Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World 2003 film. Starring Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany, Billy Boyd, James D'Arcy. Directed by Peter Weir. (20th Century Fox, Miramax Films, Universal Studios) History on the High Seas By Sarah Pruitt

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World is Peter Weir's film adaptation of Patrick O'Brian's beloved novels. In it, Captain "Lucky" Jack Aubrey commands a crew of 197 men aboard the HMS Surprise, a Royal Navy frigate sailing off the coast of South America in 1805. The British Admiralty has given Aubrey orders to intercept the French privateer Acheron en route around Cape Horn to the Pacific Ocean, where the power-hungry French emperor, Napoleon, intends to continue his quest for world mastery. Though the American-built French ship is faster and more powerful than the Surprise, Aubrey decides to continue his pursuit at all costs, against the advice of his more cautious old friend and the ship's doctor, Stephen Maturin. After much hardship, including rough seas, blistering heat and bitter conflict among the ship's crew, the Surprise again catches sight of the Acheron around the Galapagos Islands. By disguising their ship as a whaling vessel, Aubrey and his crew lure the Acheron into close proximity before opening fire. In the film's climactic battle, the British win a bloody and costly victory, though the final result is left open to interpretation--and a possible sequel.

The first of the 20 novels in the Aubrey-Maturin series, Master and Commander was published in 1970. Weir's film is based on that novel and others in the series, though it takes a number of liberties with its adaptation. Much of the plot is taken from the 10th novel, The Far Side of the World, which sends the Surprise in pursuit of the American ship Norfolk during the War of 1812. The movie shifts the action to 1805, a move that conveniently turns the enemy into the French and makes the story more palatable for American audiences.

O'Brian apparently based the character of Jack Aubrey on a real-life naval hero: Lord Thomas Cochrane (1775-1860), the commander of the HMS Speedy, who became renowned during the Napoleonic Wars as one of Britain's most daring and courageous commanders. The Speedy's stunning victory over the heavily armed Spanish frigate Gamo in 1801 is retold in the novel Master and Commander, with HMS Sophie standing in for Speedy. Cochrane was elected as a member of the House of Commons in 1806 and made powerful enemies due to his campaign to combat naval corruption. Convicted of stock exchange fraud in 1814, he escaped from prison and fought in the navies of Chile, Brazil and Greece in those countries' struggles for independence. He was reinstated by the British Admiralty in 1832 and remained in active service past his 80th birthday.

Another historical figure looming over Master and Commander is Admiral Lord Nelson, who died only months after the film takes place, during the great British victory over the French and Spanish at Trafalgar. As a young seaman, Aubrey served with Nelson, whom he calls "a master tactician and a man of singular vision." To another officer on board, Nelson is "England's only hope." This idolization of Nelson, regarded as one of the greatest naval leaders in history and memorialized by a towering column in London's Trafalgar Square, rings true.

One dimension of life in Nelson's navy that is not given attention in the film was the fact that many seaman were forcibly compelled to serve in the Royal Navy during wartime. In fact, one of the factors behind the War of 1812 was the British practice of taking American sailors hostage at sea and forcing them to join the Royal Navy. The movie does portray the presence of the British class system, which remained intact even at sea. Young aristocrats (like the film's Blakeney and Calamy) who joined the navy were immediately considered officers, and were put in command of lower-class seaman several times their age.

Parts of the movie were filmed on the open water, aboard the HMS Rose, a full-size replica of a Nelson-era 24-gun frigate built in the United States around 1970 and used as a training vessel for nearly three decades. (Officially renamed the Surprise after the movie, the ship now resides at the San Diego Maritime Museum.) Other aspects of the movie are done with equally painstaking detail, especially the crude and gruesome nature of medical procedures performed aboard ship. Just after amputating a young midshipman's arm without anesthesia, Maturin goes on deck to perform a trepanning procedure--drilling or scraping a hole in the head--on an elderly seaman, using such primitive tools as a spoon and a coin.

Two degrees removed from historical reality, Weir's film is best enjoyed as an action movie, and not an accurate recreation of actual events. Still, historical elements play a significant role in the movie--as in O'Brian's novels--and great effort was made to recreate the look and feel of life aboard an 18th century warship. As a result, watching Master and Commander on the big-screen provides a brief but vivid glimpse into that dangerous and difficult life, flavored with a hefty dose of Hollywood.