THE CAINE MUTINY Movie Review

1954 Edward Dmytryk

One of the first post-war examinations of the pressures of military life remains one of the most entertaining and insightful. Humphrey Bogart's brilliant cast-against-type performance is the best of the mature stage of his career, but he's part of a solid ensemble that seems to have been perfectly in tune with the material.

An extended and fairly pointless introduction defines Ensign Willie Keith (Robert Francis) as something of a mama's boy—perhaps the worst insult that could be used to describe a young man in the early 1950s. Then he's off to his first assignment on the Caine, “a minesweeper that has never been asked to sweep a single mine,” the cynical Lt. Keefer (Fred MacMurray) says. Under the command of Capt. DeVriess (Supporting Actor nominee Tom Tully), it's part of the “junkyard Navy.” Discipline and morale are scraping bottom when DeVriess finally leaves and is replaced by Capt. Philip Francis Queeg (Bogart), “a book man,” as in “by the book.”

Queeg demands strict adherence to regulations and soon has the ship looking much better. At the same time, though, his flaws are showing through. He's petty, obsessed by details, unwilling to accept responsibility for poor decisions or mistakes. Keefer, a smart aleck would-be novelist, begins to talk of mutiny with Lt. Maryk (Van Johnson), the executive officer. When the Caine goes into action, a series of increasingly serious incidents reveals the depths of Queeg's problems. Bogart's memorable interpretation of the character immediately entered the public consciousness with jokes about ball bearings and strawberries. Seen today, however, it rises above the level of stereotype.

Despite his flaws, Queeg has sympathetic qualities. At the heart of his psychosis, Bogart finds fear, not meanness. Early on, Queeg mentions having several ships shot out from under him in the Atlantic. It's fairly easy for a viewer to see Queeg as an older version of Lt. Joe Rossi, the heroic character Bogie had played 10 years before in Action in the North Atlantic.He's a man who has been in the war from the beginning, and now has been asked to accept one job too many.

Breaking away from his boy-next-door image, Van Johnson finds similar complexities in Maryk. He's an officer who wants to be loyal, and tries diligently to work within the established structures of the Navy to find his way out of the situation. It takes the most dangerous circumstances to force him to take action. For his part, Fred MacMurray brings hints of Walter Neff, the murderer he played so well in Double Indemnity, to Lt. Keefer. Remarkably, director Edward Dmytryk got the full cooperation of the Navy on the film, and the shipboard exteriors add a dimension of authenticity that's often lacking in ocean-going dramas. Dmytryk is forced to use a tank and model in one sequence. For the rest of the exteriors, he uses real ships and photographs them strikingly in “three-color” Technicolor that still looks bright and sharp on good tapes.

On the minus side, too much is made of Keith's romantic problems with May Wynn, and at the end, a last look at Queeg would finish the story more satisfactorily. But those are quibbles. The Caine Mutiny is a strong story about compelling, believable characters as evidenced by its enduring popularity in print, on stage as The Caine Mutiny Court Martial, and on tape.

Cast: Humphrey Bogart (Capt. Philip Francis Queeg), Jose Ferrer (Lt. Barney Greenwald), Van Johnson (Lt. Steve Maryk), Fred MacMurray (Lt. Tom Keefer), Lee Marvin (Meatball), Claude Akins (Horrible), E.G. Marshall (Lt. Cmdr. Challee), Robert Francis (Ens. Willie Keith), May Wynn (May Wynn), Tom Tully (Capt. DeVriess), Arthur Franz (Lt. Paynter), Warner Anderson (Capt. Blakely), Katherine Warren (Mrs. Keith), Jerry Paris (Ens. Harding), Steve Brodie (Chief Budge), Whit Bissell (Lt. Cmdr. Dickson), Robert Bray (Board member), Ted Cooper (Sergeant-at-Arms); Written by: Stanley Roberts, Michael Blankfort; Cinematography by: Franz Planer; Music by: Max Steiner; Technical Advisor: Cmdr. James C. Shaw. Producer: Columbia Pictures, Stanley Kramer. Awards: Nominations: Academy Awards ‘54: Best Actor (Bogart), Best Film Editing, Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Supporting Actor (Tully), Best Original Dramatic Score. Running Time: 125 minutes. Format: VHS, Beta, LV, 8mm, Closed Caption, DVD.