After the rave reviews and good word of mouth I was looking forward to seeing Master and Commander. It had a big budget with a respected director and a reasonable leading man, a convincing recreation of an interesting historical era, and word of mouth that suggested it was more than just a knockabout action film.
However, the story is really quite a simple one, and doesn't offer many surprises. A British warship, HMS Surprise, runs into a superior French ship, the Acheron, and narrowly escapes. The Captain (Russell Crowe) then spends the rest of the film pursuing and attempting to defeat the French ship. Meanwhile his confidante, the ship's surgeon (Paul Bettany), questions his stubborn decision to continue the pursuit.
There's no doubt that Master and Commander is a handsome film (beautifully photographed by Russell Boyd) and a great deal of effort has gone into faithfully recreating 19th century shipboard life. It also recreates ship-to-ship battles, storms and various other hazards with some style, and it's technical Oscar wins were obviously well-deserved.
Many people have suggested that this faithful recreation of the period is Master and Commander's real strength. However, if like me you've already seen the excellent British TV series Hornblower, none of this will seem all that new to you at all. In fact, a lot of it will be very familiar. With the exception of the occasional gory operation scene, Master and Commander doesn't really offer much that British television viewers won't have already seen relatively recently.
This is why I felt some disappointment in seeing the film, because without the novelty of experiencing an unfamiliar historical environment, Master and Commander doesn't have that much more to offer. The characters aren't particularly well-drawn or developed, and the plot is pretty basic stuff. The two leads are both capable actors but Crowe in particular isn't really given much to work with, and has to be content to play the strong, silent, heroic type. Paul Bettany meanwhile, in this film looking and sounding eerily like Patrick Malahide, has the more interesting part, and makes a decent stab at it. There are a few other British character actors in the cast, including David Threlfall, James d'Arcy and Billy Boyd, and I was pleased to see Robert Pugh (excellent in the little-known film The Tichborne Claimant) among the ships crew as well.
But Master and Commander doesn't really deliver enough that's new. The plot is a little too predictable, the characters a bit too underdeveloped, and the action scenes (although satisfyingly noisy), a bit too confusing and uninvolving. More than once I lost track of which Frenchie was being bayoneted or shot by which Englishman.
I certainly wouldn't write-off Master & Commander, as it's a pretty decent, if unsurprising film. It's well-made and is certainly better than a lot of the dross that's produced these days. However, if you do enjoy it, and find the subject matter interesting I would urge you to seek out the Hornblower TV series.
However, the story is really quite a simple one, and doesn't offer many surprises. A British warship, HMS Surprise, runs into a superior French ship, the Acheron, and narrowly escapes. The Captain (Russell Crowe) then spends the rest of the film pursuing and attempting to defeat the French ship. Meanwhile his confidante, the ship's surgeon (Paul Bettany), questions his stubborn decision to continue the pursuit.
There's no doubt that Master and Commander is a handsome film (beautifully photographed by Russell Boyd) and a great deal of effort has gone into faithfully recreating 19th century shipboard life. It also recreates ship-to-ship battles, storms and various other hazards with some style, and it's technical Oscar wins were obviously well-deserved.
Many people have suggested that this faithful recreation of the period is Master and Commander's real strength. However, if like me you've already seen the excellent British TV series Hornblower, none of this will seem all that new to you at all. In fact, a lot of it will be very familiar. With the exception of the occasional gory operation scene, Master and Commander doesn't really offer much that British television viewers won't have already seen relatively recently.
This is why I felt some disappointment in seeing the film, because without the novelty of experiencing an unfamiliar historical environment, Master and Commander doesn't have that much more to offer. The characters aren't particularly well-drawn or developed, and the plot is pretty basic stuff. The two leads are both capable actors but Crowe in particular isn't really given much to work with, and has to be content to play the strong, silent, heroic type. Paul Bettany meanwhile, in this film looking and sounding eerily like Patrick Malahide, has the more interesting part, and makes a decent stab at it. There are a few other British character actors in the cast, including David Threlfall, James d'Arcy and Billy Boyd, and I was pleased to see Robert Pugh (excellent in the little-known film The Tichborne Claimant) among the ships crew as well.
But Master and Commander doesn't really deliver enough that's new. The plot is a little too predictable, the characters a bit too underdeveloped, and the action scenes (although satisfyingly noisy), a bit too confusing and uninvolving. More than once I lost track of which Frenchie was being bayoneted or shot by which Englishman.
I certainly wouldn't write-off Master & Commander, as it's a pretty decent, if unsurprising film. It's well-made and is certainly better than a lot of the dross that's produced these days. However, if you do enjoy it, and find the subject matter interesting I would urge you to seek out the Hornblower TV series.