So, Who—or What—Is Truly on Trial Here?
Reviews and Comments by Ken Burke
I invite you to join me on a regular basis to see how my responses to current cinematic offerings compare to the critical establishment, which I’ll refer to as either the CCAL (Collective Critics at Large) if they’re supportive or the OCCU (Often Cranky Critics Universe) when they go negative. However, due to COVID concerns I’m mostly addressing streaming options with limited visits to theaters, where I don’t think I’ve missed much anyway, but better options are on the horizon. (Note: Anything in bold blue below [some may look near purple] is a link to something more in the review.)
My reviews’ premise: “You can’t please everyone, so you got to please yourself.”
(from "Garden Party" by Rick Nelson and the Stone Canyon Band, 1972 album of the same name)
Here’s the trailer:
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If you can abide plot spoilers read on, but this blog’s intended for those who’ve seen the film or want to save some $ (as well as recognizing those readers like me who just aren’t that tech-savvy). To help any of you who want to learn more details yet avoid these all-important plot-reveals I’ll identify any give-away sentences/sentence-clusters with colors plus arrows:
⇒The first and last words will be noted with arrows and red.⇐ OK, now continue on if you prefer.
What Happens: On December 18, 2022 the mine-sweeper ship Caine is hit with a fierce typhoon while in the Persian Gulf leading Lieutenant Stephen Maryk (Jake Lacy, pictured above), Executive Office of the ship, to override the orders of his Captain, Lt. Commander Phillip Queeg (Kiefer Sutherland), and relieve him of his command, ordering the ship to move north into the storm (through howling winds/heavy waves) rather than south, away from it, as Maryk felt Queeg was suffering from mental distress (specifically paranoia) so his judgments couldn’t be trusted. After the ship navigated through the storm, Maryk was charged with mutiny, tried at Naval Headquarters in San Francisco in 2023. We learn of these events during testimony at the court-martial, presided over by Head Judge Captain Luther Blakely (Lance Reddick), but none of this is shown in the film, taking place in the real time/single-location of a military courtroom (a final scene at another place). Through furious prosecution by Commander Katherine Challee (Monica Raymund) and determined-but-often-overruled-defense by Lt. Barney Greenwald (Jason Clarke) we learn of the events of what are being charged as mutiny but interpreted as necessary under Article 1108 of Navy Regulations by Maryk and his lawyer (who accepts the defense task out of duty but personally believes Maryk is guilty, feels great shame at having to confront Queeg, a noted 21-year-veteran, about his supposed-mental-instability, a situation that often brings some quick, harsh admonishment from Judge Blakely).
When first called to the stand by the prosecution, Queeg denies he’s ever had any sort of mental problems, admits he’s a stern disciplinarian because he felt it necessary to instill needed order into his officers and crew, completely rejects Maryk’s decisions on the fateful night (despite the ship weathering the dangerous storm, focusing on the conflict). The prosecution also calls medical and psychiatric witnesses who testify in support of Queeg’s mental stability (though he's noted as having an inferiority-complex from some childhood and adult traumas) based on their interviews with him (Greenwald manages to undercut that somewhat when he notes neither expert has ever served on a ship, has no experience with the situation a Captain must endure in a time of crisis). One of the most damaging testimonies against Maryk, though, comes from his supposed-supporter, Lt. Thomas Keefer (Lewis Pullman)—an author in civilian life with several published short stories, a novel in the works—who says he didn’t support Maryk’s actions against Queeg, although the accused does manage to score a positive response from another of his fellow-officers, Lt. Willis Keith (Tom Riley).
