Rating: 
Summary: "Do you want a guillotine in Piccadilly? No!"
Review: Set in 1806, MASTER AND COMMANDER follows British Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) as he sails his ship, the HMS Surprise, toward Cape Horn in pursuit of a French frigate known as the Acheron, which had previously attacked the Surprise. Despite the fact that the Acheron is larger, carries more guns, and has a larger crew, Aubrey convinces his men to begin a chase that takes them across two oceans around South America. Russell Crowe gives a stunning performance as the lead character. I was completely drawn into in this film and the war came alive on the big screen. With very few exceptions I am not a fan of the action genre, but I have to admit that this movie stands out from the crowd.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding, even if Hornblower did it first
Review: Overall, I would say very nicely done, if a bit heavy-handed with the Darwin allusions. Sure, every single plot device was used at one point or another in the Hornblower books, but so what? It was very nice to see a non prettified look at the world of the British tar and their fantastically well trained leaders who made England the dominant power in the 19th century. Boll weevils in the food, crowded living conditions, the painful crack as metal rends wood and bone, bone crushing weariness and fear, superstitious sailors, continual battle drills, yeah, this is real, this is how it was. From the title credits to the cliffhanger ending, this movie is well worth your money and time. Oh, by the by, if you don't like noise, don't go. True battle is loud and gritty, and so is this film.
Rating: 
Summary: Critic's darling, box office dud?
Review: I have to confess I never believed the hype for this movie. I wasn't looking forward to three hours of sailors sailing it up on a boat. If that was the only problem I had with it though, I wonuldn't be quite fired up enough to write about it.
What I was disappointed about was how incredibly cliched the movie is. The writing was more appropriate to a period peice from the silent movie era than a current film. And it has every stock character from a naval movie ever. The weak officer, the near mutiny, the enemy ship who always appears like a ghost, the superstitous old sailor, etc., etc. The dialogue was as wooden as the dialogue in Star Wars Phantom Menace and rarely gave Russell Crowe a chance to demonstrate his talent.
It gets two stars for being SO formulaic. At least all of the completely predictable events were there, enough to give all of the hack critics out there a woody. If it had tried to be A LITTLE creative and failed, it would have dropped to one star for me. I'm sure those who read the book will be happy with it, but why you would want to pay eight bucks for something with no new fresh life is beyond me.
There's a reason this movie got beat out by Elf in it's debut week (despite the fact that Elf had already been out a week). It is totaly tedious.
Rating: 
Summary: "The enemy has twice our guns, and twice our numbers....."
Review: "Master and Commander - The Far Side of the World" brilliantly recreates life on the high seas! A superb historical epic that is filled with exciting high-seas warfare, natural beauty, and a cast of characters played to perfection! The only quibble I had with the film is that the editing is a little mish-mashed! But the action and acting more than make up for it! If you want to go and see a movie before "The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King" comes out, then go see "Master and Commander!" You will have a bloody good time! Grade: A-
Rating:
Summary: Not perfect, but quite good
Review: I've read all the novels and reread the first six. I felt that the film did a good job on the relationships aboard ship, given that there isn't time in a film that there is in 20 novels. As much as I liked the film I felt at points that it should have been shorter. The bit about the Jonah could have been saved for the director's cut. In a theatre anything over two hours is risky, and the film does not quite pull it off. Still, for anyone who liked the books, you'll love the film, and for everyone else who likes action with an actual concern that the characters show through the fighting you'll like it as well.
