Cast: Nicolas Cage, Penelope Cruz, John Hurt, Christian Bale, David Morrissey
Director: John Madden
Producers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Mark Huffam, Kevin Loader
Screenplay: Shawn Slovo, based on the novel by Louis de Bernieres
Cinematography: John Toll
Music: Stephen Warbeck
U.S. Distributor: Universal Pictures
Captain Corelli's Mandolin, based on the "unfilmable" novel by Louis de Bernieres, represents the kind of old-fashioned romantic melodrama that hardly ever seems to reach multiplexes these days. Although there's nothing ground-breaking or otherwise extraordinary about the film, it is expertly directed, beautifully photographed, and (for the most part) nicely acted. The storyline does not consistently rely upon worn-out cliches and tired formulas, and the character definition and interaction have the strength to tap into the viewer's emotions. All-in-all, Captain Corelli's Mandolin will find favor with nearly everyone who appreciates this kind of motion picture.
The movie opens on the eve of World War II in Greece. It is 1940, and, on the island of Cephalonia, life continues as usual. One of those "usual" events is the courtship of Pelagia (Penelope Cruz), the daughter of the resident doctor, Dr. Iannis (John Hurt), and Mandras (Christian Bale), a fisherman. The two announce their engagement on the day before Mandras goes off to war. He promises to write, but Pelagia hears nothing from him, her letters going unanswered. Meanwhile, Cephalonia comes under Italian occupation. The officer billeted in Dr. Iannis's house is the mandolin-playing, opera-loving Captain Antonio Corelli (Nicolas Cage). After initially resisting the attraction, he and Pelagia fall in love - just in time for Mandaras to return. But the Italian officers face a moral crisis when Mussolini surrenders to the Allies and the Germans move in to take over the Italian occupation: do they give in and let the Germans take over, or do they fight against their former allies alongside the Greek rebels?
The most interesting aspect of Captain Corelli's Mandolin is the way the film explores the shifting relationship between the occupiers (Italians and Germans) and the occupied (Greeks). At first, there is a great deal of animosity, but, with the passage of time, as the two sides come to know one another, a wary camaraderie develops, especially between the Italians and the Greeks. The Germans, represented by one officer, Captain Gunther Weber (David Morrissey), are always regarded with suspicion. It is out of this relaxation of tensions that the romance between Captain Corelli and Pelagia evolves. He is enamored by her beauty from the start, but she resists until she discovers that he is more sensitive than she first believed. The film also resists the temptation to turn Mandras into a cardboard-cut out jilted lover. To the last, he acts honorably.
As Captain Corelli, Nicolas Cage is somewhat miscast. This isn't one of those incidents when the actor's presence in the role torpedoes the entire film, but there are instances (especially early in the proceedings) when Cage doesn't seem comfortable living in Corelli's skin. He goes over-the-top and makes the title character more fatuous than he is meant to be. Penelope Cruz and Christian Bale are solid, but unspectacular. Although their characters are supposed to be deeply in love during the movie's first quarter, these two exhibit no chemistry with each other. Fortunately, Cruz and Cage manage to strike a few sparks, allowing us to believe in the passion and commitment between Pelagia and Corelli. Lately, Cruz has been gaining an enormous amount of exposure in American funded (or co-funded) productions, and this represents the latest rung on the ladder to international stardom. (Her next film, Vanilla Sky, places her opposite Tom Cruise for director Cameron Crowe.) The real diamond in the cast is John Hurt, who brings a gusto to this part the likes of which he has not shown since Love and Death on Long Island. Hurt plays Dr. Iannis like the wise mentor in a sports film - he always has some nugget of knowledge or truth to impart (think Mr. Miyagi in The Karate Kid).
For director John Madden, whose two most recent features were Shakespeare in Love and Mrs. Brown, Captain Corelli's Mandolin gives him the opportunity to indulge his preference for character-driven dramas. The movie also has a message to impart about the inhumanity of men to other men in war. It does this through a series of shocking scenes that, while lacking the visceral impact of the battle images in Saving Private Ryan, are nevertheless effective because of the suddenness with which they occur. But the glue that holds the movie together, and the element that will draw most viewers into the theater, is the romance between Pelagia and Corelli. Theirs isn't a love affair for the ages, but it's strong enough that Captain Corelli's Mandolin is likely to appeal to the English Patient audience (although this movie is less convoluted and more quickly paced than the Oscar winner). In the midst of the cinematic cacophony that defines August, this picture plays a tune that is pleasing to the ear.
© 2001 James Berardinelli