Captains Courageous (1937)
Harvey: I bet I know a lot of things you don't know. I know that's not French you're singing.
Manuel Fidello: That's right. About ten million people know it Portuguese.
Harvey: I bet you can't speak French.
Manuel Fidello: Right now, I sorry I speak English.
It's a very pleasant sensation when a film that you initially balk at brings you into its warm embrace.
That was, in a nutshell, my experience watching Rudyard Kipling's story
Captains Courageous put to film by director Victor Fleming. The opening introduction into the spoiled, manipulative, privileged sh#t (that I utterly detest) little Harvey. Whom, from my limited understanding, having never read the story itself, is actually nineteen. Still, the studio changed the character's age to ten to accommodate having Freddie Bartholomew play the role. Which, with his character's arc, was a pretty d@mn good decision.
The second balking occurred with Spencer Tracy's unrecognizable accent. Even when discovering that his character Manuel was Portuguese, I kept thinking: Really? Really??
But, godd@mmit, and I don't know exactly where, it could have been the dialogue he had, or just Tracy doing a superb job, but, much like Harvey does, it was pretty hard NOT to fall in love with the guy.
Add to that a great backup list of characters; Lionel Barrymore as the epitome of the crusty sea-faring captain with a good heart beneath his barnacle hide, his son, Dan (Mickey Rooney), along with John Caradine playing the gruff antagonist 'Long Jack' to, what I was worried would be a condoning father but instead was a more compassionate, understanding one when it came to the necessary discipline of Harvey's teachers by Melvyn Douglas. Along with so many others. Bringing to life the characters of this, for good reason, excellent Kipling story.
Even though most of it was filmed in a studio sound stage, and I must rate them highly since it felt like being on a schooner instead of being staged. I also need to cheer the outside shots on the schooner. They were incredibly exciting and a little scary, with the waves thrashing about. The dropping of the dories in the water seemed pretty f@ckin dangerous all on their own, along with the "race" back to Gloucester as the boat tipped to the side. Very impressive, I must say.
Oh, also, I have an exceptional thank you for finally discovering and seeing what exactly a hurdy-gurdy is. Which Manuel plays when he sings, featured in the second image.
So, like so many surprises in past Personal Rec HoFs, this has been another addition to that endeared list.
YAYYYYY