Master And Commander: The Far Side Of The World

Peter Weir has never made a bad movie, and has an established list of pedigree films to his credit, of which Fearless is my favourite (although it's sadly not available on DVD in its original aspect ratio). Master and Commander comes close and gives the audience their money's worth with a fabulous, rousing adventure story which credits its viewers with more than a little intelligence.

Russell Crowe plays "Lucky" Jack Aubrey, and is real proof Crowe is able to mix movie star bravado with more passive power. Movies like A Beautiful Mind, in which his acting was almost sublime, capturing the intense tics of a man crippled and bolstered by his genius and madness, support this. A brilliant man of action and strategy, Aubrey is also intensely proud of his crew. He is a strong and fair leader, and the screenplay explains his nickname through the crew's stories of snatching victory against overwhelming odds.

Indeed, overwhelming odds are the order of the day. The HMS Surprise is frightfully outclassed. During a brief period of visual exposition, we learn the layout of the opposing ship, the French warship Acheron, and her abilities on the sea. One of the crew saw her being built and had a small model made for Aubrey's analysis. He is rewarded with an extra ration of rum, and his pride and his captain's gratitude go without speaking.

Production Designer William Sandell creates an expensive but small number of sets, where verisimilitude is king. There's a full-scale seaworthy version of the Surprise, and a lot of work has been done in the enormous tank where many of the outdoor moments of Titanic were realised. I sighed, stopped looking for the invisible digital seams, and surrendered to it all.

Weir's film is sold as a blockbuster epic, but thankfully it proves much more than expensive visual effects willywaving. There are a mere two battle scenes, but the voyage is one large assault of men against the elements. We observe the isolation, the kinship, and the backbiting of the crew.The screenplay is delightfully episodic, not least the climactic ending, which skillfully suggests that we may have many more adventures with the HMS Surprise. Many story threads are carefully opened and they are all carefully given adaquate screen time in which to breathe and reach their natural conclusions, or to come to a head.

Much of the story is seen through the eyes of a 13-year-old officer who loses his arm in the opening skirmish with the Acheron, and his relationship with Aubrey and with Maturin, the ship's doctor. The two men are on opposite sides of the same ideal, and this young officer helps viewers orient themselves to see the best elements of both men.

Master and Commander is an elegant and handsome action film, a gentle exploration of the nature of the sea, and a brilliant piece of adaptive writing.