Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World

There are films from great directors towards the end of their career that feel like are the culminations of all of their talents in one package. I first noticed this with the intricate craft that Ingmar Bergman brought to Fanny and Alexander, and I see it again here with Peter Weir and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. It’s been obvious since Picnic at Hanging Rock that Weir was a literate and intelligent filmmaker, almost never failing to entertain at a basic level while offe...