Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

Russell Crowe leads a robust cast onscreen and off in Peter Weir's spectacular high seas adventure.

In the 19th Century during the Napoleonic Wars, Captain Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) is a captain in the British Navy at the helm of the HMS Surprise. After being ambushed by a phantom French vessel with a seemingly impenetrable hull, the hunted becomes the hunter, and Lucky Jack sets out on a high stakes pursuit across two oceans.

Curator's note

Peter Weir's penultimate feature film as director is the most thrilling in his oeuvre. Articulately shot battle sequences lift the fog of war even as the fog on the Atlantic Ocean rolls in giving the film and clarity and visual directness. Because of this, the film is able to drop viewers into the action from the very beginning.

A modest commercial success upon its release, Master and Commander was also acclaimed by critics and industry receiving an enormous ten Academy Award nominations, winning two for cinematography and sound.

In the decades after the film's release, it has maintained a following with sustained calls for a sequel or prequel murmuring ever since.

– Reece Goodwin, Curator (Film & TV)