Rating:
Summary: Great movie that all will enjoy
Review: First off: wow. I've written many reviews on here before and I've never been so excited to write on such an astounding film. Based on parts of the amazing Patrick O'Brian novel series, "Master & Commander: The Far Side Of The World" (combining the titles of the 1st and 10th book in the 20-book series) follows the story of Jack Aubrey, captain of the British ship Surprise and the adventure of its battle with the enemy Acheron ship of the French. This, of course, is an extremely simplified version, but explains the basic jist of this seafaring masterpiece. Fans of both the books and Crowe will certainly not be disappointed. With an absolutely brilliant performance by Russell Crowe (I definitely smell Oscar nomination despite Crowe not living up to the large size of Aubrey deliberately detailed in the books) and impeccable direction by Peter Weir, "Master & Commander" quite arguably becomes the best film ever made in this line of subject matter. Its engrossing, invigorating, captivating and above all: absolutely entertaining. Weir immediately jumps into the action from the get go in a scene that goes from a foggy figure in the distance to a full-blown epic battle. To top it all off, the visuals are inexplicably perfect, capturing the natural beauty of its locations with a tinge of perfect special effects. To pass this up would not only be foolish, but downright wrong. Now we can finally get over the last weekend's disasters and enjoy some incredible filmmaking.
Rating:
Summary: Gritty 1805 Naval thriller
Review: The impressive and talented Russell Crowe leads a relatively unknown cast as British sea captain Jack Aubrey, commander of the H.M.S. Surprise in the Napoleonic Wars in 1805. Crowe and his mates have been commissioned to dispatch the much faster and more powerful French ship Acheron off the coast of South America. The impartial and patriotic Crowe cuts a venerable presence to his crew. His decisions are precise and without hesitation but are modified by his devil's advocate, ship surgeon, Stephen Maturin played very capably by Paul Bettany. It is through Maturin, a physician and naturalist that we can humanize the many hardships of the naval life at this time. Director Peter Weir does a fantastic job in recreating the naval vessels and the gritty, grimy existence of sea going men. The action and battle scenes are very authentic as are the ocean storms. The reality created aboard the ship almost rivals the unparalleled classic, Das Boot. The filming locations, which included the Galapagos Islands were truly dazzling and breathtaking.
Rating:
Summary: Great! But . . .
Review: I've read all the books twice, and look forward to reading them again. I have been anxiously awaiting the movie, and I have to say I did love it. But, I do not think it caught the beauty and depth of the personal relationships that O'Brian so well expressed. And, although it was excruciatingly true to detail, another O'Brian success, everything flew by so fast I was unable to savour it. I'm sure I will watch it many more times, as a devotee of the series, but I fear that it will not succeed as a major motion picture with those who are unaquainted with the books. Of all the exchanges between Aubrey and Maturin that happened in the books, I am disappointed that the film focused on the evils of command. Steven lecturing Jack on his ambition and abuse of power did not ring true -- too Hollywood. Jack was too happy a commander in the film; in the books, he had many more obstinacies to deal with, from the Admirality, his enemies on the sea, and his crew. I had a hard time identifying the colorful characters in his crew in the film -- Pullings, yes, but not Bonden, Awkward Davies, Killick, Mowett, or the "young gentlemen" of the midshipmen. Not enough time to savour this, which gives much flavor to the community on board Surprise in the books. Russel Crowe was an excellent choice as Jack Aubrey. I will always see him in my mind's eye when I read the books again. And the battle scenes add much to what we can read in the books -- certainly exciting a more visceral response. I look forward to parsing the details on DVD that slipped by me in the film, but were most lovingly detailed by O'Brain in the books. So, by all means see the film, but also read the books, if you haven't already. There is a lot of good stuff here in the film, but it needs to be enjoyed in context with the literature.
Rating:
Summary: wish I read the book first
Review: Lots of action with believable and varied characters creates an entertaining adventure for over two hours. Russell Crowe, once again gives us a convincing and well rounded portrayal of a hero. As a matter of fact, the acting was excellent across the board. Scenery and realistic detail combined with great filming immerses the viewer, especially without irritating panning and other cheap tricks to 'heighten' the action. A well timed rhythm of action and quieter scenes did justice to both the plot and the pace. On the down side, the historical context was a bit vague, taking away from the significance of the story. It would be helpful to read up a little, to get a better feel for where this story fits into the scheme of things. Overall, an absorbing movie worth seeing.
Rating: 
Summary: fmaster and commander
Review: I thought it was a good movie but couldn't understand all of Russell Crowes lines. Almost felt sometimes that we could use sub titles when they would speak rapidly. ... My husband really liked the action and story.
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