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Rating: 5 out of 5
Have you ever met a spoiled kid or even a person who needs a hard slap in the face about reality? I’m talking about a slap that will show them that everything they think they know, they have no earthly idea that the average person works hard and life is hard. I sure as hell didn’t grow up with a silver spoon in my mouth. My mom was a high school chemistry teacher, and my dad was in the military. My grandparents on my mom’s side lived on a farm. I will always cherish the lessons I learned from them because they showed me that the world is challenging but not to cut corners, to be respectful, and to value everyone I come across. Do I want to be rich? Hell, yes, but I don’t want my kids to think they are rich. I want them to earn it and get after it like I did.
I bring this all up because I recently watched Captains Courageous, an old black and white film from 1937. I had no idea what it was about, but I saw that Spencer Tracy was in it. I shrugged my shoulders and was like, what the hell, I must watch it because it’s on the list. I had many feelings watching the film, but I think this is a great film to watch for all those spoiled kids and show them the hard life. The film is a coming-of-age tale, directed by Victor Fleming and based on the 1897 novel of the same name by Rudyard Kipling. Harvey Cheyne (Bartholomew) is a spoiled ass brat and son of American business tycoon Frank Burton Cheyne (Douglas). Since the day he was born, Harvey has gotten everything he asked for and more. He talks down to people, has his breakfast in bed, tells them his father can ruin them, and tries to bribe people. He’s a little shit. When Harvey is shunned by his classmates at a private boarding school for lying, bribing, and thinking he is the best, he tells his father that he was beaten up. Dude just straight up lied. He is suspended from school, and you know what his dad does? Homeboy takes him on a business trip to Europe by trans-Atlantic steamship? Really? A trip to Europe? My ass would’ve been whipped. Whatever.
Mid-passage, Harvey meets two kids and talks about how his father owns the boat. He states he can drink five ice cream sodas. Letting his mouth get the best of him. He drinks the sodas, but when he wants to puke, the kids call him out. Upon hiding, he slips and falls overboard. With the grim view of drowning, he is rescued by a Portuguese American fisherman, Manuel Fidello (Tracy), and taken aboard the fishing boat “We’re Here.” After bribing the crew doesn’t work, he is put to work for the next three months and learns about the ways of the fisherman and the real world. Harvey’s personality changes from a spoiled brat to a fisherman from Manuel’s tutelage.
I thoroughly enjoyed this film. It hit all my emotions and made me appreciate the ending and all the characters. I was not a fan of Harvey in the beginning of the film. I wanted him to get his ass whipped so many times. He ran his mouth as if he was the boss of bosses. Homeboy gave his teacher $50 during Christmas and then came back and told his teacher so he could side with him. Harvey was a spoiled rotten apple, and I couldn’t stand him so much. When he slipped off the boat, a little part of me hoped he drowned. That is mean to say, but I couldn’t stand him so much.
When he was recused, reality hit him hard in the face when he got on the fisherman’s boat. I LOVED this part of the movie. The crew gave ZERO fucks about him or anything he said. It was amazing and beautiful to watch. Harvey would say something, and they would put him down. One of the crew members slapped the shit out of him. I had to clap and look for the clip but couldn’t find it on YouTube. It was a thing of beauty. Harvey was put under Manuel’s care, and things didn’t start off too well. Harvey ran his mouth, and although Manuel listened, he always seemed to put aside whatever Harvey said. He was always nice about it, but it wasn’t what Manuel was concerned about. Manuel was about that fisherman’s life. As the two became close, Harvey started to change. One of the best scenes was when Harvey went out fishing with Manuel. Manuel placed a bet with another fisherman. Harvey had trouble with catching fish until he caught a huge one. The moment was tainted as Harvey cheated by messing with the other fisherman’s lines. Manuel became upset and completely ignored Harvey until the boy apologized to the fisherman.
What I love about this film is Harvey’s growth. He became interested in the fisherman’s way and wanted to be part of that life. You saw the old Harvey peel away, and the new Harvey was a hard-working crewman who respected everyone and what they did. The saddest part, and spoiler alert!!! When Manuel dies, it hits you right in the feels. That was a tough scene to watch. You could see that Harvey really cared about Manuel. When Harvey is finally reunited with his father, he is distant and wants to return to sea life. After a while, Harvey finally opens up to his father and seems on the right side of life.
I want to give some love to the film’s two main stars. First, Freddie Bartholomew as Harvey Cheyne was entertaining and fun to watch. I must admit that I HATED him when he first came on screen. I really couldn’t stand him. He grew on me as the film progressed. He showed Harvey grow into a man, even at a young age. He showed that he grew into a person who started to respect people without wealth and the appreciation of hard work.
I want to give a major shout-out to Spencer Tracy as Manuel Fidello. Some might find his performance disrespectful as Tracy isn’t Portuguese American. I don’t know if he spoke Portuguese or was throwing out gibberish in the film. Besides that, Tracy’s performance was incredible to watch because he was fun-loving but also tough. He knew the way of the fisherman and lived a tough life. I loved how he taught Harvey how to be a hard-working person and even stood up for the boy a few times.
Captains Courageous is a great coming-of-age film that everyone should watch. Tracy and Bartholomew were outstanding in their respective roles. I recommend watching this movie and showing your spoiled kid that there are better things in life.