When Greenwald gets to present his case he calls only 2 witnesses: Maryk, who details incidents in a journal he kept of Queeg’s questionable actions (including one which took several days and energies from the entire crew in trying to find out who had a secret key to a locked icebox, then supposedly stole strawberries sent over from another ship—even though a couple of enlisted sailors finally confessed they secretly ate the strawberries before the lockdown, yet Queeg rejected their story) and admits he was an average/below-average-student from grade school through college with no coursework in psychology or psychiatry; and Queeg, who under intense examination by Greenwald becomes nervous (starts shuffling a couple of small metal balls from his pocket as a means of relaxation), then angry, on the verge of making a complete fool of himself but refusing to take a break, blaming everything on his disloyal subordinate officers. Judge Blakely adjourns the trial for the day without coming to a decision yet, but it’s clear Queeg’s position’s been badly damaged, implying acquittal for Maryk. That final scene occurs at a ballroom of San Francisco’s Fairmont Hotel where Keefer is throwing a big party for himself because of a large advance he’s gotten from his publisher (the book, Multitudes, Multitudes, is about Navy matters in some manner).
An already-drunk Greenwald shows up, makes it clear Maryk had neither the knowledge nor the experience upon which to base his mental-health-accusations against Queeg, but he certainly was easily-influenced by the much-more-intellectual Keefer who planted those ideas with Maryk (yet on a day when the 2 of them started out to report their concerns about Queeg to a nearby-Admiral, Keefer backed out at the last minute, leaving Maryk as confused as he was about Keefer’s courtroom testimony [Maryk admonished Greenwald about not attacking Keefer on the stand; the attorney replied he was trying to build a case for a lone hero, not 2 mutineers]). ⇒Essentially, Greenwald said if Keefer hadn’t planted those more-extreme-doubts about Queeg in Maryk’s mind the 2 top officers could have found ways to cooperate, even during the crisis of the typhoon, but, instead, Greenwald was put in the horrible position of having to essentially wreck Queeg’s career, even though dedicated men like him are necessary to preserve America’s freedoms from the tyrants who would depose us, citing the horrors of the 9/11/2001 terrorists’ attacks. Greenwald finishes his distain for Keefer by throwing the remains of his cocktail in Keefer’s face, walking out, film ends.⇐
So What? This is Friedkin’s final film (died on August 7 2023, 2 months before its release), and I’ve long had respect for his work, going back to the multi-Oscar-winning The French Connection (1971; Best Picture, Director, Actor [Gene Hackman], Adapted Screenplay [Ernest Tidyman]) and probably the best horror film I’ve ever seen, The Exorcist (1973)—with the likely-intended-irony of … Court-Martial first being streamed on Paramount+ with Showtime on Friday, October 6, 2023, the same day of the latest (unnecessary) sequel to Friedkin’s masterpiece, The Exorcist: Believer (David Gordon Green), a bomb with a mere 23% positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, a 38% average score from Metacritic (here’s a put-down from the San Francisco Chronicle’s Mick LaSalle, with about the only good thing in it a return of Ellen Burstyn’s character from Friedkin’s original: “Until someone is able to come up with a new way to depict possession or the battling of possession, this franchise is going nowhere.”)—so I was quite interested in revisiting this Caine mutiny story, having seen the noted adaption with Humphrey Bogart as Queeg years ago (more on that in just a little bit).
But, if I really want to be up to date on how things have evolved over the years with depictions of the Caine mutiny narrative, it would take quite a while (but surely a more fruitful use of my time than watching Exorcist sequels—I did see a couple of them out of curiosity, then gave up with the most-horrendous [but from a stupid-concept-perspective, not a scary-viewing-experience] being The Exorcist II: The Heretic [John Boorman, 1977; as best I know the events of this movie have been completely disregarded in regard to plot elements of any other sequels, or prequels], yet I did very much enjoy the foundation of it all, William Peter Blatty’s 1971 novel, The Exorcist, from which Friedkin’s film is adapted [Blatty as screenwriter]), beginning with the foundational novel, The Caine Mutiny, published by Herman Wouk in 1951 (Pulitzer Prize in 1952), which I haven’t read but from this summary it’s clear the book has more activities than any adaptations, with a focus on Lt. Keith and his involvement with the typhoon crisis of Queeg and Maryk. Wouk then did the first adaptation (1953), transforming it into a 2-act-play called The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial which reached Broadway in January 1954, directed by famed stage/screen actor Charles Laughton. The action here, just like in Friedkin’s film, takes place entirely in San Francisco’s Twelfth Naval District in February 1945 (and the Fairmont Hotel for the ending), the main differences being the prosecutor is a man, Lt. Comm. John Challee, while the official Navy Regulation cited is Article 184 (odd change).
