OK - that was interesting. Edward Dmytryck's The Caine Mutiny is not the ordinary Hollywood production. It has far too many twists for that, and, more importantly, far more ambiguities. Regrettably, these ambiguities are bogged down by certain unfortunate storytelling devices (e.g. an unnecessary love story, leaning on familiar images of "the mentally unstable person"), some of which have turned into run-of-the-mill clichés. The story tells about a navy ship, a WWII mine sweeper, that has difficulties with a new captain (a great Humphrey Bogart) who wants to "clean the place up". The new captain makes a few mistakes and shows signs of strange, erratic behavior. From the beginning, the men have had disgruntled feelings about him. The men on board view the situation in different ways. Some point out the importance of obedience, while others question his authority to lead the ship. In a situation where the captain seems to have lost control, a man lower in rank takes charge of the situation. The last part of the film depicts the trial, in which two men are accused for having committed mutiny.
The Caine Mutiny investigates what would now be labelled "professional ethics". Most of all, it's a film about the connection between discipline and honor. "Discipline", in the film, revolves around "performing the duties one has been assigned with", no questions asked. True, this might be a film that works better as a suspense thriller than as a philosophical tract. But that did not bother me. It was a film that kept things interesting.
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