Trailer arrives for USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

The first article I ever wrote for Arrow in the Head covered the announcement of USS INDIANAPOLIS: MEN OF COURAGE, a film that depicts the real world tragedy many people know about thanks to Quint's classic monologue in JAWS. Just short of one year later, I can now share the trailer for that movie.

Directed by Mario Van Peebles, USS INDIANAPOLIS stars Nicolas Cage as Captain Charles Butler McVay.

McVay's ship was torpedoed in the South Pacific in July 1945, after delivering parts for the first atomic bombs. Their mission was classified, so the Indianapolis was not reported missing until four days later.

Of 1,196 crewmen aboard, approximately 300 went down with the ship, while the rest faced exposure, dehydration, saltwater poisoning and shark attacks as they waited for assistance. Only 317 sailors survived, and McVay was court-martialed, then exonerated more than half a century later.

If you like your trailers short and simple, you may not like the approach taken to advertising USS INDIANAPOLIS with this trailer, because it is a three and a half minute epic packed with story points, war imagery, courtroom drama, and yes, shark attacks.