THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE

 

Among my recent purchases from Edward R. Hamilton Booksellers was a $6 DVD, a Kino double feature of two 1950s British comedies starring Alec Guinness, one of my favorite actors. Today I'll be discussing THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE, a 1953 film produced & directed by Anthony Kimmins. 

THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE concerns Henry St. James (Alec Guinness), who is in charge of a ferry ship running back and forth from Gibraltar to Kalik in Morocco. The Captain believes he has found the key to a perfect life. In Gibraltar he's married to Maud (Celia Johnson), a gentle Englishwoman who is dedicated to being the ultimate housewife. In Kalik, the Captain is married to Nita (Yvonne De Carlo), an exotic Spanish nightclub dancer who enables James to live out his wild side. Of course, the situation is too good to last, and the Captain realizes he doesn't know his two loves as much as he thought he did. 

One can assume all sorts of wild complications when reading a plot description of THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE, and if the movie had been made in America, it probably would have fulfilled them. But this is an English film, and the tone is more down-to-earth and subtle. While watching this a viewer will react with chuckles rather than long laughs. Alec Guinness plays the Captain as a cool customer rather than a screwball type, and he does it very well. Guinness does get to show off his dancing chops with Yvonne De Carlo, and he also gets to speak multiple languages in a few scenes. Guinness also prevents the Captain from coming off as self-absorbed and arrogant (which in some ways the character is). 

The real highlight of this movie is Yvonne De Carlo as Nita. She's definitely alluring, but she makes the woman more than just an obvious sexpot. There's more to Nita than meets the eye, something that the Captain (to his regret) learns too late. De Carlo and Guinness might seem one of the strangest romantic couples in screen history, but the two of them have a great rapport here, and they're impressive on the dance floor as well. (If you've ever wanted to see Obi-Wan Kenobi and Lily Munster cut a mean rug together, this is your chance.) De Carlo also gets some dance numbers of her own. 

Celia Johnson gets the less showier role of Maud, the domesticated lady (the Captain buys her presents such as a vacuum cleaner and a sewing machine, while he buys Nita lingerie). As expected, Maud and Nita wind up meeting each other, while being unaware of the other's status. Their meeting doesn't precipitate the ending of the Captain's paradise....it's the Captain taking the women for granted that causes problems. (Maud wants to go out and get more out of life, while Nita wants to stay home and be a "normal" wife.) The plot of the film, and the Captain's treatment of his two wives and his expectations for each of them will offer plenty of material for 21st Century gender studies types....but I just see the movie as a lighthearted comedy. 

The film is enlivened by actual location shooting at Gibraltar, although it appears that none of the main cast actually went there. The supporting players are decent enough, but they lack the cult names that one finds in English movies made during this period (Miles Malleson does have a small role). THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE is in full frame and black & white. 

I liked THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE, but while watching it I kept thinking how different the presentation would have been if it was made by Americans, and had starred American comic actors. I discovered that Alec Coppel's story for this film was nominated for an Academy Award, and the basic idea of a man with two happy marriages at the same time is a good one--but I felt that this idea could have been developed a bit more. The main virtues of THE CAPTAIN'S PARADISE are Alec Guinness and Yvonne De Carlo.