I have just re-watched the movie Greyhound (2020) written by and starring Tom Hanks; which focuses on the Captain of a destroyer (from which the film is named) escorting a convoy from the US to Liverpool in early 1942.
It is the Captain's first escort mission; and the movie is seen from his perspective - its subject is really the responsibility of command in a life and death situation; and the depictions of anti-submarine war are exciting, and (given that there is a lot of CGI, inevitably) involving and convincing.
Overall Greyhound is a very good movie - which is well structured, paced, and framed - and avoids the usual tedious war movie tropes. Only c.90 minutes long (like most of the best movies!), it is never hurried, but nonetheless packs-in a deal of detailed incident.
The Captain's devout Christian faith is presented sympathetically and as integral to his admirable character. I found the service in which he presided as three sailors were buried at sea (in a brief gap in the combat) moved me to tears.
After watching it for the first time, I read the CS Forester book - The Good Shepherd - from which Greyhound was derived; and would also recommend that as excellent.
One difficulty is that Greyhound was sold to TV's Apple plus during the Birdemic - so that it never got a cinema release, and was never properly distributed. How to watch it without subscribing to yet another streaming service is a problem; for which those interested will need to seek a solution.
By chance the other day I heard a commentator talk about Hanks. The commentator took a very long taxi ride from NJ to MD. Celebrities the cabby had driven around came up, since he had driven many over the years. The commentator asked him who the worst celeb was that he had driven around. Hanks. Apparently an opinion shared by many, based on firsthand experience. The commentator spared his audience any sordid details.
ReplyDeleteFtan - The anecdote is irrelevant, since I know nothing whatsoever of the reliability of your cited witness. Presumably, neither do you.
ReplyDeleteI think people have to grasp that - really and truly - Hollywood is a deeply evil place; inhabited by those who are - at least - okay with that.
Another true thing: Tom Hanks is one of the greatest screen actors of our era. Anyone who can evaluate acting should acknowledge that.
Another thing: Most of the great actors are - not good people. It's always been that way. That's why actors used to have such a bad moral reputation back when more people were good. That actor X is a bad person really should surprise people - it's what we should expect on the basis of probability. There are exceptions - we know one professional screen actor, at least, who is a decent person! - but he's not a Hollywood name.
Being a great actor means that what we see on screen is, ahem, acting - and it happens that TH can act good people very convincingly!