Five months later in 1954 saw the premiere of the film, The Caine Mutiny (Edward Dmytryk), with Bogart as Queeg, José Ferrer as Greenwald, Van Johnson as Maryk, Fred MacMurray as Keefer. It got 7 Oscar noms (including Best Picture, Best Actor for Bogart) but won none; as for plot it brings in some further action from the book (especially about Lt. Keith), not nearly all of it, though. After having seen Friedkin’s version of just the trial (a key element of both the novel and the 1954 film, but only 1 of many; at least in 1954 we get to see the events simply testified about in the … Court-Martial versions), I was curious to refresh myself on the contents of the earlier film so I rented it for $3.99 from Apple TV+ and, while I enjoyed what I watched I did find it a bit tedious to wait through all of these events that lead up to the crisis of the typhoon, then the trial of Maryk, so for me the best focus of all this would be the plot of the … Court-Martial adaptations, even though some might consider what Friedkin presents as being un-cinematic because, with everything just happening in the courtroom (and adjoining hallway), the situation calls for a lot of long takes, wide-angle-shots, panning/dollying of the camera to give some sense of movement to situations that are basically nothing more than someone sitting in a witness chair being grilled by 1 of the 2 opposing attorneys.*
*When I taught Visual Communication at Mills College (Oakland, CA; now Northeastern U. at Mills College), I noted that in the 1950s television existed on small screens in black & white imagery while movies were trying to counter the increasing-prominence of TV with widescreen color displays. Sidney Lumet took a different approach with his film of 12 Angry Men in 1957 (drawing upon his TV-plays-experience, as well as the original 1954 teleplay of … Men on CBS Studio One, written by Reginald Rose, directed by Franklin J. Schaffner). With Lumet (script by Rose), we’re back to classic Hollywood days of B&W imagery, framed in an abundance of tight closeups more common then to TV. Ironically, in 1997 Friedkin did a TV movie of 12 Angry Men—on cable’s Showtime (sorry, seemingly no streaming available)—which looked more like a theatrical film as it was in color, used a lot of wideshots and panning camera, but sticks (like his version of … Court-Martial) to the single location, real-time format, not so common on TV of the era. Both of these explorations of the original 1954 teleplay are 5 stars-worthy-cinematic-experiences: Lumet’s film getting Oscar noms for Best Picture, Director, Adapted Screenplay (but won none), George C. Scott winning a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for the 1997 version by Friedkin.
Continuing on with this … Caine Mutiny chronology, there were also: (1) another version of the … Court-Martial as an American TV play in 1955 on the CBS Ford Star Jubilee (Schaffner) that in 1956 won an Emmy for Best Television Adaptation, also Best Director-Live Series (Barry Sullivan played Greenwald, was Emmy nominated [Henry Fonda had that role on Broadway, Sullivan replaced him]; Sullivan lost to Lloyd Nolan as Queeg, the role he had in the Broadway version); (2) an Australian TV play of The Caine Mutiny in 1959; and (3) another version of … Court-Martial as an American TV film (from another modern cinematic master, Robert Altman, 1988; 77% on RT) with Eric Bogosian as Greenwald, Jeff Daniels as Maryk, Brad Davis as Queeg, Peter Gallager at Challee. (This one’s on streaming—free on fubo, $3.99 rental on Apple TV+; it was also noted in my local newspaper TV listings as cablecast on Showtime on Sunday night, October 8, 2023, but I think that was a mix-up on someone’s part with Friedkin's new … Court-Martial, which was supposed to be on Showtime last Sunday [I forgot to check to verify], so you might keep a watch there for either the Altman or Friedkin versions free to you on cable if Showtime’s in your TV package). And, if I haven’t driven you (or myself) crazy with all of these other Caine Mutiny references, here’s just one more of a related sort.
