Moby Dick

Director: John Huston, Franc Roddam

Overview

This adaptation of Moby Dick remains admirably faithful to its source. Though slightly intimidated by a sermon warning that those who challenge the sea are in danger of losing their souls, itinerant whaler Ishmael nonetheless signs on to the Pequod, a whaling ship captained by the brooding Ahab.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/15/2015
UPC:	0738329163525
Original Release:	1956
Rating:	NR
Language:	English
Sales rank:	2,871

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Gregory Peck	Capt. Ahab
Richard Basehart	Ishmael
Leo Genn	Starbuck
Harry Andrews	Stubb
Bernard Miles	Manxman
Mervyn Johns	Peleg
Noel Purcell	Carpenter
Orson Welles	Father Mapple
Frederick Ledebur	Queequeg
James Robertson Justice	Capt. Boomer
Edric Connor	Daggoo
Seamus Kelly	Flask
Philip Stainton	Bildad,Composer
Joseph Tomelty	Peter Coffin
Royal Dano	Elijah
Francis de Wolff	Capt. Gardiner
Tamba Alleney	Pip
Ted Howard	Blacksmith
Tom Clegg	Tashtego
Iris Tree	Lady with Bibles
Christopher Lee	Actor
Joan Plowright	Actor
Patrick Stewart	Actor
Henry Thomas	Actor
Ted Levine	Actor

Technical Credits

John Huston

Ray Bradbury

Vaughan N. Dean	Producer
John Huston	Producer,Screenwriter
Gus Lohman	Special Effects
Ray Bradbury	Screenwriter
John Mitchell	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Adapting Herman Melville's extravagant and enigmatic novel was a daunting challenge, but director John Huston acquitted himself well with this 1956 attempt. Huston had experience translating literary works to the screen (The Maltese Falcon, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Red Badge of Courage), and Moby Dick was well-suited to his usual themes of human weakness and obsession. The muted colors of cinematographers Freddie Francis and Oswald Morris give the film an original, washed-out look, perfectly suited to the story's era. Equally impressive is the old boat that Huston hand-selected for the Pequod and his recreation of a mid-1800s rustic fishing village. The screenplay by Huston and Ray Bradbury is more than adequate, as is Gregory Peck's stoic Captain Ahab. Orson Welles, who had always wanted to film the novel himself, has a brief cameo.