scott29's Full Review: Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
So what we have here is a big, sweeping and majestic "adventure drama", one that's made for grown-ups who enjoy subplots and character development. Which also means that it's not in any way the mega-kinetic action extravaganza that the commercials are promising, and if you're under the age of say, 15, you'll probably be bored stiff by Act III. But let's not fault a handsome and generally compelling film for a misleading ad campaign; "Master and Commander" is, as the blurbmeisters are already exclaiming, an adventure yarn for adults...and a pretty darn good one, too.
"It's Gladiator on the high seas!" exclaim the television ads, cleverly noting that the same actor appeared in both films. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World may be many things (gorgeous to look at, technically astonishing, belabored with a few too many aimless subplots, source of two staggeringly nifty high-seas battle sequences), but Gladiator it is not. Whether or not that's a good thing is up to you, but be prepared for a whole lotta plot divergences and background-character-development and moody looks at the nighttime sky, because this one (like many of director Peter Weir's babies) takes its time getting to its destination.
But hey, if you're having a good time with it (and most moviegoers probably will), who cares if the thing seems to overstay its welcome just a little bit? To be fair, it's not every day we get a movie like this.
The year is 1805 and Captain Jack Aubrey (Crowe) is charged with defending England from marauding French warships. His massive galleon, the Surprise, is populated with the sort of chaps you'd expect to find aboard a English galleon, circa 1800: surly old seadogs and devoted officers, youthful first-mates and gung-ho soldiers. A manly bunch, to be sure.
After the Surprise is ambushed and left crippled (following an amazing firefight) by a mysterious French frigate called The Acheron, Capt. Aubrey has one thing on his mind: revenge! Well, not revenge actually, but Justice! British war heroes who partake in petty vengeance are not at all gentlemanly. But justice and defense of the crown (and the fact that there's currently a war going on, of course) is what sets Aubrey's sails, and he begins a repair operation / return asskicking campaign that tests the mettle of all aboard his ship.
And during several intermittent moments of the film, it's the audience's mettle that is also tested, quite simply because Master and Commander has two astonishingly impressive battle-scene bookends...and a heaping helping of potentially yawn-worthy chit-chat in between. And when your movie's about 140 minutes long, a few too many dry spots can really start to grate on the viewer.
For every winning moment of interplay between Aubrey and ship's surgeon Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany), there's another sequence or subplot that seems wedged in rather haphazardly. A side-story involving a "cursed" officer ends precisely how we expect it to, and it takes too long to get there. A stopover at the Galapagos Islands begins in fascinating style...but the film stops dead when we spend way too much time admiring the flora.
Clearly the cornucopia of extra plot threads comes from the fact that Master and Commander is based on several books, instead of just one. Patrick O'Brian's literary source material is a well-admired collection, and it seems that Weir and co-screenwriter John Collee tried to wedge in as many familiar touchstones as possible. Whether or not this approach will please fans of the novels remains to be seen, but much of Master and Commander feels like a "greatest hits" compilation of barely-connected sea stories.
On the other hand, there's simply too much to admire about Master and Commander to knock it so casually. The look of the tall ships and the meticulous attention paid to period detail are undeniably effective, and it's quite easy to just sit back and enjoy the film as the refined spectacle it clearly is. Crowe brings the swagger and sensitivity he's displayed elsewhere, delivering a fine performance - if not one that will be remembered as among his most nuanced. Better still is Paul Bettany (as Aubrey's doctor and lifelong friend) who deftly portrays a man of science both brave and bookish at the same time.
The battle sequences that open and close the film (and they're generous ones indeed) easily make the movie worthy of high praise and moviegoer attention. If the "plot stuff" slows down to a crawl here and there, just enjoy the scenery and wait for the next cannonball.
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