There
are dozens of classic motion pictures this reviewer has never seen. Up until
recently, this 1937 award-winning version of Rudyard Kipling's tale was one of
them.
There
are dozens of classic motion pictures this reviewer has never seen. Up until
recently, this 1937 award-winning version of Rudyard Kipling's tale was one of
them.
"Captains Courageous" is Hollywood movie-making at its best, directed by Victor Fleming who gave us "Gone With the Wind" and "Wizard of Oz." Spencer Tracy plays a Portuguese fisherman aboard a schooner at sea who rescues a small boy who has fallen from a cruise ship.
It's an Oscar winning performance from Tracy, but child
star Freddie Bartholomew is the one to watch. He's an insufferable little
brat who resists all forms of authority, but gradually bonds with the patient
and
protective Tracy whom he realizes really cares about him.
Mickey Rooney is another aboard who takes the boy under his wing, but it's Tracy who tugs at the heart.
"Captains Courageous" is a jewel our public schools show to students, but one every father should watch with his son.
Keep a handkerchief handy, because the ending will get to you.
-- by Michael Clark