Hey dudes.
So for whatever reason I finally decided to put Master and Commander in yesterday after promising to do so back in January. Sorry for the lateness.
Anyway, I hadn't seen it in its entirety since it was out in theaters. I remember going with my Mom and being extremely disappointed. Both of us were expecting another rousing period adventure in the same vein as Gladiator and we could not have been more wrong.
While I remember it having a few cool battle sequences, Master and Commander proved to be more of an examination of life at sea in the 1800s than I was craving at the moment, and I've stayed away from it ever since. I always kind of knew that I hadn't given it a fair shake though, so when I saw it for $5 on blu ray I figured now was the time to give it another go.
And it just so happens that I kind of loved every second of it this time. Director Peter Weir (The Truman Show, Dead Poets Society) was given $150 million to make an accurate depiction of sea life and warfare circa 1805 with a cast led by a ridiculously charismatic Russell Crowe.
I mentioned a few weeks back that I had been on a Crowe kick lately, and this movie only reinforced that. I'm really not sure he has ever been as commanding (sorrynotsorry) or believable as a leader as he is here. His Captain Jack Aubrey is everything you want in a commander. He's already achieved a legendary status by the time the movie starts, and yet he remains sympathetic to even the smallest job position on his crew. Funny, caring, yet not afraid to dish out discipline when necessary, there is never a moment's doubt that this crew would die for their Captain. And it's all thanks to Crowes performance.
Oh man, and the awesome ship battles. SHIP BATTLES! Saying that makes me feel not my age and it's great. Anywho, they're all seemingly filmed as realistically as possible, with Crowe and other actors screaming words like "Starboard!" and "Albatross!" that seem appropriate given their boat setting. Seriously though, the sequences are exciting and they make me hate the Pirates of the Carribean franchise a little more.The final fight in particular has a moment towards the end, just as the battle is reaching its peak intensity, when everything just suddenly stops, and everyone has to readjust to the moment. It's a moment that feels odd and unexpected, something that I'm sure happens in any given battle, and it was just a nice little touch Weir added to the film.
Most of the movie however, is spent on the chase of the enemies' boat, rather than the battles with it. With that comes sneak attacks, long bouts with no wind, low morale and just some good old character development. There are numerous scenes of the Captain and his officers eating and getting drunk at dinner, swapping anecdotes and things. Sometimes these scenes help move the plot forward and sometimes they just serve as nice character beats, particularly between Crowe and Paul Bettany, who plays the ships doctor and Crowe's close friend and confidant. These guys have an easy chemistry together, which was already displayed in A Beautiful Mind a few years prior, but it's more grounded here. It's a nice depiction of a friendship that clearly helped define both men.
The rest of the cast is also great, with multiple characters getting small bits of story or moments to help them stand out. I have to admit though, during one particular moment when a certain character dies and it leaves the entire crew devastated. The moment certainly resonated with me, but I honestly had no idea who had just died and I never really found out either. It's one of the few complaints I have about the film. There are simply too many characters to follow. Again, it's a small gripe, as there are numerous characters that stand out aside from the Captain and his doctor, and the film is better for it.
I had a pretty great time revisiting Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. Crowe is as dashing and charming as ever, and further reinforces his reputation as a badass who simply doesn't give a fuck. And director Weir made a beautiful and exciting sea epic that I can honestly say didn't get anywhere near the exposure or love it deserved back in 2003. Do yourself a favor dudes and give this one a look-see.
