Reap the Wild Wind (1942)

My Review

Paulette Goddard runs a marine salvage business in Key West in the 1840’s, and becomes involved in a complex love triangle with fellow shipping people John Wayne and Ray Milland in “Reap the Wild Wind.” Director Cecil B. DeMille (“North West Mounted Police” 1940) put together an exciting action-adventure film with outstanding production values, great stars, and good writing by Jesse Lasky Jr. and four others. It was adapted from a 1940 magazine story of the same name by Thelma Strable. “Reap the Wild Wind” was filmed in Technicolor at locations around Southern California.

Co-stars with Goddard, Wayne, and Milland include Raymond Massey, Robert Preston, Susan Hayward, Milburn Stone, Charles Bickford, Louise Beavers, Hedda Hopper, Lynne Overman, Walter Hampden, and Martha O’Driscoll. “Reap the Wild Wind” was the fourth highest grossing film of 1942 for producer Cecil B. DeMille and Paramount Pictures. It won one Academy Award for Best Special Effects, and two nominations for Best Cinematography (Victor Milner, William V. Skall) and Best Art Direction.