The Caine Mutiny

The Caine Mutiny

In director Edward Dmytryk's classic seafaring drama, privileged mama's boy Ensign Keith (Robert Francis) gets assigned to the Caine, a rusty old minesweeper with a haggard, undisciplined crew during the latter days of WWII. Soon the paranoid, strawberry-loving Captain Queeg (Humprey Bogart) takes charge and tries to clean up the ship, arousing the hatred and suspicion of the other officers, especially a flippant lieutenant (Fred MacMurray). Eventually the men stage a mutiny, and a subsequent trial ensues, at which point a sharply intelligent military lawyer (Jose Ferrer) takes up the matter.
Dmytryk's fast-moving, intelligent adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Herman Wouk novel features breathtaking outdoor scenes on actual naval vessels. Bogart's performance as Queeg is one of cinema's greats; a true departure from his usual tough guys, he captures his character's confused vulnerability with astounding finesse. Ferrer is also sensational as the lawyer. A solid crew rounding out the cast--Lee Marvin, Van Johnson, E. G. Marshall, and Claude Akins--helps make this one definitely see-worthy.