When I saw the new … Court-Martial last Friday night (I’m now a member of Paramount+ to go with my several other streaming services)—then witnessed the (almost) similar final scene from 1954 last Saturday I was struck with how Greenwald seemed to be speaking for Queeg at that ballroom party of Keefer’s, defending the overall record of a man who (especially in the 1954 version where WW II was still in active combat in both Europe and Asia) had given of himself for the good of his country for a couple of decades, with the earlier version ultimately explaining Queeg’s seeming lack of clear direction during the typhoon catastrophe was due to “battle fatigue” from events we’re not shown nor described from his recent time in the Atlantic Ocean fighting the Nazis. Greenwald is furious at Keefer, with me almost hearing him growl at this former-Caine-officer “You can’t handle the truth!” as blurted out by Marine Col. Nathan Jessup (Jack Nicholson) during a similar fraught-filled-military trial in response to accusations by lawyer Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) in A Few Good Men (Rob Reiner, 1992)—based on a 1989 Aaron Sorkin play (also wrote the film’s screenplay)—referring to how difficult it is trying to maintain discipline along with some sense of morale at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba surrounded by enemies of the U.S. with the often-uninterested-civilian-population back home unaware of the daily pressures on American military personnel to keep at arm’s length (whether human arms or firearms) those who live to destroy us. Queeg’s on the verge of saying something like that early in his verbal combat with Greenwald, but after being worn down by trying to defend himself against all of the situations noted in Maryk’s journal, his inner fire was out.
Therefore, Greenwald speaks for him against Keefer making it clear how even-more-difficult-than-usual it is for military commanders to always keep their bearings during wartime (the case with all of the previous versions of this story happening during WW II, the typhoon calamity on July 31, 1944 in the 1954 film), with Greenwald tearing into Keefer—and others like him—for trying to find ways to make war profitable for themselves in lieu of finding desirable-monetary-payoffs from military service; this all makes good sense within the setting of Wouk’s novel and its various adaptations in the 1950s but does seem a bit odd in Friedkin’s updating of the events to our present day in that guys like Keefer would likely have no incentive to volunteer for military service today, but that’s a minor concern relative to this fine story as a whole where the expected-triumph of Maryk (by means of Greenwald) comes across as less-uplifting than we’ve been conditioned to expect, Greenwald’s character is a lot more complex than how the standard crusading lawyer is usually depicted in that his self-imposed-actions are a burden on him internally rather than him suffering from some personal failing—like drunkenness by Paul Newman’s character, Frank Galvin, in The Verdict (Lumet, 1982).
So, when you put all of this together, I find the concept of the intense trial in the … Court-Martial version of this story to be the more compelling presentation of events (especially without actually seeing what the various testimonies are based on, as we do in the 1954 film) because we have little proof of what to believe from Maryk (who admits he doesn’t have the background to be making judgments about mental illness), Queeg (who defends everything he’s ever done, but like those medical experts who’ve not been at sea in battle how can we know what “should” be done in a crisis), and especially Keefer (whose attitudes/actions change with the wind, so what can we understand about him, although Greenwald seems to penetrate his bluff). Both Greenwald and Challee do excellent jobs in their contrasting roles of helping/condemning the accused, so it’s only Queeg’s final breakdown that throws the seeming-win to Greenwald and Maryk, but given the Captain’s prior demeanor and the consistent support of him from all the witnesses Challee rounded up, you can’t really fault her for apparently coming out on the losing side as Queeg proved to be less trustworthy than she’d have expected given the firm demeanor of his first testimony. All in all, we’ve got a powerful, complex story here which I do hope you’ll consider adding to your viewing itinerary.
