Master and Commander : De l'autre côté du monde

"Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World" is a very unusual film because the filmmakers obviously were not attempting to make yet another Hollywood style blockbuster. Instead, they seemed to be doing the impossible--make a film that tries very hard to replicate what life was like at sea back during the Napoleonic Wars. As a retired history teacher, this is the sort of stuff I love--even if in the original, the 'bad guys' were actually the Americans and it was set during the War of 1812! I assume they changed the enemy to the French to make the film more marketable. After all, it would be a hard sell in the large American market to get the audiences to root for the British Navy in this altercation!

The story occurs around the beginning of the 19th century. The Brits and French have been fighting off and on for almost a decade (and would continue to do so until 1815). The action is set aboard a British Naval ship commanded by Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe). His ship has encountered a larger and faster French vessel and managed to escape. However, instead of running, Crowe plays a very determined man--and spends much of the film hunting down this ship. Along the way, there are lots of adventures--mostly of the variety you might actually have seen during the era. I could talk about them, but frankly this would spoil the suspense.

Overall, while this film is very slowly and deliberately paced (which will obviously turn off some viewers), the film is so expertly crafted that for a reasonably patient viewer, it should be a very engaging film. The film looks great--with a lot of attention to details and accuracy. It also has the best looking sea footage you can find in a period film--especially when the ship is rounding the Cape (it must have been amazing on the big screen). The acting is lovely as well--understated but quite realistic. Well done in every way and the director really deserves kudos for this one. While I love films from the same period as "Damn the Defiant", "Captain Horatio Hornblower", "Mutiny on the Bounty" and the like, clearly "Master and Commander" is superior when it comes to accurately portraying the life of a seaman.

In April 1805, Napoleon rules Europe. British frigate H.M.S. Surprise under the command of Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) is ordered to intercept French Privateer Acheron. In the first battle, Aubrey quickly discovers that Acheron is actually bigger, faster and more powerful skippered by a smart tactician. He escapes only through his skills and experience. After being soundly beaten, Aubrey decides to keep going instead of returning to base to refit. The ship's surgeon and Aubrey's friend Dr. Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany) clash with him more and more as the far ranging battle continues.

The action is exciting and more realistic than sail seafaring battle movies before it. The most compelling are the splinters that fly everywhere. It is the CGI that pushes the envelop on this action. Realism is everywhere. It is dirty, ugly, bloody, and horrifying. Russell Crowe delivers a solid performance to anchor this movie in reality. Then there are the everyday things that happen in between the battles. This has the epic scale conflicts but the human size struggle.

The British Navy ruled the waves throughout the nineteenth century and this film captures some of that spirit rather well. The cast is excellent, Crowe in particular shining as the captain. The battle scenes between Anglo-French vessels are very entertaining, the cannons blasting great big holes into enemy ships! The story itself is not going to set the world on fire, but its all done very nicely. The film offers a glimpse of what life at sea was like during the Napoleonic Wars and anybody with an interest in history should catch the film. A few more battles would have been nice, but there you go! It's over 2 hours long, but doesn't drag. One to watch definitely.

And surprised I was. After hearing a friend rant endlessly about it, and having nothing to do one Friday night, I rented Master and Commander. The marketing staff should be cackling in glee, that a female in her 20's, would love this movie. It's an amazing movie. Russell Crowe is a force of nature, and all the other actors from Paul Bettany to Billy Boyd give wonderful performances. I especially enjoyed the details of life at sea, though most would call them boring. The day after my 5-day rental, I had to run to the nearest shop and buy the DVD, and have since re-watched it endlessly. I've never seen a more beautifully adapted, filmed and acted movie. Five stars out of five.

Epic. It is the first word defining it. But , scene by scene, the nuances are more significant. For a lot of reasons. The performances could be the first. And the most seductive. The memories about adventure and historical literature from. early years is the second. Not the last - the thrill of story, remembering huge drama. And the art of a real good adaptation.