What happens when Charlie Allnut gets promoted

Rating: Null/10 (6 August 2011)

We don't really know what an actor can do until they play an out of character role. In Capt. Queeg, Humphrey Bogart shows his stuff playing an anti-hero, a person we love to hate. And he does it with the modulated ambiguity needed to create uncertainty whether he is truly crazy or just a jerk. But Bogart began his career by playing such anti- heroes, so this performance is no big surprise. His real out of character performance, ironically, was in Sabrina.
There are some weaknesses to this film that have not aged well, mainly the psychological diagnostic babel. Was Queeg crazy? That really depends on the definition of crazy, which isn't real clear from the book consulted, which I guess was part of the point. His rigidity in following rules, and inability to change his mind in light of changing circumstances were his key problems, which might be considered a mental illness in some situations, yet is expected in the military, at least until you get to a position of command.
Queeg's problem was that his personality was better suited to a No. 2 in command, not the decision-maker. Yet this was not drawn out clearly in the film. These traits also showed up, ironically, in Adolf Hitler toward the end of the war: rigidity of decisions, and inability to change his mind, which some say was the result of his Parkinson's disease.
The Robert Francis role doesn't make sense in the film; why would a Princeton grad get assigned to a WWI rustbucket? Wikipedia's summary of the book provides the clue: He was a royal screwup in midshipman school, and the Caine was punishment. Also, his relationship with May Winn was less than honorable; in the movie it is less than pointless. Nevertheless, Robert Francis does a fine job up against some big stars in only his second movie. He died the next year.
The trial was interesting. You could feel the defendants losing hope, and having doubts in their own decisions, at least in terms of the definition of mutiny. There was little doubt what might have happened to the ship in the storm. Therefore, when the truth came out, it was a sufficiently interesting twist to still be surprising.
However, if you think about it, the Navy probably knew Queeg was a screw-up when they assigned him to the Caine, hoping to keep him out of trouble. Such behavior doesn't come out of the blue.
People have compared The Caine Mutiny to Mr. Roberts, with some justification. Just picturing the performances of Bogart and James Cagney side by side in my mind, two crusty old mobsters playing sea captains, brings a smile to my face. Of the two, Mr. Roberts is the stronger movie, and can be watched many times.
The Caine Mutiny is certainly worth watching, as is any Humphrey Bogart movie. It is a fine example of Fifties drama. But it sounds like a lot has been lost from the adaptation of the book to the screen.