This is just a superb movie, even though, in 1949, it is a thinly veiled remake of 1937's Captains Courageous, based on Rudyard Kipling's eponymous novel. Adding to the feel of a remake is the presence of the great Lionel Barrymore in both movies.
The story is precisely the same in both cases; a young boy learns with difficulty about honor and duty via the tutelage of an older man, in this case Richard Widmark, reprising Spencer Tracy. Dean Stockwell plays a more appealing child than Freddie Bartholomew's spoiled, entitled Harvey. There's a host of fine supporting actors as well.
It's not quite fair to call this a remake, though essentially that's what it is. However, it stands exceedingly well in its own.
The story is precisely the same in both cases; a young boy learns with difficulty about honor and duty via the tutelage of an older man, in this case Richard Widmark, reprising Spencer Tracy. Dean Stockwell plays a more appealing child than Freddie Bartholomew's spoiled, entitled Harvey. There's a host of fine supporting actors as well.
It's not quite fair to call this a remake, though essentially that's what it is. However, it stands exceedingly well in its own.