Movie Review: The Ghost Ship (1943)
Synopsis: Tom Merriam, fresh out of training, joins the crew of the merchant marine ship Altair as its third officer. At first, he both impressed and idolizes the ship's captain, Will Stone, even as Stone acts erratic. However, that changes when Merriam realizes Stone murdered an insubordinate crew member. When he attempts to reports Stone, however, the captain is acquitted, and Merriam unexpectedly finds himself back on board the Altair as an outcast and fearing for his life.
Who's in it? The movie stars Richard Dix, Russell Wade, Edith Barrett, Ben Bard and Edmund Glover.
Review: When I came across The Ghost Ship a couple days ago and added it to my library, I wasn't fully sure what to expect from it. The title made it sound a bit like a supernatural horror film while the description showed it as a psychological thriller. It turned out to be the latter and a good one.
I think the thing I liked most about this film was Stone (Dix). He seemed cold and unemotional, even at times when you would expect him to be more agitated. On top of it, he seemed to think even his most extreme actions were all part of his duties as captain, arguing he had a right to do whatever he wanted with the crews' lives because, as captain, he was responsible for them.
On top of it, everyone seemed to be on Stone's side. Even if the crew believed Merriam's (Wade) accusations, they were either loyal to Stone, were afraid of him or just didn't want to get involved. That loyalty also meant Merriam needed to watch his back at all times, even if he once considered the crew members his friends. The radio operator, Sparks (Glover) was an especially intriguing one because he seemed to know there was something off about Stone and quick to criticize up until the point Merriam's safety was at stake. I didn't know if he would turn on his former friend too or would eventually do something that would put his own life in danger.
I was also curious what role the movie's narrator, Finn (Skelton Knaggs) would play. He seemed a bit out of place as a narrator and because of that, I wondered if he'd have a bigger impact on the movie's plot.
The end of the movie was fairly suspenseful because of all these potential wild cards. It was unclear if Merriam would make it out alive and, if he did, what would happen to Stone. Stone also seemed just crazy enough to go to extremes, including killing himself and the rest of the crew, just to avoid being found guilty.
Final Opinion: I think the title might be a bit misleading, but the overall movie is suspenseful and entertaining. I enjoyed watching it and would recommend it.
My Grade: A
Here are some reviews of other movies that took place on a ship:
Movie Review: Ghost Voyage (2008)
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