Shackleton's Captain

I was in Germany and caught this on television. Even though my German is pretty average I really enjoyed it. I hope it ends up on television in Canada so I can watch it again in English. It was everything a great adventure story should be; exciting, frightening, moving and inspirational. The balance of documentary alongside drama was perfect. I'd known a little bit about Shackleton himself but nothing about his Captain. Typical that we never hear about the people who were behind the front-man. This story really made you think about what a hero is and what it takes to keep going when all seems lost. If it wasn't a true story there is no way I would have believed it. I enjoyed the way the programme was put together as well, with the Captain telling the story himself. I thought this was an interesting way to make a documentary seem more personal. All and all it was a ripper of a yarn and anyone who is interested in sailing will really love it.

I felt underwhelmed by this film even before I learned more about Frank Worsley. As another reviewer mentioned, the acting is weak. The actor playing Worsley looks nothing like him- the real Worsley was 5'7" and had brown eyes, not blue. The negativity in this film about Shackleton is odd. Shackleton was not a born navigator, but Worsley was not a born leader. Take either man out of the equation and there would have certainly been loss of life. It feels disingenuous to play up Shackleton's "failures" in a film about a man who loved and respected him, and was loved and respected by him.

The best film about the Endurance expedition is the 1933 "Endurance", featuring Frank Hurley's spectacular cinematography, and presented and narrated by Worsley himself. You can view the film for free on Tubi.

Frankly (pun intended), Worsley's connection with Shackleton is far from the only interesting thing about him. If you are interested in Worsley, read his books "First Voyage in a Square-Rigged Ship", "Endurance", and "Under Sail in the Frozen North". This way you can piece together his life, in his own words, from ages 0-53. He was a wonderful writer! His books are funny and heartfelt. To adequately cover Worsley's rich life and many adventures would require a miniseries. This docudrama just doesn't cut it.

I saw this movie on TV in New Zealand. It is the most incredible story. I didn't really know anything about it and now I don't know why everyone in NZ isn't aware of this incredible Kiwi. This movie explains that while the explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton was a great leader, without Frank Worsley he may have been just another dead English explorer. I love to sail and I was in awe of what Worsley achieved. The journey on the lifeboat must be one of the great sailing journeys of all time. Anyone who is into yachting should see this film. Aside from anything else it is incredible to see what these men endure. Just inspiring that they could keep going. The movie itself is really great it mixes old footage, with interviews and scenes with actors. I was pulled into the story and by the end I was actually cold. I thought Craig Parker who played Frank Worsley was wonderful.

Capt. Frank Worsley of New Zealand deserves as much if not more recognition than his employer, Sir Ernest Shackleton in regards to the latter's Imperial Trans-Arctic Expedition. What Capt. Worsley accomplished on more than one occasion borders on miraculous. This docu-drama is enhanced with the outstanding work of Australian expedition photographer Frank Hurley. He managed to save numerous stills and silent film footage that speak to the conditions that the crew of "Endurance" had to exist in, or die. Well done production!

This film is very well done! We watched this in NZ while visiting there, and thought it was brilliant.

History not many of us hear about!! Being a true story added even more to the feeling of the plot line and the tension as Shakelton was attempting to save the crew. The acting was extremely good, and the sets very realistic. I especially liked the attention to detail of the period costumes during the lecture.

As a Canadian, who has experienced it, the cold was portrayed brilliantly.

Frank Worsely himself is an unknown hero to most of us for his saving of the crew, and the crew's ability to maintain relative calm while stranded for 2 months while awaiting word as to what Worsely and Shakelton had or had not accomplished in their attempt to save them is a major storyline unto itself.

Everyone we were with, as Canadians, felt the same way as we did. We hope the feature films in Canada for two reasons. 1. To allow people to learn about this adventure. 2. Be proud of a Canadian born filmmaker who is doing so well in NZ.