Film Review: Five Came Back (1939)

1939 stands as Hollywood’s most celebrated year, a cinematic watershed marked by masterpieces like Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, and Stagecoach. In the shadow of these towering achievements, several films that might otherwise have been hailed as timeless classics were overshadowed, their legacies confined to niche admiration. Among these is Five Came Back, a 1939 adventure-drama directed by John Farrow, which now occupies a curious footnote in film history. Though largely forgotten today, the film is notable for pioneering the narrative template of the disaster genre—a template later refined in classics like Airport (1970). Its premise of disparate strangers thrust into a life-threatening scenario, forced to confront their flaws and forge uneasy alliances, resonates throughout modern disaster storytelling. Yet in 1939, it was lost amid the clamour of its more celebrated contemporaries, a victim of both timing and its modest studio origins.

The film’s straightforward narrative begins in the US airport, where a passenger plane prepares to depart for Panama City. The crew—pilot Bill (Chester Morris), co-pilot Joe Brooks (Kent Audy), and steward Larry (Dick Hogan)—are joined by nine passengers, each with secrets and motivations as tangled as the plot itself. The ensemble includes Judson Ellis (Patric Knowles), a wealthy businessman fleeing his family to elope with his secretary, Alice (Wendy Barrie); Vasquez (Joseph Calleia), an anarchist sentenced to death for murder and being transported by bounty hunter Crimp (John Carradine); Pete (Allen Jenkins), a gangster escorting his boss’s young son, Tommy Mulvaney (Casey Johnson), to safety; botanist Professor Henry Sprengler (C. Aubrey Smith) and his wife Martha (Elisabeth Risdon), seeking respite from their mundane lives; and Peggy Nolan (Lucille Ball), a woman escaping a shadowy past. This cross-section of humanity—flawed, morally ambiguous, and socially stratified—sets the stage for the film’s central conflict.

En route to Panama, the plane encounters a violent tropical storm, forcing an emergency landing in a remote jungle. With communication systems destroyed and rescue unlikely, the group must collaborate to repair the aircraft. Yet survival proves fraught with tension. Personal vendettas, hidden agendas, and the looming threat of hostile headhunting natives complicate their efforts. Farrow’s direction emphasizes the claustrophobic dread of their situation, using the dense jungle as both a physical and psychological antagonist. The film’s climax—a frenetic scramble to relaunch the plane amid an attack by natives—culminates in a melodramatic resolution that, while rushed, underscores the characters’ growth and the narrative’s thematic throughlines.

Produced by RKO Pictures, a studio synonymous with B-movies and genre fare, Five Came Back was a modestly budgeted project. Filmed entirely on studio backlots, the jungle setting is convincingly rendered, albeit on a constrained scale. John Farrow, a director of modest reputation but prolific output, helms the film with workmanlike efficiency. While he lacked the auteurist flair of contemporaries like Hitchcock or Capra, Farrow’s ability to balance action and character moments proves effective. The film’s greatest strengths, however, lie not in its technical execution but in its screenplay and thematic depth—a testament to the collaborative efforts behind the scenes.

The screenplay, written by a trio of notable talents—Nathanael West (author of The Day of the Locust), Jerry Cady (later an Oscar nominee for Wings of a Prayer), and Dalton Trumbo (one of Hollywood’s greatest screenwriting legends)—is the film’s crowning achievement. Compressed into a tight 75-minute runtime, the script manages to flesh out its ensemble cast with surprising nuance. Each character’s backstory is hinted at through dialogue and subtext, allowing audiences to infer motivations without exposition-heavy scenes. The most compelling arc belongs to Vasquez, the anarchist. Initially portrayed as a villainous figure, he evolves into a moral compass, sacrificing himself to save others—a subversion of the “villain” trope that quietly critiques rigid moral binaries. This social commentary, though subtle, elevates the film beyond mere adventure, offering reflections on redemption, class divisions, and the fragility of civilised order.

While Five Came Back lacks star power—Chester Morris and Wendy Barrie were past their prime—the ensemble is anchored by seasoned character actors. Joseph Calleia, as Vasquez, delivers a nuanced performance that transcends his role as a “criminal,” while C. Aubrey Smith brings gravitas to the botanist, embodying quiet dignity. However, it is Lucille Ball who steals scenes in her early career role as Peggy Nolan. Though her screen time is limited, Ball’s portrayal of a woman haunted by her past hints at the wit and vulnerability that later defined her iconic TV persona in I Love Lucy. Her chemistry with the ensemble suggests a talent poised for stardom, even if the film itself failed to catapult her there.

Despite its lack of A-list stars and the fierce competition of 1939, Five Came Back performed surprisingly well at the box office, suggesting audiences responded to its tight plotting and ensemble dynamics. Its true legacy, however, lies in its influence. The film inspired several remakes, including Alejandro Galindo’s 1948 Mexican adaptation Los que volvieron and Farrow’s own 1956 remake Back from Eternity, which expanded the runtime but failed to recapture the original’s bite. More significantly, its narrative framework—stranded strangers facing adversity—became a blueprint for disaster films. The 1967 Star Trek episode The Galileo Seven, with its isolated crew battling both environment and internal discord, echoes Five Came Back’s themes. Similarly, the survivalist dynamics of Gilligan’s Island (1964–1967) and Lost (2004–2010) owe a debt to this overlooked precursor.

Five Came Back is a film of modest ambitions that, through its sharp scripting and thematic richness, transcends its B-movie trappings. While its execution lacks the polish of later disaster epics, its influence on genre storytelling is undeniable. For film buffs and genre enthusiasts, it remains a fascinating artifact, a reminder that even in Hollywood’s golden age, overlooked works could plant seeds for future classics. In its blend of character-driven drama and survivalist tension, Five Came Back proves that sometimes, the films that slip through the cracks contain ideas worth remembering.

RATING: 7/10 (+++)

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