Amita RajGuru, Post 8

Captain Ron, 1992, Thom Eberhardt

Martin just wanted a nice, quiet family vacation. Directed by Thom Eberhardt, Captain Ron is the story of a typical Chicago family that inherits a yacht once owned by Clark Gable. Hiring the free spirited Captain Ron as their guide, they’re sure to be in for an interesting ride, and are going to be faced with the adventure that their busy city lives never had the time for. The film begins with a series of wide angle establishing shots and, once Martin Harvey (Martin Short) receives his letter of inheritance, several two-shots and medium shots. This brings the action closer to the characters without getting too up close and personal with the audience too soon.

When Captain Ron (Kurt Russell) meets Martin and his family for the first time on their boat, the audience is taken through a series of three-shots with different people. Generally, the person speaking is in the foreground and the others are in the background facing him. However, there is one shot that stands out interestingly because it frames Ron in the middle of the screen seen by the audience over the shoulders of Martin and Katherine Harvey (Mary Kay Place) standing on the left and right side of the screen. The effect that this has is that it differentiates between the loose, go-with-the-flow mood of Ron, and the tighter-wound, city lifestyle of the Harvey’s.

Eberhardt made a strange directorial choice to place the small accidents and slapstick incidences in the center of the frame, which slightly contradicts the idea in the rule of thirds that the center of the screen is the most boring. Nonetheless, there is a point to this: the centered placement on the screen of these potentially chaotic events underplays them and prevents them from losing control. For example, when Martin shows Captain Ron a map of where he wants to go, and when Captain Ron isn’t looking the map catches fire on a nearby candle, he quickly turns around and puts the fire out. If the fire had been larger and slightly out of the frame, it may have suggested that the fire was going to engulf more than just the map... So it’s controlled chaos. On the contrary, moments of embarrassment – such as Captain Ron unjamming the shower door for Martin and Katherine, resulting in them falling out – is hinted at because the actions takes place on the sides of the frame.

At times it seems like the audience is watching the movie from Martin’s perspective because the camera angle changes with his emotions. For example, for the first half of the film, the camera is relatively close to the actors, showing them through medium close-up shots and occasionally over-the-shoulder shots. However, when Martin starts to feel jealousy over Captain Ron’s relationship with Katherine, more medium and full shots are used – and in two shots, Martin is the one in focus. This creates the impression that he is envious of Captain Ron.

Another aspect of the filming style is the way the actors appear on camera: when there is more than one character onscreen, the audience generally watches the scene over the shoulders of all but one of them – in other words, only one character’s face is in full view. This effectively singles out a character or the opinions being expressed as being different from everyone else’s. For example, the audience watches Martin accuse Captain Ron of misleading him (by his mispronunciation of “guerrillas” as “gorillas”) from behind Captain Ron and the Harvey kids’ heads while they’re playing Monopoly.

Though most of these characters seem to have fleeting moments of sincerity, it is made obvious when they are being genuine. For example, when Captain Ron is injured and they discover that their newly reclaimed boat has been emptied of motor oil, his advice to the Harvey’s is shown to the audience in a medium shot that zooms in to his face to become a medium close-up shot. This slow movement, as well as the sincerity in his voice, creates empathy between him and the audience, increasing his credibility and authority in the scene.

Towards the end of the movie, the tension rises as the Harvey’s have a shoot-out with the pirates that return to steal their boat once again. This scene is made up of several medium shots that cut back and forth between Martin and Katherine, and the pirates, and Captain Ron calling for help – the continued cross cutting creates a sense of chaos and excitement.

Ending on an uplifting and heartwarming note, the coast guard comes to they Harvey’s rescue and Captain Ron and Martin settle their differences. The film ends like it began, with a series of establishing shots and medium shots. The Harvey’s go on their way and accept a little adventure into their lives, and Captain Ron sets sail with another couple to recreate his story all over again... for him, nothing’s changed!