Classic Film Review: "Master and Commander," the Tallest of Tall Ship Sagas
For film critic Alan Herrmann, the 2003 film is "the greatest" of its genre.
By Alan Herrmann
FILM CRITIC
Epic tales of the sea have inspired great films for many reasons, including the mystery of the sea itself and its relationship with humankind. There is a yin yang idea of the attractive beauty the sea holds and respectful fear it demands. The unpredictability of the sea can produce squalls without warning and monstrous waves that turn a perfectly seaworthy craft into a bouncing and tossed-about toy.
There are movies that focus on sea-going catastrophes like Titanic and The Poseidon Adventure. There are also adventure and historical films that take place at sea. Swashbuckling films about pirates and privateers from the Golden Age of Hollywood like Captain Blood, The Sea Hawk, Treasure Island, and The Black Swan were box office favorites. Several decades later, The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise made a boat load of money—pun intended—although they were special-effects laden and from my perspective, pretty ridiculous.
Then there are the war movies that take place at sea, a whole other subgenre of film. The vast majority take place during World War II. Hollywood approached other wars dating back to the Greeks and Romans, but some of my favorite naval combat films took place in the Napoleonic era, roughly 1799 to 1815. It was an era of frigates and other ships of the line—tall wooden ships displaying yards of sails with cannons firing broadsides into enemy ships merely feet away.
Some of these films were inspired by author C.S. Forester, whose Hornblower series made it to the big screen in 1952 with Gregory Peck as Captain Horatio Hornblower. Although he made a handsome and stalwart sea captain, Peck was hampered by his American accent and by overplaying his nervousness around the captivating Virginia Mayo. Later a series of Hornblower TV films (1998-2003) starring Ioan Gruffudd proved to be a more accurate portrayal of the dashing British officer, including more authentic detail.
Other well-known films, such as the three about the real-life struggle between Capt. Bligh and Fletcher Christian that lead to the famous mutiny aboard the HMS Bounty, covered the same time period, without battle scenes between the British and the French. Of all the older movies about Napoleonic naval warfare, Damn the Defiant from 1962 is easily the best. But the greatest film of this type didn’t arrive until 2003: Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World.
Australian Peter Weir directed this underrated movie which has masterpiece status among naval war historians, thanks to its faithful adaptation from Patrick O’Brian’s Jack Aubrey series of novels. Weir, who directed such memorable films as The Year of Living Dangerously, Witness, Dead Poet’s Society, and Picnic at Hanging Rock, has a reputation for getting A+ performances from his actors. Master and Commander is no exception. Russell Crowe as Jack Aubrey, commander of the HMS Surprise is every bit the courageous and respected captain who instills comradery and a strong sense of duty from his crew. He is not the tyrannical figure who would inspire mutiny like William Bligh on the HMS Bounty.
Aubrey’s friend and ship surgeon Stephen Maturin, played by Paul Bettany, is more a product of the revolutionary age and questions the motives of the British admiralty, even though his allegiance is to England and, by extension, the Surprise and Jack. They argue, yet respect each other, although Jack’s fierce determination to track down the evasive French frigate Acheron will override Stephen’s dream of exploring the Galapagos Islands. Aside from being a doctor, Stephen is also a naturalist and his fascination with the archipelago foreshadows the exploration of the area years later by Charles Darwin. It is Stephen’s example of an insect camouflaging itself as a twig that inspires Jack to disguise his ship as a whaling vessel in a surprise attack, with several crew members donning clothing not associated with the Crown.
Jack and Stephen also share a fondness for music and play together as a violin and cello duet. These scenes are a welcome respite from the dangers faced by the officers and crew. Even beyond watching the absolute delight these men share gliding and plucking strings, the soundtrack intermixing original material by Iva Davies, Christopher Gordon, and Richard Tognetti with works by Bach, Mozart, Corelli, and Vaughn Williams fits the many moods of the film.
The battle scenes, particularly the last and biggest, are astounding with heart-pounding realism. Cannon and musket fire amid cries of pain are captured in expert audio technology. The man-to-man combat is savage, with musket balls striking faces and cutlasses tearing into limbs and torsos. The violence is gruesome, but not gratuitous or overblown.
For sea battle and storm scenes, two ships were used: an authentic replica of the HMS Rose standing in as the Surprise for the open water shots, and a high-tech replica used in a large water tank in the studio in Baja, Mexico. The use of computer-generated images (CGI) works seamlessly with the real footage in the movie. The storm sequences are genuinely frightening and surpass the efforts of Titanic and The Perfect Storm.
The film’s climactic battle scene finishes with a beautiful and poignant moment when the bodies of fallen sailors laid out on the ship’s deck, being prepared for a burial at sea. As the camera tracks the grim, yet somewhat peaceful, faces of the deceased, Vaughn Williams’ music never sounded so deeply felt.
Originally there was to be a sequel, or a possible series, based upon the box office impact of Master and Commander. But even with two Academy Awards and some critical attention, producers didn’t see enough dollar signs to justify the expense to continue the saga of Jack Aubrey, Stephen Maturin, and the rest of the crew. It’s really a pity, considering the talent in this film and the subsequent movies that could have been.
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