The Frogmen is pretty generic 1950s WWII movie fare. Richard Widmark takes over an underwater demolition team after the death of its previous, beloved, commander. Widmark's style is less charismatic than his predecessors, though, and his new charges (pun intended) don't miss an opportunity to vent their displeasure with him. It isn't long before every man on the team has requested a transfer. Can Widmark manage to step out from the long shadow of his predecessor and gain the respect of his men???

In between battling themselves, they also take on the Japanese -- underwater, of course. And this is where the movie gets interesting. We're treated to the team's rolling entries from boats zipping along at top speeds. Even better, we get to watch them re-enter the boats at those same speeds. There are also long underwater scenes of the team freediving down through a hail of enemy fire to make a reconnaissance of concrete barriers just off the beach that could impede the coming amphibious invasion. And then there are scenes of them penetrating the defenses of a Japanese harbor, with a little underwater hand-to-hand thrown in.

This might all seem like typical James Bond stuff but its quite superior. The black and white photography of the movie adds a depth to the underwater scenes that's never captured in color. The underwater scenes are also shot without any musical score, so you're left with only the sounds of their inhalations and exhalations. And that's nice.

All in all, The Frogmen is a pretty good movie, made better by its 15 minutes or so of underwater footage. We recommend it. It is available on DVD.