Directed by John Huston;

Based on the renowned novel of the same name by Herman Melville, Moby Dick is a classic seafaring adventure story with a strong sub-plot concerning on one man?s obsession with a rogue whale and his own demons. Presumedly this is a re-release of one of a raft of earlier released ?classic? titles already available in the shops.

The story has two central characters ? Ishmael (Richard Basehart) and Captain Ahab (Gregory Peck). Ahab is a tortured soul with a pathological obsession with a fabled white sperm whale (Moby Dick) that caused the loss of his leg ? and much of his sanity! Ishmael is the character through which we see the story unfold ? including the occasional spot of narration.

The story commences in late 1841 when Ishmael enters New Bedford, a whaling town, intending to sign on to a whaling venture. He is relatively na?ve in the ways of the whaling ?community? and is clearly an inexperienced hand at this ?game?. Along with his very strange newly found acquaintance ? Queequeg (Frederick Ledebur), who will later become the first harpooner ? they decide on the ?Pequod? as the vessel they will join as crewmembers. The voyage will take them to sea for three years; during which time ? apart from the occasional meeting with another ship ? they will be completely on their own, and at the beck and call of the mysterious Captain Ahab. But just as they are about to embark, they are confronted by a man called Elijah, who prophesises doom for our good friends, and the same for the entire crew of the ?Pequod? ? except for one soul?

The whaling voyage is proceeding quite well until the captain of a passing ship (James Robertson Justice) mentions the sighting of Moby Dick to Ahab. Despite his crew being in the middle of their most successful ?harvest? to date; Ahab calls off the hunt to continue his ?quest for the great white whale?. Ahab, who has compiled a map tracing the paths of whale herds, and has marked the sightings of Moby Dick, in particular; sets the ?Pequod? on a heading towards the Bikini Islands for a final ?showdown? with his nemesis. On the way they face becalming, storms, and an increasingly disturbed crew headed by the ship?s first mate, Starbuck (Leo Genn). But Ahab?s charisma is such that he manages to skew the crews? minds to his fervour, and they become willing participants in his quest.

I will not divulge the ending, notwithstanding the prophecy outlined earlier; but there follows the expected ?showdown? and its consequences. The ending is a little far fetched, but what the heck!

Much of the dialogue is in a ?God-fearing?, quasi-religious form that seems fitting to the period. Additional to this is a plotline dominated by a combination of religious zealousness, local mythology and customs that dictate the language and behaviour of all the participants. Some of the dialogue is quaint, with most of it believable.

The cast, direction, script and performances are all terrific; with the standout characters being Ahab (Peck), Starbuck (Genn), Ishmael (Basehart), Stubb (the second mate, played by Harry Andrews) and Queequeg (Ledebur).

Gregory Peck is at his usual grand best, both beguiling and terrifying his crew; Leo Genn and Harry Andrews both prosper in their well-written roles; while Frederick Ledebur?s screen debut provides an eccentric and fascinating character from a Pacific island. This British production also features a large number of other well-known character actors who each pay their parts beautifully (it?s a pity that a full list of cast members does not appear at the end of the film). And Richard Basehart ? who most people will best recognise as the constantly unsteady-on-his-feet Admiral Nelson in the TV version of Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea? I don?t wish to be nasty, but I think that anyone could have performed the role of Ishmael? Sure, he?s quite okay, and his narration is largely effective; but the role does not require any great degrees of talent or emotion.

Ray Bradbury and John Huston (who also directed this movie) share the screenwriting credits. Bradbury is an American novelist who is the original author of films such as It Came From Outer Space, The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, The Illustrated Man and Fahrenheit 451. John Huston is one of the legends of Hollywood, whose screenwriting-only credits include The Amazing Dr Clitterhouse, Jezebel, High Sierra and Sergeant York. This prolific director (who also acted in 27 movies!), was the writer-director of such wonderful films as The Maltese Falcon, Key Largo, The Asphalt Jungle, The African Queen and The Night of the Iguana; along numerous other movies as a director only. The class of these two talents is evident!.

THE EXTRAS

There are no special features beyond scene selection, language and subtitle menus, and a 3-minute fullscreen trailer. The trailer at least proves that, in parts, there has been some restoration to the original print used for this DVD.

CONCLUSION

Moby Dick is a great film adaptation of a great classical story that is very well scripted, acted and directed. Despite this DVD?s numerous technical faults, it still provides a wonderful and rollicking tale for young and old alike.

It is not a film that will please animal liberationists or those who abhor whaling, as there are a number of whale hunting sequences in the film ? fortunately though, many of the hunt scenes do not appear to be real. Despite its General Exhibition rating though, these scenes of carnage will not make it a film for all. If, however, one can overlook this aspect of the film, Moby Dick is rich in storyline, dialogue, characters, suspense and action.