Bottom Line Final Comments: Given the current-cinematic-attendance-climate of horror movies, silly comedies, unnecessary sequels and the like, I can’t speculate how well The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial might have done if played in theaters, because it seems a bit too serious compared to what increasingly-unconcerned-about-COVID-moviegoers are willing to pay for again (not me; none of this current stuff would be enticing me back in a theater just yet, although I’m glad I did take the plunge last summer to see Barbie [Greta Gerwig] and Oppenheimer [Christopher Nolan]—reviews in our August 17, 2023 posting). There might also be some concern in this time—when as a conflicted-country we’re trying to decide how much military aid (if not actual combat support at some point) we should give to the current conflicts in Ukraine and Israel—about a film that questions the stability of leaders in our military command or the difficult decisions that must be made when officers provide contrasting accounts of what happened in a given situation (on the battlefield or during an unexpected turn of events). Plus, it’s been many decades since William Friedkin’s great heyday so his name on the project might not pull in younger crowds who seem quite willing to fork over their cash for supernatural demonic tales, while those of us old enough to remember the heights he previously scaled are now not so certain we want to mingle in crowded theaters. All in all, then, probably the best venue for this version of … Court-Martial is at-home-streaming where Paramount+ definitely can provide access (once you’ve signed up for some form of subscription) or, if you’ve added Showtime to your TV service then you can get it on their streaming platform as well (you could also keep up with local TV listings to see if this current film pops up on Showtime’s cable channel again, as it did tonight, Wed. 10/11/2023). The CCAL is in solid support with RT positive reviews at 92%, MC average score at 71% (a range where they’re more supportive than numbers might indicate in that just as I rarely go above 4 stars [saving the higher numbers for truly remarkable cinema], so do the numbers from MC reviews usually average out to anywhere from about 50 to 80).
With all of that as my encouragement to see this latest approach to the Caine mutiny story (as well as any of the others you can find—including the novel [but you know I probably won’t read it, as I’ve already got enough books stacked up by my bedside])—because I found it to be a compelling situation (where you have to come to your own conclusions about what the truth is—and if you like that concept then you must see one of cinema’s all-time-classics, Rashomon [Akira Kurosawa, 1950], 98% on both RT and MC, so you know it’s a masterpiece) with this ... Court-Martial supported by a taut script (which traces its way back to Wouk) and consistently marvelous acting. Even the claustrophobic-confines of the single location work effectively to increase tension which builds to a quiet explosion in Queeg’s climactic testimony. Now, if I could just conclude all of this with a powerhouse Musical Metaphor (my usual review-finale-tactic, though not often do I hit powerhouse-status) I’d really have constructed something notable for you, but after days of mulling over an appropriate song for this film yet coming up with nothing quite suitable, I settled on The Eagles’ “Desperado” (on their 1973 album named for the song) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aelpqWEBHR4&list=PLq5z2BErEPOVPyS7MgB_meNivbb3YUSGD&index=5 (a site that takes you to all 11 cuts on that album if you really want to immerse yourself in the band, with “Desperado” at #5 if this link doesn’t land properly) which doesn’t have any direct connection to the events of the movie, but the lyrics about “Oh, you’re a hard one, but I know that you got your reasons / These things that are pleasin’ you can hurt you somehow […] Your pain and your hunger, they’re drivin’ you home […] Your prison is walkin’ through this world all alone” do speak to me about how Greenwald likely saw both Queeg and Keefer, although he was much more sympathetic to the former; ultimately, he’d probably apply it to himself, if not so much about his ongoing life as how he had to sacrifice himself and Queeg on behalf of Maryk, a well-meaning-guy who thought he was sincerely doing what the Navy required of him but was ultimately seen as guilty even by his own successful attorney so this song doesn’t land on him because he always believed in his own innocence. We get the quandary of deciding whether we'll agree, weighing this unresolved ending worth our engagement.
SHORT TAKES
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