The Art of War. Review on Master and Commander Movie

The art of war is simple enough. Find out where your enemy is. Get at him as soon as you can. Strike at him as hard as you can and as often as you can, and keep moving on.

Ulysses S Grant

When I went into the theater to watch this film knowing well that Peter Weir was the director of this film (his previous film was “Truman Show” which is my all-time favorite), I had doubts about how successful he can be in directing a sea-war story. But then, this film turned out to be the best movie of its kind ever made.

Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe), who is the captain of HMS Surprise, a ship which is a part of the British Navy, is ordered to intercept and disable the French battleship Acheron. In the middle of the sea, he didn’t expect that Acheron would have a surprise in its sleeve. One fine (?) day, it launches a surprise attack on his vessel, HMS Surprise. Luckily, they escape with minimum damage. But then, the stout-hearted captain commands his crew to get ready to launch a surprise attack on Acheron. Initially, they are very reluctant because Acheron is better than their ship in terms of crew size and power…Unfortunately, they have no choice but to follow the order of their captain. Maturin (Paul Bettany) is the ship doctor who is also a very close friend of Jack. He wants him to stop the ship in the Galapagos Island for some time so that he can collect some specimens. Jack initially refuses ,but when Maturin is hurt accidently,he has no other option but to stop in the island for some time so that Maturin can be operated without any disturbance or movement. In the end, they do manage to intercept Acheron and this leads to an explosive climax.

Jack Aubrey is a consummate seaman and a talented leader who is always hungry for adventure. Some may find him eccentric but he doesn’t care. He believes in himself and always tries to outdo himself .Sometimes, he is just adamant. But the fact that he respects his friend,Maturin very much is clearly shown when he stops in the Galapagos islands so that Maturin can be operated. He knows the strength of each and every person in the crew very well. It is evident that he is an expert in the art of war and knows when to attack and surprise his enemies and thus, win a battle. He knows very well that he is responsible for the lives of his crew members.Russell Crowe excels in this role . It is a very tough role as he should be able to highlight Jack Aubrey’s sincerity and commitment towards this tough mission and Crowe doesn’t disappoint us at all. I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets an Oscar nomination for this role.

Compared to Jack, Maturin is more introspective in nature. He is fascinated by animals and insects and would readily spend more than one week collecting specimens in an unknown island. He hates Napoleon and is a British spy too. In times of distress, he is cool and is an expert in handling tough situations. This is clearly shown when he is fatally wounded and had to operate on himself . He values lives and adopts innovative methods in order to save people’s lives. Paul Bettany , who had played the role of an imaginary friend of Russell Crowe in the film,“ A Beautiful Mind “ is a perfect choice for this role .

“Master and Commander” is based on a series of novels written by Patrick O Brain .These novels are supposed to be the finest historical sea-war stories ever written. To make it into a film is no easy task. Peter Weir sticks to its details and manages to make an excellent film. There are some major differences between the film and the novel though. While Aubrey fights with an American ship(Norfolk) in the novel, in this film , he fights with a French ship,Acheron which is Weir’s creation. The reason for this change is obvious in the sense that the director doesn’t want to offend the American sensibilities.So,some O’Brien fans might be disappointed….

There are some interesting sub-plots in the movie too. One such sub-plot is that of a troubled officer who commits suicide because he is being ridiculed by his own men. Also, in the scene in Galapagos islands, you cannot but feel a sense of poignancy when Maturin had to release all his specimens from the cages due to lack of time to reach his ship. All along, his main aim was to collect as many specimens as possible in order to do research on them. But then, his injury prevents him to do it.Max Perkis plays the role of a thirteen year old boy whose hand had to be amputated because of a severe injury. Later ,he is encouraged by Jack and plays an important role in the final battle.

Sun Tzu ,in his military treatise “The Art of War” had commented that the best way to win a war is to attack when the enemy is unprepared and appear when you are least expected. That way, we can surprise the opponent . Whether it is the army or the navy, many follow this principle even today. In fact, Jack Aubrey was successful in this mission because he had followed this principle. This proves that he is indeed an expert in sea warfare.

Though this film moves at a somewhat slow pace in the middle, it succeeds in keeping the audience interested throughout the movie because of its taut screenplay, excellent camerawork and its attention to details.

Overall, I think it is a great movie!!!