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Lifeboat

Play trailer Poster for Lifeboat 1944 1h 36m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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90% Tomatometer 31 Reviews 87% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
In this tense Alfred Hitchcock thriller, based on a John Steinbeck novella, American and British civilians who have survived the sinking of their ship by a German submarine struggle to reach land in a crowded lifeboat. When a German officer (Walter Slezak) is rescued from the water, the group allows him to board, but his presence only increases the tensions on the boat. Soon treachery ensues, and the population of the vessel gradually decreases as conflicts come to a head.
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Lifeboat

Lifeboat

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Critics Consensus

Hitchcock proves he can wring suspense from the most confined of settings aboard a raft teeming with vivid personalities in this maritime thriller.

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Critics Reviews

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Variety Staff Variety Oct 16, 2008
Despite that it's a slow starter, the picture, from the beginning, leaves a strong impact and, before too long, develops into the type of suspenseful product with which Hitchcock has always been identified. Go to Full Review Bosley Crowther New York Times Mar 25, 2006
4/5
That old master of screen melodrama, Alfred Hitchcock, and Writer John Steinbeck have combined their distinctive talents in a tremendously provocative film. Go to Full Review Dan Callahan Slant Magazine Oct 24, 2005
4/4
Hitchcock's shifting sympathies guarantee our guilty involvement with the characters until he builds to a climax of intellectual and spiritual excitation. Go to Full Review Danielle Solzman Solzy at the Movies Jan 28, 2024
4/5
Beyond the characters, this is a very challenging film from both a directing and cinematography standpoint. Go to Full Review Kristin Battestella InSession Film Jul 25, 2023
Intense poker, lipstick, and flirtations increase as beards grow and tables turn amid storms, hunger, delirium, and suspicion in a no win situation that remains gripping from beginning to end. Go to Full Review Francois Truffaut Arts (France) May 26, 2022
Lifeboat is like roast beef without gravy, and whoever does not get enthusiastic about the movie will be bored to death. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Alain E @AlainE Jul 12, 2026 I don’t like most of Hitchcock’s early work, but this is the exception. There is excellent drawing of the different characters avoiding ridiculous exaggerations. For the time, having a Black character as a complete human being was quite daring. The interactions between the different protagonists ring true. At the nick of time they avoid a total disaster. The black and white photography is very well restored. On Prime. See more Bookies B @BookiesBeat Jan 28, 2026 If you took all the characters off the lifeboat and put them in a mental asylum, it would work just as well. Willi was smart enough to get as far as he did with a bunch of clods for shipmates, but it seemed out of character for him to disclose himself so quickly; a shrewd man like him would have waited until he was in a secure position (on the supply ship) before letting the mask down. That they went through all that only to be deceived once more by a German boy is diabolically stupid. Did they have hunger-induced amnesia, or were they just not invested in saving their own lives? Since John Hodiak's character was the only sensible one from the start, perhaps a better premise would have been Willi picking them off one by one until it's just him and John left on the lifeboat. See more James G P @AlbertJay Jan 19, 2026 With its limited frame, it just is never able to build and sustain suspense. My least favorite Hitchcock ... See more MaryAnn M. @MWAMD Sep 19, 2025 Love Hitchcock and this movie was great See more Jared M. @Jed76 Jul 1, 2025 One of my all time favorites!!! See more Steve D @RT35616104 Mar 25, 2024 Well done but not anything that I would want to revisit. See more Read all reviews
Lifeboat

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Cast & Crew

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Alfred Hitchcock

Director

Tallulah Bankhead

Constance "Connie" Porter

William Bendix

Gus Smith

Walter Slezak

Willy

Mary Anderson

Alice MacKenzie

John Hodiak

John Kovac

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Lifeboat

Lifeboat (1944) Lifeboat (1944) Lifeboat (1944) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis In this tense Alfred Hitchcock thriller, based on a John Steinbeck novella, American and British civilians who have survived the sinking of their ship by a German submarine struggle to reach land in a crowded lifeboat. When a German officer (Walter Slezak) is rescued from the water, the group allows him to board, but his presence only increases the tensions on the boat. Soon treachery ensues, and the population of the vessel gradually decreases as conflicts come to a head.
Director
Alfred Hitchcock
Producer
Kenneth Macgowan
Screenwriter
Ben Hecht, John Steinbeck, Jo Swerling
Distributor
20th Century Fox, CBS/Fox, Fox
Production Co
20th Century Fox
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 11, 1944, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 1, 2013
Runtime
1h 36m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
35mm, Flat (1.37:1)
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