Master and Commander
...n. Other than the few previously mentioned differences between the movie and actual historical events the movie showed the navy life of the 19th century. HMS Surprise was smaller and had only 24 guns compared to the French Acheron which has 44 guns. What gave Great Britain the victory over France? The British Royal Navy had the heart and will to win, they also had special tactics and skills added by Aubrey who admired and drew from Horatio Nelson. Britain was under the threat of invasion by Napoleon and Aubrey instilled this into their hearts “This ship is England- this ship is home.” He used nationalism several times to push his man past their capabilities. At one point while they were testing their speed with the cannons Aubrey in a way rallied them together and said “Do you want to see a guillotine in Piccadilly? No! Do you want to call that raggedy arse Bonaparte your king? No! Do you want your children to sing the Marseillaise? NO!” The men on Surprise had so much will power to be able to return to their homes that they overcame the odds. Aubrey holds such an interest for the Acheron Captain the whole movie that he is willing to sacrifice his men and ship for the sake of completing his orders. Once the doctor finally convinces him to actually go to the Galapagos Islands the ship ports and they speak to stranded whalers. The men tell Aubrey that they arrived soon after Acheron left. Aubrey decides to leave the islands and search further for the Acheron. He basically disregarded his men’s wishes so he could find the French. Toward the end the British finally find and defeat the French and on a tour of the ship Aubrey finds 2 doctors and a dead man who...