that there are three bullets left. He kills the couple with his last two bullets, and then awaits his grisly fate.

Cast

Chester Morris, Lucille Ball, Casey Johnson and Kent Taylor in Five Came Back

Chester Morris as Bill
Lucille Ball as Peggy Nolan
Wendy Barrie as Alice Melhorne
John Carradine as Crimp
Allen Jenkins as Pete
Joseph Calleia as Vasquez
C. Aubrey Smith as Professor Henry Spengler
Kent Taylor as Joe Brooks
Patric Knowles as Judson Ellis
Elisabeth Risdon as Martha Spengler
Casey Johnson as Tommy Mulvaney
Dick Hogan as Larry

Production

Development

The film was based on an original story by former journalist Richard Carroll. The studio bought it on 12 April 1938 and said it would be a "probable vehicle" for Cary Grant.[4] However, Five Came Back wound up being made as a B picture, albeit a higher budgeted one than normal films of the type. In August 1938 it was announced as part of RKO's schedule for the following year.[5]

Victor McLaglen and Charles Coburn were originally announced as cast members.[6] Eventually, John Carradine was borrowed from 20th Century Fox and Allen Jenkins from Warner Bros. C Aubrey Smith and Joseph Calleia were also cast.[7] Lucille Ball, Patric Knowles, and Kent Taylor were last-minute replacements for Ann Sothern, Alan Marshall, and Alan Baxter.[8]

Shooting

Filming started in late March 1939.[9]

Although primarily filmed on a back lot, Five Came Back overcame some of the limitations of its low-budget. The fiery director insisted on a realistic jungle environment and had trees imported to flesh out the jungle landscape on the sound stage. Unwanted attention directed toward Lucille Ball by lead actor Chester Morris[3] and clashes between director Farrow, a contract player, and Ball[Note 1] made for a tense set. When two Black Widow spiders dropped out of a tree onto Ball's head, she was extremely upset and left the set, screaming.[10][Note 2]

Capelis XC-12

The transport aircraft used in Five Came Back is the Capelis XC-12, built in 1933 by Capelis Safety Airplane Corporation of California, although an altogether different airplane, a Lockheed Electra, is seen in one takeoff sequence.[11] The aircraft was a 12-seat, low-wing cabin monoplane with two 525 hp Wright Cyclone engines. [Note 3]

The Capelis XC-12 featured an unusual construction method with the main wing spar bolted together, and much of the metal skin attached with P-K self-tapping screws rather than rivets. These tended to vibrate loose, requiring tightening or replacing screws every few flights. After a 1938 emergency landing caused structural damage, promotional tours were quickly abandoned. The aircraft was then sold to RKO in 1939. The transport ended its career as a non-flying film prop, appearing in ground roles (in the 1942 Flying Tigers, starring John Wayne, and in other features) before reportedly being scrapped around 1950, after having slowly become a back lot relic. Flying shots in Five Came Back used a XC-12 miniature, due to the aircraft having been permanently grounded by the studio's insurance company.[12]

Principal photography was completed on April 26, 1939, coming in at an estimated $225,000.[3]

Reception

Critical

In his July 5, 1939, review in The New York Times, Frank Nugent praised Five Came Back as "a rousing salute to melodrama, suspenseful as a slow-burning fuse, exciting as a pinwheel, spectacularly explosive as an aerial bomb".[13]

"Out of the enterprise comes a fine piece of work by Joseph Calleia", wrote critic Wood Soanes, "an actor who was taken from the stage after several excellent characterizations and who has been given little chance to show his stuff on the screen. Because Five Came Back was obviously not viewed as an epic while in the making and was, consequently, not subjected to high-powered studio supervision, Calleia managed to get in a splendid character study".[14]

Richard B. Jewell, Professor of American Film at the University of Southern California, wrote in The RKO Story, "In 1939, John Farrow directed one of the most exciting 'B' films in company history. Since the title indicated how many would make it out alive, audience members were kept on the edge of their seats". Jewell describes the film as "one of the very best program melodramas in RKO history".

Five Came Back was also notable for lively "street smart" dialogue attributed to its team of distinguished screenwriters. Both Cady and West were later to be nominated for Academy Awards in future projects, while Trumbo became one of Hollywood's most acclaimed screenwriters with two Oscars to his credit.[15]

Box office

Even though the studio had planned it as a standard "B" movie, Five Came Back became a surprise hit that "quickly amassed an enthusiastic word-of-mouth campaign among moviegoers".[15] The film, which cost $225,000 to make, eventually earned $262,000 in profits".[16]

Legacy

The film is widely viewed as having paved the way for disaster epics of the '70s, like Airport and Poseidon Adventure.[3]

Five Came Back was admired by Buddy De Sylva at Paramount, who later put Farrow under contract and gave him A-picture assignments.[17]

Remade in 1956 as Back from Eternity.

It is also credited as inspiring the 1967 Star Trek episode The Galileo Seven.[18]

Home media

Five Came Back was released on DVD by the Warner Archive Collection[19] in June 2015.

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