Thursday Movie Picks: Nautical Movies

Man, these Thursdays are ticking by pretty quickly, aren't they? We've arrived at yet another. That means it's time for me to give you my weekly suggestions based on a theme selected by our host this event, Wanderer at Wandering Through the Shelves. I have fun participating in this every week, but I'd love to get suggestions from you guys. You can take part by heading over to Wanderer's site and seeing what the theme is each week and taking it from there, following a very teeny tiny set of rules, of course. Those rules are basically pick three movies and either make them the best (or your favorite), the worst (or your most hated), or hidden gems.

This week's theme is Nautical Movies.

No, not Naughty Movies, you perv. Or, was that what I was thinking? Sigh. Never mind. Let's move on...

By nautical movies, I'm guessing we're talking about movies that happen to take place (largely) at sea. There are lots of them. One of my all time favorites in this area is Wolfgang Petersen's Das Boot. Then there's one of my all-time favorite Steven Segal flicks, Under Siege. Not exactly the same caliber film as Das Boot, but dammit, it's fun. A handful of others spring to mind like Crimson Tide, Pirates of the Caribbean, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and so on. Some great choices, but if you've been following along these last few Thursdays, you'll know I like to sail uncharted waters as often as possible. Well, that means we're going after some hidden gems. In this case, they may not be hidden, but certainly less appreciated. And to top it all off, we're keeping this trio of movies very light. After all, by this time next Thursday I'll be knee-deep in pig's blood as horror season here at DoM will be underway. With that, let's sail away...in chronological order, of course.

Batman: The Movie

(1966)

Right now, most of you are probably scratching your head. How is this a nautical movie? Sure, there are the prerequisite scenes in Wayne Manor, especially the Bat-cave, and in Gotham City. However, you know where more scenes take place than in either of those locations? Aboard a submarine which our four super-villains (The Joker, Riddler, Catwoman, and The Penguin) are using for their criminal headquarters. There is also the legendary scene where Batman takes on a shark. Okay, so how is it a hidden gem? It's almost fifty years old and one of the consequences of the main character becoming a darker character over time is that this rendition has been overshadowed and ridiculed. For me, it's a towering achievement in camp perfectly spoofing the serials of the 1930s and 40s utilizing a never-ending stream of double-entendres as its main weapon. (click here for my full review)

Pirate Radio

(2009)

If you're at all familiar with this movie then this choice makes more sense to you. If not, let me explain it. This movie is actually set when my first choice was made, 1966. We follow an underground British radio station broadcasting from the North Sea because they play rock-n-roll which is forbidden by their government. It's a funny and quirky movie with an all-star cast. We get wonderful turns from Bill Nighy, Kenneth Branagh, Nick Frost, Emma Thompson, and the late-great Philip Seymour Hoffman. (click here for my full review)

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

(2012)

Hugh Grant stars as Pirate Captain. He runs a rag-tag crew aboard a not so marvelous ship and dreams of one day winning the Pirate of the Year award. His attempts at doing this fuel the first half of the movie while the second deals with the one and only Charles Darwin (David Tennant). Lots of fun, though kids might not quite get most of the jokes. (click here for my full review)