Hats off to Kino Lorber for giving us a DVD version that does this film justice surpassing the earlier MGM release. There are two main reasons for this. 1) the carefully muted color that John Huston and Brit cameraman Oswald Morris devised to give the film a 19th century look (similar to a book illustration) is beautifully captured in this transfer. For years it was shown with a standard color scheme. 2) it has optional English subtitles for those not used to the arcane language or are hard-of-hearing (the old MGM release had only French & Spanish subtitles). The film is also in its original aspect ratio of 1:66 which doesn’t quite fill a 16 X 9 flatscreen but it is perfectly framed. The soundtrack has also been cleaned up and that adds an extra dimension to the proceedings as the music no longer sounds distorted and the dialogue is crystal clear.
I was curious to watch this again (I hadn’t seen it in years) after seeing Ron Howard’s new film IN THE HEART OF THE SEA which is based on the real life whaleboat Essex tragedy that inspired Herman Melville to write MOBY DICK. That film does an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of the period but has the advantage of CGI recreation. Huston & Co. had to do it using the best technology of the day, which considering its limitations, makes MOBY DICK an even more remarkable achievement. What makes this version first among other versions are the screenplay by Ray Bradbury and the remarkable cast of character actors headed up by Richard Basehart as Ishmael & Leo Genn as first mate Starbuck (Yes, that’s where the coffee company’s name comes from). German actor Friedrich Ledebur is an astonishing Queequeg and Orson Welles makes an indelible Father Mapple.
Of course the bulk of the story concerns Captain Ahab and Gregory Peck was heavily criticized at the time as being miscast and he certainly wasn’t Huston’s choice but the studio’s. However posterity has been kind to Peck’s performance and while he’s certainly not old enough according to Melville, he brings an internalized, smoldering intensity to the role that plays well today. The location filming (WARNING: there’s real whale hunting footage), the authentic ship, and superior sound stage work somehow manage to blend into a relatively seamless whole. The production was troubled (Huston & Bradbury clashed, it suffered delays, went over budget, and eventually lost money) but it turned out to be a remarkable achievement. Just as remarkable is this Kino Lorber release which, as mentioned earlier, properly restores the 19th century color that gives it the look and feel of another time.
The Capsule Critic 