This is certainly a smaller film and it's not without its problems, but it has a certain appeal in its cast, as well as how it was shot. It's a mutiny film, supposedly a true story (more on this in a bit), and it really puts us aboard the ship, highlighting its interior and machinery, something that was very well done. James Mason plays Captain Rumnill, who comes aboard a ship with morale issues, Dorothy Dandridge plays Mahia, a Maori woman hastily brought on board with her husband to serve as steward and cook, and Broderick Crawford plays Henry Scott, the mastermind of an evil plan to kill everyone aboard and collect a reward for bringing the ship in, with Stuart Whitman playing his accomplice.
Dandridge was the reason I watched in the first place, and I have to say, it's depressing to think that these were the only kinds of parts she was offered after the Oscar nomination for 'Carmen Jones' and that inexplicable three year absence from the big screen. It was frankly beneath her. Early on she has very few lines and is mostly hooted at by the lusty crew, including Whitman who tries to get physical with her. As she serves breakfast the captain ogles her cleavage and says "I suggest that while you're on this ship, you wear something a little less revealing." With a small smile she says, "Does it bother the Captain?"
Dandridge seems confined to being eye candy for the viewer (damn fine eye candy at that), but in the second half she has a scene where she really lets her emotions loose, and another where her character is given some power. Interestingly enough, even though it's not a romantic kiss, she does have a pretty passionate one with Stuart Whitman's creepy character, which film historian Donald Bogle pointed out was a milestone in such interracial displays. So, while it's not the greatest part in the world, it is worth seeing if you like Dandridge, and it's of course incredibly sad to think that she would be dead just seven years later.
Unfortunately, while the second half of the film has a few moments of interest for Dandridge, how the mutiny is portrayed is clumsy at times. That's no fault of Broderick Crawford, who is quite good as the insidious sociopath, bringing real darkness to the film. It just seems a little forced and not always authentic, which took away from some fine shots in the lifeboat and ensuing heroism.
I wondered/doubted if this could possibly be the true story of the S. S. Berwind, despite the assurance of the opening title shot that says this was that ship's story, which "actually happened." From newspaper articles in October, 1905, it turns out that the Berwind's mutineers, led by Henry Scott, were actually black, that Captain Rumnill was among those killed, and they were brought to justice by a passing ship which saw its distress flags. There was no woman on board, and there was no grand rescue starting with a perilous rope climb. So no, it's not very truthful.
It's ironic but not surprising that the filmmakers replaced the potentially incendiary aspect of a black crew rising up and killing its white officers and one dissenting black seaman with the Maori characters, one exuding "exotic" sex appeal. Whether you believe that was all America was ready for in 1958 or not, it's unfortunate. Watch it for Dandridge though, it's worth the 84 minutes, and was actually pretty well made.
Dandridge was the reason I watched in the first place, and I have to say, it's depressing to think that these were the only kinds of parts she was offered after the Oscar nomination for 'Carmen Jones' and that inexplicable three year absence from the big screen. It was frankly beneath her. Early on she has very few lines and is mostly hooted at by the lusty crew, including Whitman who tries to get physical with her. As she serves breakfast the captain ogles her cleavage and says "I suggest that while you're on this ship, you wear something a little less revealing." With a small smile she says, "Does it bother the Captain?"
Dandridge seems confined to being eye candy for the viewer (damn fine eye candy at that), but in the second half she has a scene where she really lets her emotions loose, and another where her character is given some power. Interestingly enough, even though it's not a romantic kiss, she does have a pretty passionate one with Stuart Whitman's creepy character, which film historian Donald Bogle pointed out was a milestone in such interracial displays. So, while it's not the greatest part in the world, it is worth seeing if you like Dandridge, and it's of course incredibly sad to think that she would be dead just seven years later.
Unfortunately, while the second half of the film has a few moments of interest for Dandridge, how the mutiny is portrayed is clumsy at times. That's no fault of Broderick Crawford, who is quite good as the insidious sociopath, bringing real darkness to the film. It just seems a little forced and not always authentic, which took away from some fine shots in the lifeboat and ensuing heroism.
I wondered/doubted if this could possibly be the true story of the S. S. Berwind, despite the assurance of the opening title shot that says this was that ship's story, which "actually happened." From newspaper articles in October, 1905, it turns out that the Berwind's mutineers, led by Henry Scott, were actually black, that Captain Rumnill was among those killed, and they were brought to justice by a passing ship which saw its distress flags. There was no woman on board, and there was no grand rescue starting with a perilous rope climb. So no, it's not very truthful.
It's ironic but not surprising that the filmmakers replaced the potentially incendiary aspect of a black crew rising up and killing its white officers and one dissenting black seaman with the Maori characters, one exuding "exotic" sex appeal. Whether you believe that was all America was ready for in 1958 or not, it's unfortunate. Watch it for Dandridge though, it's worth the 84 minutes, and was actually pretty well made.