Mystery on the High Seas: Day #293 - Phantom Ship (1935)
Viewed October 20, 2006
In 1872, a ship called the Mary Celeste was found adrift off the coast of Portugal. The ship was completely abandoned and no trace of the crew was ever found. It was one of the great mysteries of the day and continues to spark the imagination and interest of authors and storytellers to this day. A fanciful take on the events that led to the ship’s abandonment is told in Phantom Ship a.k.a. The Mystery of the Marie Celeste. It stars Bela Lugosi in a cracking performance as a disgruntled sailor in a story filled with intrigue, betrayal and murder.
The story itself is completely implausible as an explanation for the strange events surrounding the Mary Celeste, but they make a decent thriller in their own right. Captain Briggs (Arthur Margetson), recently married to Sarah (Shirley Grey), gets a crew together for a rush delivery. Among those taken for the crew is Anton (Lugosi), a bitter seaman who had just returned from a stint after being shanghaied. Once the voyage begins, people begin to die, seemingly being done away with one by one. With distrust high among the crew, everyone becomes suspect until none are left aboard.
Bela does a splendid job with this quirky role and even though his is not the central character, it seems clear that the film was structured to make the most of him. In a rarity for him, his character is truly sympathetic. His pain and resentment is palpable, making his odd behavior understandable.
The cast of unknowns that fills out the rest prove capable, if not truly memorable. Shirley Grey shows vulnerability as the captain’s wife, literally lost at sea. Margetson’s Briggs is not that different than other captains-under-pressure, but he handles it well.
Phantom Ship shows more attention to detail than I would have expected from what was a relatively low budget production. From what I’ve read about the Mary Celeste, they seem to have gotten most of the popular conceptions correct (if not the historical details). Every plot element seems to have been worked out to make sure everything is in place when the abandoned ship is found.
Phantom Ship is a film I can heartily recommend and not just to Lugosi fans. There’s a solid thriller/mystery here as well as decent performances from the supporting cast. It’s also interesting to see how a film studio interpreted such a famous event.
Note: The version I saw is apparently an edited version that cuts the original’s 80 minute runtime down to 62 minutes. I can’t say whether these cuts helped or hurt the film (since I haven’t seen the original cut), but I can say that I didn’t notice anything that seemed out of place or underdeveloped. Perhaps the ship empties a bit faster than it could have, but for the most part the 62 minute cut is solid.