» A Film Assessment by Dan Stumpf: BILLY BUDD (1962).

REVIEWED BY DAN STUMPF:

BILLY BUDD. Allied Artists, 1962. Robert Ryan, Terrence Stamp, Peter Ustinov, Melvyn Douglas, John Neville, David McCallum, Lee Montague, and Niall MacGinnis. Tailored by Peter Ustinov, DeWitt Bodeen, and Robert Rossen, from the novel by Herman Melville. Produced & directed by Peter Ustinov.

   I’ve stated it earlier than, and it bears repeating: “In case you solely see one film in your complete life, it ought to be… Chamber of Horrors” (Warners, 1966).

   However in case you assume you could possibly probably stretch it to Two, you could possibly do rather a lot worse than Billy Budd.

   Actor/author/producer/director Ustinov formed Melville’s ponderous novella right into a compelling fable of Good vs Evil, performed to perfection by Terrence Stamp as Billy, the ingenuous service provider seaman pressed into the Royal Navy, and Robert Ryan as Claggett, the sadistic Grasp-at-Arms who units out to destroy him.

   It’s a movie that works on many ranges, largely as a result of Ustinov selected to write down it that manner. The story of Budd and Claggett performs out in opposition to a backdrop of colorfully painted characters, all the best way from Ustinov’s cautious Captain, right down to Melvyn Douglas’ considerate sail-mender, with stops alongside the best way for class-conscious officers, scrappy sailors, squealers, and entry-level killers.

   The battle that performs out in opposition to this background is just not a lot a conflict of personalities as it’s considered one of various realities. Budd is so genuinely guileless and respectable that he rapidly turns into beloved by his crewmates and revered by his superiors. Claggett, then again, lives on hate. He breathes it out and in as respectable males breathe air. And when he and Billy confront one another — in a brilliantly imagined and deftly performed scene — it’s Claggett who wavers. And Billy who pays the value.

   Ustinov additionally owes a debt of gratitude to Producer Ustinov for getting most of this filmed outside on shipboard (or an inexpensive facsimile) with a minimal of fakey course of photographs. The full impact is to demystify the story and lend the pure energy of the Seas to its telling.