Outward Bound (film)

Outward Bound
Directed by	Robert Milton
Written by	Sutton Vane (play) J. Grubb Alexander
Starring	Leslie Howard Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Helen Chandler Beryl Mercer Dudley Digges Alec B. Francis
Cinematography	Hal Mohr
Distributed by	Warner Brothers
Release date(s)	November 29, 1930
Running time	83 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

Outward Bound (1930) is a film based on the hit 1923 play of the same name by Sutton Vane. The film stars Leslie Howard, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Helen Chandler, Beryl Mercer, Montagu Love, Alison Skipworth, Alec B. Francis, and Dudley Digges.

It was later remade, with some changes, as Between Two Worlds (1944).

Plot

A disparate group of passengers find themselves aboard a darkened, fog-enshrouded crewless boat, sailing to an unknown destination. Their stories are revealed one by one. Tom Prior, a prodigal son, discovers that he's travelling with his ex-boss Mr. Lingley, a captain of industry; Tom's mother, Mrs. Midget, whose identity the son does not know, is curious about how her son is doing; Mrs. Cliveden-Banks, an affected socialite, chats with the steward Scrubby; Rev. William Duke, a clergyman, is keen about his missionary work in the London slums; and a young couple, Henry and Ann, who are facing an impossible love affair and find they cannot live without each other, wonder if they'll be together forever.

In time, the passengers slowly realize what's going on -- the one thing they have in common is that they are all dead, and they are on their way to either heaven or hell; during the course of the trip they will be judged. Arriving at their destination, they sit awaiting judgment by Thompson, the "examiner". He will determine what sort of punishment or reward they receive in the next world.

But Henry and Ann, who unsuccessfully committed suicide and now hover in a sort of limbo between life and death, have not quite crossed over yet. Scrubby, the ship's steward, has already been condemned to sail the ship for eternity, having successfully committed suicide. Henry is eventually saved from asphyxiation by his dog breaking a window pane; he calls to Ann, she revives, and together they are rescued by an ambulance.

Cast

• Leslie Howard as Tom Prior
• Douglas Fairbanks Jr. as Henry
• Beryl Mercer as Mrs Midget
• Dudley Digges as Thompson
• Helen Chandler as Ann
• Alec B. Francis as Scrubby
• Montagu Love as Mr Lingley
• Lyonel Watts as Reverend William Duke
• Alison Skipworth as Mrs Cliveden-Banks

External links

• Outward Bound (film) at the Internet Movie Database