this express a great sadness about the life of men at sea . some be doom to stay forever . one of the goal of the movie be to finally get john wayne and an innocent swedish man and off the boat and home to his old mother . it paint such a bleak picture you really root for him and even with wayne horrible performance . it go right for the heartstrings . there a great performance by ian hunter a the fellow who mainly keep to himself . he have a secret past and and they suspect he a spy . this one of john ford least self conscious movie and there no heavy americana to deal with and he direct you to the heart of the story and the often drunken emotion of the sailor . out of .