
Engineer Jake Holman arrives aboard the gunboat USS San Pablo, assigned to patrol a tributary of the Yangtze in the middle of exploited and revolution-torn 1926 China. His iconoclasm and cynical nature soon clash with the 'rice-bowl' system which runs the ship and the uneasy symbiosis between Chinese and foreigner on the river. Hostility towards the gunboat's presence reaches a climax when the boat must crash through a river-boom and rescue missionaries upriver at China Light Mission.
Directed by Robert Wise, The Sand Pebbles leans on a strong ensemble — Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, Richard Crenna — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.
The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about drama titles of 1966.
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A chronicle of the Cristeros War (1926-1929), which was touched off by a rebellion against the Mexican government's attempt to secularize the country.
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