Caine Mutiny, The (1954)

Nominated for seven Academy Awards in 1954 (including Best Picture and Best Actor), The Caine Mutiny is a classic film (based on a novel by Herman Wouk) about the unstable Captain Queeg (Humphrey Bogart) and his tumultuous command of an old minesweeper and her weary crew.

On the high seas during the dramatic battles of World War II, Queeg’s by-the-book approach pushes his crew and his popular second-in-command, Lt. Maryk (Van Johnson), to breaking point.

After a series of questionable orders, Maryk confronts Queeg when he orders the ship directly into the path of a deadly typhoon. Maryk invokes naval code and relieves Queeg of his command, forcing the crew to mutiny.

Once safely back in port, Maryk is court-martialed for treason, setting off a tense trial that exposes the true state of Queeg’s mind.

Edward Dmytryk directs the action scenes with a sure hand and nudges his all-male cast toward some of the most well-defined characters of 1950s cinema. The courtroom scenes alone have become the basis for a stage play (and a television movie in 1988), but it is a more satisfying experience to see the entire story in context.

Nominated for Best Actor, Humphrey Bogart gives a searing performance as he is systematically broken down in this classic tale of military conduct in a time of war. It was to be his last great performance – he died three years later.

Captain Queeg
Humphrey Bogart
Lt Barney Greenwald
José Ferrer
Lt Steve Maryk
Van Johnson
Lt Tom Keefer
Fred MacMurray
Ensign Willie Keith
Robert Francis
Captain DeVriess
Tom Tully
Lt Cmdr Challee
E G Marshall
Meatball
Lee Marvin
Seaman “Horrible” Lugatch 
Claude Akins
Chief Budge
Steve Brodie

Director
Edward Dmytryk