[8]
Russell Crowe stars as a British naval captain pushing his ship’s crew to the breaking point in pursuit of the Acheron, a stealthy French vessel he’s been ordered to track and destroy. The plot of Master and Commander isn’t much more complicated than that — a cat and mouse chase across the ocean during the Napoleonic Wars. The drama comes from the ship’s crew, both in their fight for survival against the elements, and in their inter-personal conflicts. Crowe’s inner conflict is instigated by his friend, the ship’s doctor (Paul Bettany), who urges him to ease up on their mission to give his men and the ship time to heal their wounds. Crowe is forced to make a hard decision when Bettany’s character is mortally wounded, requiring immediate surgery on dry, stable land — but can the captain let the Acheron go?
If you’re looking for a straight-forward actioner, this may not be your film. It has a fair amount of action in the beginning and the end, as well as a dramatic storm at sea near the mid-point, but I would call this more of a ‘hang out’ movie dressed in a period setting. Director Peter Weir (Witness, The Mosquito Coast) invites us aboard this ship for two hours and change, where we slowly get to know the men and boys who keep it running. We come to admire the measured fairness of Crowe’s captain, as well as Bettany’s zeal for animals and nature. We empathize with a young lieutenant (Lee Ingleby) who is relentlessly mocked and scapegoated as the source of the ship’s bad luck. We marvel at crude surgeries performed on a rocking surface, and the devastating impact of canon balls on both wood and flesh. A young boy (Max Pirkis) loses an arm early in the film, but by the end, this brave boy is in a command position.
And when these men and boys are not struggling to fight or survive, they are no less remarkable. They enjoy dinner together, where they regale each other with stories and good humor. Crowe’s and Bettany’s characters even practice stringed instruments together. Who knew warfare could be so refined? They abide by noble codes of honor and conduct, as men traditionally have done — at least until recent times. As a fly on the wall to all this camaraderie, the film becomes an excellent depiction of masculinity: how men encourage and support each other without ridicule or shame, how they deal with grief, and how they are willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good.
Master and Commander isn’t as poetic or interpretive as many of Weir’s other films. The director seems to be going for stoic realism more than anything else. When I first saw this movie, it left me feeling pretty cold and indifferent. But upon rewatch, I think I understood the characters better. I really enjoyed how this film transported me to another time and place. I felt like part of the ship’s crew on an adventure like no man will ever see again.
With Billy Boyd, James D’Arcy, Chris Larkin, and Max Benitz.
Academy Awards: Best Cinematography (Russell Boyd), Sound Editing (Richard King)
Oscar Nominations: Best Picture, Director, Film Editing, Art Direction, Visual Effects, Costume Design, Makeup, Sound Mixing,