Based on the series of books by Patrick O'Brian and directed by
Peter Weir (Dead Poets Society, The Truman Show), Master and
Commander: The Far Side of the World follows the e of the crew
of the HMS Surprise - a British Naval ship on a frantic search
for their adversary, the French Man O War Acheron during the
Napoleonic war. Academy Award winner Russell Crowe (Gladiator, A
Beautiful Mind) stars as Captain "Lucky" Jack Aubrey, renowned as
a fighting captain in the British Navy. The charismatic Captain
rouses the patriotism of the crew while wrestling with issues of
honour, pride, duty, sacrifice and loyalty. With the true passion
he holds for his vocation, he consistently employs ingenious
tactics to engage his prey - a much larger and better-equipped
French ship.
After the French ship almost sinks them in an early battle, the
ships surgeon and Aubreys closest friend Stephen Maturin (Paul
Bettany The Heart of Me, A Knights Tale) cautions him about
letting revenge cloud his judgement. With the HMS Surprise badly
damaged and much of his crew injured, Aubrey is torn between duty
and friendship as he pursues a high-stakes chase across two
oceans to intercept and capture his foe, refusing to accept
defeat at the hands of the French at any cost. Its a mission
that can make his reputation or destroy Lucky Jack and his
crew. In the course of the Surprises epic journey, the crew
travel the world from the coast of Brazil to the storm-tossed
waters of Cape Horn, south through ice and snow to the far side
of the world and across to the remote shores of The Galapagos
Islands. A true camaraderie develops between the men with the
help of rum, music and the regaling of tall tales!
From .co.uk
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Aside from some gripping battles and a storm sequence to rival
anything seen on screen, Peter Weir's Master and Commander: The
Far Side of the World is as much about daily shipboard life
during the Napoleonic era--especially the relationship between
Captain Aubrey (Russell Crowe) and Doctor Stephen Maturin (Paul
Bettany)--as it is about spectacle. Aubrey is a powerful figure
whose experience and strength of character commands unwavering
trust and respect from his crew; Crowe seems in his element
naturally enough. Bettany, though, is his match on screen as
Aubrey's intellectual foil. Director Weir successfully translates
their relationship from novel to screen by subtly weaving in
their past history and leaving viewers--whether they've read
Patrick O'Brian (
/exec/obidos/exact-author=O'Brian%2c%20Patrick/%24%7B0%7D )'s
books or not--to do the thinking.
Although the film's special effects ate up a huge budget they
never overtake the drama, with careful characterisation and
painstaking attention to historical accuracy taking centre stage.
Matching action to detail, drama to humour and special effects to
well-sketched characters, Master and Commander is a deeply
satisfying big-screen experience, breathing a bracing gust of sea
air into Hollywood megabuck filmmaking.--Laura Bushell
On the DVD: Master & Commander's single-disc edition displays
the full glories of the big screen experience, with Dolby Digital
5.1 and DTS sound options that make the most of the resounding
battle scenes as well as the small but vital details of creaking
planks and lapping waves, while the sweeping Cinema (2.35:1)
photography anamorphically formatted for 16:9 widescreen
splendidly reproduces Peter Weir's painterly compositions. It's a
tad disappointing, then, to note the lack of a director's
commentary (surely such an inful director as Weir would have
plenty to say) and the excessive promotional material--cinema
trailers and plugs for Fox DVDs-- that plays even before the main
menu screen appears: anyone who has bought this title for repeat
viewing deserves not to be subjected to such a broadside of
soon-to-be-out-of-date advertising. --Mark Walker