Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

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source: Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

*Spoilers, dead ahead!* I'm stuck for lavish praises, so I'll try to make this five sentences long, at least. It's very faithful to mainstream Euro-history, especially 19th-century sailing jargon and techniques. Not to mention, the costuming. It's also very humorous, what with Aubrey's pun concerning weevils. Not to also mention, Fate's conspiracy against Dr. Maturin being the first naturalist to report on the fauna of the Galapagos! *Can you say, "Charles Darwin?"* But, of course, being a guy, the best part for me was the climactic showdown with the captain and crew of the French privateer "Acheron." Man! Did midshipmen (a.k.a. work-study naval cadets) have to grow up fast, back then! Otherwise, they literally wouldn't live to grow up, at all. I guess what I'm trying to say is: it's a good thing "the Black Pearl" never went up against "the HMS Surprise." Lucky Jack would've blown Mad Jack out of the water! Two thumbs up!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. Weir almost perfectly captures life on a frigate in the early 19th century; he has an astonishing eye for accurate details. The story has echoes of Moby Dick; and the game of cat and mouse with the French ship draws you in. Leavened with just the right amount of humor and with far less pandering to mushy sentiments that one would expect from a major Hollywood product - this one kept me engrossed from the start.

You get Russell Crowe so we are off to a good start in this movie that depicts life at sea most excellently. Real absorbing drama with a good story to tell awaits the viewer so look forward to this movie treat. In the movie Mutiny on the Bounty, it points out that while England and her Navy is run on laws its the Captain that gives it heart and justice. Captain Bly did not Master and command this but Captain Aubrey (Crowe) in this movie does a masterful job of encouraging, edifying and leading his crew making their hearts one and that is why the story works on the screen and in real life. It is better to get love and devotion willingly and with a gladness than to take it. There is a difference. The crew even sing songs about the Captain and nick-name him Lucky jack. That's stuff you have to earn. Ahoy then, starboard bow and ....

The attention to detail is amazing. The computer generated scenes are flawlessly interwoven making the entire film look incredibly real throughout. Shipboard life is authentically portrayed, at least from all I have read about the age of sail. Battles were very, very authentic looking: the very first battle at the movie's beginning is jaw droppingly brutal. The acting was excellent by all involved. This is what happens when you make a movie based on a very good book. A sequel will be welcomed.

Peter Weir is surely a very accomplished director, who just loves to get every detail correct and proper. From building ships to selecting a capable cast that could act and learn the ropes on board a British Napoleonic Warship. The action, realism and pace is spot on, whilst the intrinsic relationships make it pretty much stand out from anything previous. This film was hard work for real but paid off a treat. As far as I understand the story was based on a fight between an American and a British ship but the former was changed to French (naturally), as it was an American backed film. Hollywood has done this many a time but it's only a small glitch. Russell Crowe on his own is enough to guarantee the quality, in both action and his unique period style acting.

Now, this is in one aspect, a great movie, and in another one just an average one. Let me explain my last viewpoint first. As a matter of intriguing plot this movie does not have much to offer. Crowe commands an english warship, and are under order to seek out and destroy his enemies, which in turn are trying to destroy him. End of story. There are little help from subplots in interaction between the crew. But then again, this movie's strength is not the plot. It's strength is the scenery, acting and details. This movie should not be watched as a ordinary movie, this movie should be felt. Because the makers of this movie have put in an effort for details. If you let it the movie may transport you onto the ship were you can feel the waves, smell the salty ocean and hear the roar of the storms. Thats the strength of this movie. 7/10

For a great technical achievement this is at least worth renting. For the unsurprising story however one may look elsewhere. Russel Crowe turns out much better than feared, actually he fit quite well. The other was all quite characterless, except for the doctor who was OK, but maybe too "reasonable" for this voyage. I can easily understand his motivation for the "Darwin voyage" to the Galapagos, but he didn't go quite well as the warrior. As a pacifist, why would he enroll on a war ship? The ship was cramped and dirty, and it had a realistic atmosphere. So was the chaos during the sieges realistically shown. We get to see things exclusively from the ships viewpoint often impressively photographed. But as this is a Peter Weir I would want more in terms of inventiveness and character.

I thought this movie wove a good tale. Yes, parts of the movie were slow, but that was life on the high seas back then. People spent a lot of time trying not to become bored to death. One cannot remain faithful to the period without showing that. The action sequences were outstanding. It makes you wonder how humanity has survived, seeing what these sailors went through. My wife hated it, but she gets frustrated at war movies as she sees the young fight and die for the older politicians.