Yesterday, I watched the great William Friedkin’s final and most recent film The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial. Friekdkin passed on August 7th of this year and his film debuted in September at the Venice Film Festival. The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial is an adaptation of the two-act play with the same name. This was a great return and swan song for Friedkin as it was his first feature film since 2011 when he directed Killer Joe.
The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial stars Kiefer Sutherland as Lt. Queeg, the ship captain who lost control of his crew and was overthrown. Jake Lacy plays Lt. Maryk, the Navy man who began the mutiny aboard the USS Caine, and Jason Clarke plays the role of Maryks lawyer, Lt. Greenwald. The film is tense, methodical, and shows the intricate vulnerabilities of men who have power.
SPOILERS AHEAD… YOU’VE BEEN WARNED.
The Good
Friedkin did a lot of great things with this film, and my personal favorite was how his rendition of The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial radiated an energy that matched the great 1957 Sidney Lumet film, 12 Angry Men. Now that might sound like a cliche comparison because both are court related dramas, but that’s not why I’m comparing the two. Obviously the two plots being somewhat in the same ballpark helps, but the claustrophobia you feel from both films makes it feel as if Friedkin and the cast have a tight grip on your throat and won’t let go. While that sounds unpleasant, it’s quite delightful.
I found this film to be fun from Friedkin as it was his way of flexing a different film making muscle. He’s given us a Mount Rushmore horror film in the past with The Exorcist along with gritty crime dramas from The French Connection to Cruising to Killer Joe. We’d just never seen him make a film so melodic in its ways and build suspense like he did here. There isn’t the normal intrepid “underdog” story you usually see from him. It feels like two colossal titans clashing with one another in a singular room. And it’s masterful.
Jason Clarke Ends The Film In A Jaw-Dropping Manner
My final note on what Friedkin did so great in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial is the final monologue from Clarke. He arrives at a celebration that is essentially for him after the trial and at first, it looks like he’s basking in the praise of his younger colleagues. But he then flips it on its head. He uses his opportunity for a toast to chastise the young officers for targeting Lt. Queeg as the subject for their mutiny and sites Queeg as maybe not being the smartest, but certainly as brave. You can see the inner turmoil that Clarke is suffering from because he wanted to do a good job for Lt. Maryk, but also it hurt to have to tear down a decorated officer who cares so deeply for the Navy. It’s a powerful monologue that’s capped off with him throwing a drink in Lt. Keefers’ face.
The Bad
I found nothing in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial to be “bad“, but there were aspects I wasn’t huge on. For instance, outside of Kiefer Sutherland and Jason Clarke, I didn’t find anyone else to give a good performance. They were serviceable performances, but they were either net negatives or net neutrals. I’m not entirely sure I blame the actors or actresses. It feels more like they were miscast, and I touch on this coming up in the ‘Performance Report Card’, but Jake Lacy, who plays an important role in this film, simply didn’t feel like the fit for this role. I get that Friedkin wanted a cocky young actor for the role, but Lacy doesn’t possess arrogance. It doesn’t seem like he has the pompous demeanor needed for this role.
Another slight issue I had with The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial was some of the pacing. At times, it did feel as if Friedkin got too caught up in testimonies that eventually amounted to nothing. It became a little redundant in my mind. Yes, we know Lt. Queeg is a decorated member of the Navy. We also know that Lt. Queeg isn’t the brightest. But we are consistently inundated with those two facts. It’s not bad that Friedkin did this, but it did hinder the viewing experiences slightly.
Performance Report Card
Kiefer Sutherland: B+
Kiefer Sutherland was outstanding here. While he’s always good in his multitude of roles, I don’t think he’s ever played a role that’s shown this much vulnerability. Lt. Queeg is a shaky and hesitant character that’s concerned about two things — the Navy and what people think about him. And ultimately, that was his demise in this film. But Sutherland nails every idiosyncratic behavior that this character possesses from the rolling of the small marbles in his hand to the constant breaking of eye contact when he speaks.
Jason Clarke: A
What a year it’s been for Jason Clarke. He was a hard-nosed lawyer that was enlisted in the witch hunt of J. Robert Oppenheimer in Oppenheimer and absolutely killed it. He turns around a few months later to once again play a lawyer and delivers a bombastic performance going toe-to-toe with Commander Challee and other members of the Navy. I would be remised if I didn’t mention how fantastic his final monologue was. It truly left me speechless. This year will be a loaded one for Best Actor at the Oscars, but Clarke could make a legitimate run for the fifth slot and get nominated.
Jake Lacy: C
Jake Lacy didn’t do anything wrong in this film, but I just feel like he was wildly miscast. He also doesn’t seem like someone who would have the gravitas to cause a mutiny aboard a ship. Had this role gone to someone like Boyd Holbrook or Ben Winshaw, it would have felt far more believable. But aside from that, Lacy was serviceable. He played the role of a weasel very nicely because he has an arrogant confidence around him that this role did kind of need. On the front, he was good.
Monica Raymund: C
I’m not sure if this was the point of Raymund’s character, but she felt insufferably annoying. It also felt like Raymund had no conviction. I didn’t know what side of the aisle she was playing when she was supposed to be going against Lt. Maryk. Maybe that is a good thing because she was being a fair character, but I wasn’t a fan.
Lance Reddick: B-
I’ve droned about this being Friedkin’s final film, but this was also the final film for the great Lance Reddick. Reddick sadly left us on March 17th this year and delivered his final acting performance in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial. While he doesn’t do anything in this role that’s necessarily spectacular, he adds a stern and just ambience that this hectic trial film needed. It’s sad he left us so early, but Reddick leaves behind a loaded filmography packed with great performances.
Griffin Dunne: C
Was Griffin Dunne’s character necessarily needed in The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial? Probably not. Did he give a good performance though? He was serviceable. His characters main purpose was to walk into the trial, get slapped around by Jason Clarkes character, and then leave. He did a good job playing this manic pushover, and my issue isn’t really with Dunne. It’s more with his character not being needed.
Lewis Pullman: C+
The first time I saw Pullman on screen, I knew I recognized him. I didn’t know he was Bob from Top Gun: Maverick. Pullman shows off some serious range, going from a geeky fighter pilot to a slithery, untrustworthy character. He acted as the mouthpiece of the mutiny and his cocky persona felt fitting for what transpires in the plot. Pullman is a true rising star in Hollywood after these past two years.
Critical Reception
Currently on Letterboxd, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial has been viewed by 1,600 members and has an average rating of 3.5/5 Stars and 34 5/5 Star ratings. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 90% on the Tomato Meter and 83% Audience Score. Friedkin’s final film has received a score of 6.9/10 on IMDB, which is higher than the 1988 version of The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, which received a 6.8/10 rating on IMDB. With the film being sent straight to streaming, there are no box office numbers for the film. If you’d like to watch The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, you can stream it now on Showtime US and Paramount+.
Currently, I have The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial as my 9th favorite film of 2023 out of 94 releases from this year that I’ve seen. While we’re still awaiting the release of films like Killers of the Flower Moon, May December, The Holdovers, and The Bikeriders, it feels safe to say that Friedkins send off will be a top 15 film of the year for me.