There are movies you should see in the theatre, and there are movies you NEED to see in the theatre. “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” fits into the second category. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, the film stars Russell Crowe as “Lucky” Jack Aubrey, the Captain of the HMS Surprise. His orders are to intercept and capture the French ship Archeron by any means necessary, or send her to the bottom of the Ocean trying. The main problem is that the Archeron is a much faster, more heavily armed ship, so Aubrey has his job cut out for him. “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” was nominated for ten Academy Awards, and from the outset it is apparent why. The performances by the entire cast are phenomenal, but it is Crowe who leads the film, much in the way Aubrey Captains the ship. I’ve never really found Crowe to be that strong of an actor; he just has a lot of screen presence. When he’s on camera, he commands your attention.

His performance here is his best to date, and as Aubrey he finally creates a character with depth. Finally, his nomination was well-deserved. Unfortunately, he didn’t win.

Out of the multiple nominations, the film won only for Best Cinematography and Best Sound Editing. If it hadn’t been for “The Return of the King”, I’m sure it would have won more, as that was the only film nominated this year that was worthy of beating it out. But it is because of these two awards that I wish I had seen it in the theatre. Even watching it on the recent DVD release from Fox, I could tell that the film excelled in these two areas. The cinematography was incredible, and considering almost the entire film took place on a ship, it had to be in order to win over an audience. And while the film looked great, it sounded even better. Even with my home system, I almost felt seasick as I was engulfed by all the sounds of the ship. I think I actually started swaying back and forth on the couch. I can only imagine how it must have sounded in the theatre (I really need to get out more…).

What I really enjoyed about the film was that is was better-rounded than films of this type often have a tendency to be. On the surface it might have seemed like a big, rollicking sea adventure, full of glorious battles and flying cannon balls. In truth, there are only two major battles but they are so grand in scope and so beautifully filmed as to be enough to satisfy most fans of war films. The majority of “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” deals with the day to day relationships between the men on the Surprise, as well as the hazards ships of the time had to face.

I did have mixed feelings about how the men were presented however. This is where I have to decide whether or not I want a film that is realistic of suitable for more of the family members. To be more historically accurate, the crew would have ended up being a lot less clean-cut than they were here. The language would have undoubtedly been stronger, and so forth. But in order to achieve this level of historical accuracy, I might not have been able to share the film with my ten-year old. I think in this case I will vote in favor of ‘family’ viewing.

I would like to tell you about the extra features, but unfortunately the version of the DVD I have is the ‘bare-bones’ release. It is a single disc that only has a Widescreen version of the film. On the menu there was a promising title called “Insider’s Look”, which turned out to be nothing more than a couple of trailers for “The Day After Tomorrow” and “Man in Fire”, as well as a brief look behind the scenes of the upcoming “I, Robot.” There are two other DVD releases that are going to be available, one has the Full Screen version (though who in their right mind would want that), while the other is a 2-disc set that includes tons of behind the scenes features and documentaries. If you’re not into all the extra features, and I realize some people are not, than this single disc version is the way to go. It’s a little less expensive and it offers up a fantastic transfer of the film. If you’re a fan of all the extras like me, I would still recommend the 2-disc set, sight unseen.

“Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” is Russell Crowe’s best work to date, and I imagine some people might have overlooked it in the theatre due to its somewhat unusual and lengthy title. But if you’re on the lookout for an epic story, you can’t ask for a better movie watching experience.

Directed by: Peter Weir
Starring: Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany
Extras: None (on this release)
Specifications: Widescreen (2.40:1), Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, DTS 5.1
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: 4/20/2004
Region 1
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (For Intense Battle Sequences, Related Images and Brief Language)
Website

We'll give Master and Commander a B