REVIEW: Captains Courageous
Where does courage come from? Is it inborn? Can it be taught? These are some of the questions explored in the 1937 film Captains Courageous, based on the Rudyard Kipling novel. You start with Harvey (Freddie Bartholomew), the prototypical spoiled little rich boy who clearly needs to be taught how to behave, and those harsh lessons come from the most unlikely of sources.
We open with a drawn-out section that shows how morally rotten Harvey is, from the way he treats the servants to the way he treats his classmates at a tony school. He bribes and bullies his way until finally, a boy on the school paper wallops him. He goes running to tycoon dad Frank Burton Cheyne (Melvyn Douglas), who initially takes his side until the headmaster and a teacher tell him the truth about the boy.
The single parent is stuck with Harvey for the remainder of the spring term, so decides to bond with him by taking Harvey on an ocean liner, where father and son continue their habits, until the boy falls overboard. Rescued by Manuel (Spencer Tracy), a Portuguese fisherman. Not believing how wealthy Harvey’s father is, Captain Disko Troop (Lionel Barrymore), makes the boy a member of his crew for the next three months, refusing to give up prime fishing season to bring him to shore.
The remainder of the film is Harvey’s transformation from a brat to a hard-working member of the crew who has fallen in love with their hard life. Along the way, Manuel and Harvey form the bond that the boy never had with his dad.
The 1897 novel depicted Harvey at the more realistic age of 15 for this coming-of-age story, but was made younger to accommodate child star Bartholomew, whose English accent keeps sneaking into his dialogue, although the upscale school can be blamed for it. Also, the bond between Harvey and a cabin boy is peer-to-peer, whereas the film shifts the relationship to Manuel, addressing parenting issues.
Tracy was highly reluctant to take the role but was convinced by MGM’s Irving Thalberg to accept the assignment. Thalberg tragically died just before the film, which he optioned three years earlier, started shooting. Tracy sounds more like Chico Marx than a seasoned Portuguese man who was taught by his father. Tracy, who won the Oscar for Best Actor, was also uncomfortable with Manuel’s spirituality, although it proved invaluable in making him a rounded character. So many others aboard the We’re Here were stereotypes of the Gloucester fishermen of the day, notably the captain, fellow fisherman Long Jack (John Carradine), and rival Captain Walt Cushman (Oscar O’Shea). Director Victor Fleming does a strong job handling the cast and the physical elements, with sequences shot on location in Port aux Basques, Newfoundland; Shelburne, Nova Scotia; and Gloucester, Massachusetts.
The film is a joy to watch, seeing the hard lives of these men, and the tragedies that befall so many, and their effect on the families, as seen in the final moments. It’s also fun to see so many fine actors at different points in their careers, including a blink-and-you ’ll-miss Bob Hope. It also nicely integrates the cast with Doc (Sam McDaniel), the cook, treated like one of them and a smattering of black families back on shore.
The film, out today from Warner Archive, is making its Blu-ray debut, and the 4K transfer looks stunning and sharp in 1080p. The theatrical aspect ratio of 1.37:1 is retained grayscale works well for home viewing. The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono sound mix is strong, preserving the sounds of the ship, the sea, and Franz Waxman’s score.
The film comes with special features that first appeared on the 2006 DVD. There’s the not funny Robert Benchley short “How to Start Your Day”, the radio program “Leon is on the Air” (audio only, of course), and the 1937 animated Happy Harmonies short, “The Wayward Pups”, which I found fine, lacking the distinctive personalities found in competing animated fare of the day. It should be noted that this was the Two Little Pups’ fourth and final appearance.
The movie on its own is well worth watching and this disc a good addition to your library.
