Master Chief Sunday: The Navy Diver is not a fighting man, he is a salvage expert. If it is lost underwater, he finds it. If it's sunk, he brings it up. If it's in the way, he moves it. If he's lucky, he will die young, 200 feet beneath the waves, for that is the closest he'll ever get to being a hero.

Men Of Honor (2000)

Directed by George Tillman Jr.
Robert De Niro as Master Chief Leslie W. 'Billy' Sunday
Cuba Gooding Jr. as Carl Brashear

The Storyline / plot

Men Of Honor is a film based on the true story of the life of Carl Brashear. Carl had always been an avid swimmer. He would swim in lakes and ponds as a boy. His folks were sharecroppers in the south and Carl grew up dirt poor. The Navy was Carl’s way out and his parents were behind him, one hundred percent. His father told him that it would be hard, but never give up. Carl lived by his fathers’ advice. Although the President desegregated the military in 1948, there was still animosity and racism abound. Most occupations in the military were not opened to black soldiers or sailors. Salvage diving in the Navy was not open to black sailors. About the only job that the black sailor was allowed to do was cook or drive.

Carl’s first assignment was as a cook about a salvage ship. After a horrific helicopter crash aboard the ship, there was a gallant effort to save to pilots of the downed chopper by Master diver, Chief Sunday. Carl knew what he wanted to be right then and there. The Captain of the boat knew that Carl was the best swimmer on the ship and backed his application to get into the Navy’s elite salvage diving school. After two years of writing letters and with the help of his captain, Carl Brashear was admitted to the school. The paperwork was the only thing that Carl Bashear had going for him. The Commandant of the school had no intentions of having a black man graduate on his watch. Chief Sunday, who was the senior instructor, was ordered not to let him pass and his fellow trainees were rude, racist and abrasive. Even for the average student the six month course was very hard. It would take every bit of his fathers’ advice to make it through this school.

Spoiler

Against all of the odds, Carl Brashear is able to make it through the Navy’s Salvage dive school. Things seemed to finally be going Carl’s way for a change. Then after several years in the Navy Carl is involved in a near fatal accident. During a salvage operation one of the winch cables snaps under pressure. The severed cable streaks across the deck of the ship and strikes Carl right below the knee. His leg was connected by a shred of skin. Most men would have taken the medical retirement and went home.

Carl had made a promise to his father, to never give up when things got tough. Carl’s goal all along was to become a Master Chief / Master diver. Carl was not going home. He demanded that his bad leg be amputated so he could wear a prosthetic leg and continue to dive. The notion seemed absurd to the Navy. No man had ever dived with a prosthetic leg. Carl undergoes some grueling rehabilitation with one thing in mind, salvage diving. Carl’s old instructor from the diving school decided to go to bat for Brashear. With a lot of heart and help from Master Chief Sunday, Brashear goes against the odds for a second time.

Quotes From Men Of Honor

Jo: Why do you want this so bad?
Carl Brashear: Because they said I couldn't have it.
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Master Chief Sunday: You know what the Chinese say, cookie? Beware what you wish for.
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Conclusion

If Men Of Honor were not inspired by a true story it would have been a decent film. The fact that a man lived through these many obstacles is remarkable to me. With the right mind set a person can over come many things, Carl Brashear is living proof. The story is inspiring. The acting by Cuba Gooding Jr. and Robert De Niro was top notch. Gooding's part had to be a difficult piece to play, he played the part very well. De Niro was superb! He is right up there with R. Lee Ermey (Drill Instructor in Full Metal Jacket) when it comes to playing ornery instructors. The cast was great. The Cinematography was also well done. The many underwater scenes were realistic and well shot.

The directing and script were both solid. The film had a good even flow to it. I did not notice any major glitches or dead spots. Most true stories that I have seen can get pretty dull. This film had just enough action in it to keep your mind from meandering. I thought the film was a very good over view of Carl Brashears life and what seemed like insurmountable odds which he was able to make it through. I have added this movie to my collection. I would recommend Men Of Honor to anyone who enjoys military films, true stories of inspiration and courage, or Robert De Niro.


DVD Bonus Features

• Alternate ending
• Deleted Scenes
• Commentary
• Tribute To Carl Brashear
• Music Video By Brian McKnight

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• Top Ten World War II Movies.

RUNTIME: 2 Hours 10 minutes
Rated : [R] for language

Thanks for the read,
~Mac
2004 Joe McMaster


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older