The Mad Atlantic is one of the more unusual entries in Toho’s 1960s filmography, being one of the studio’s few productions to be both set and partially filmed outside Japan. Producer and actor Toshiro Mifune himself scouted locations throughout Spain in late 1965 before production ultimately settled on the Canary Islands, where two weeks of filming took place before the crew returned to the Toho lot for the remainder of production. On paper, the combination of an international setting, a commercial fishing vessel, interpersonal conflict and a climactic rescue during a violent storm sounds like makings of an exciting adventure. Unfortunately, the film rarely capitalizes on that potential, instead spending much of its runtime on the routine operations of the fishing crew while leaving its more dramatic ideas underdeveloped.
In terms of the plot, poor catches near the Canary Islands result in Chief and Captain Isaku Yano (Tatsuya Mihashi) being honorably demoted to captain so he can focus solely on running the vessel. Meanwhile, former office executive Heihachiro Murakami (Toshiro Mifune) travels from Japan to the Canary Islands, where he is promoted to chief of the Yazuma-Maru 8. The crew does not take lightly of the new chief and his unethical methods to catch fish. However, his methods prove successful as they continuously catch large amounts of tuna, shark and salmon. Meanwhile, the ship’s inexperienced doctor, Tsuda, is reassigned from his medical duties to work on deck at Murakami’s insistence, much to his frustration. His resentment and lack of experience contribute to an accident that permanently injures the helmsman, Aoki (Makoto Sato), leaving him unfit for future duty. The incident creates significant tension between Murakami and Tsuda, with both blaming the other for what happened. Aoki is sent to the Canary Island company branch hospital to be cared for by nurse Yoko Togawa (Mie Hama). With Aoki being cared for, the crew reluctantly leaves him to journey home and catch more fish. Unfortunately, a violent storm erupts during the route home. During this an SOS is intercepted for a pleasure yacht not far from Yazuma-Maru 8’s position with a mother, father and young son caught in the storm on their sinking yacht. Murakmi and the crew share an extremely bitter conflict to save the family or not risk losing their cargo and profits. Whichever the result, would risk everything Murakmi had built up to this point…
Despite what the synopsis might sound like, the story is actually quite thin and is really tied together by very light subplots.
The premise is a very strong concept, except nothing is quite explored or actually happens within a coherent pace. Too much time is spent watching the crew catch tuna, which, while interesting as a glimpse into the daily life of a fishing vessel, comes at the expense of developing the characters and story. As a result, we barely get to know most of the crew. Further frustrating is that even the film’s supposed highlight, the rescue of a sinking yacht, doesn’t occur until near the very end and feels underwhelming as a result.
As for the subplots, one follows Yoko, a nurse who has just arrived in the Canary Islands. She initially seems overwhelmed by her new surroundings but quickly becomes fascinated by Spanish culture. Unfortunately, the film does little with this beyond a brief dance sequence while she dines with Murakami. A greater focus on her experience adapting to Spanish culture could have made better use of the unique setting.
As for her patient, Aoki, he has a particularly strong, if awkwardly executed, scene in which he becomes depressed over his disability. He happens to see a disabled young girl fall, only to watch her get back up, giving him hope that he can overcome his own situation. It had its heart in the right place, but the scene’s somewhat random execution takes away from its intended emotional impact.
Another frustrating plot point that was hardly explored was the conflict between Murakmi and Yano. Both men were very professional with each other but the tension between them was not explored. Yano was clearly against his demotion, although he maintained a professional relationship with Murakmi despite a few open disagreements. However, nothing quite escalated as the setup would imply it should, leaving the viewer feeling unsatisfied.
Shifting to the acting, it does hit the mark at least. Toshiro Mifune is the John Wayne of Japan. A great actor and always commanding screen presence, but feels more often playing Mifune. His character is conflicted with high stakes to catch enough fish to justify his character’s motivations. But those emotions or conflicts are never displayed except for the climax when they were figuring out what to do regarding the sinking Yacht. During that particular scene, Sachio Saki, as one of the crew members, actually has a really tense argument that is one of the more emotionally charged scenes in the movie.
Now Sakai to me is one of Toho’s underappreciated actors. He can play a humorous, villainous, average, cankerous and criminal figures much better than he has ever been credited for. It’s always a pleasure to see him.
Tatsuya Mihashi, who plays the demoted captain, really comes across stiff here. For playing a guy who lost his position there isn’t much he doesn’t do to capitalize on the emotions of his character. In the end, though, his character does feel sidelined in favor of Makato Sato and Ryo Tamura. Speaking of, Sato and Tamura have the biggest roles as far as the drama goes. They do well with what they have to work with.
Mie Hama, who plays the nurse, also feels particularly underused. Her character has an interesting potential arc that the film unfortunately never develops, though Hama still manages to stand out, especially during the dance sequence, which effectively conveys her character’s curiosity about the surrounding culture. She once again demonstrates why she was one of Toho’s most compelling actresses during this period.
One of the strongest aspects of The Mad Atlantic is the familiar yet excellent score from composer Masaru Sato. He wrote this just a few months before he did Ebirah, Horror of the Deep (1966), where he would team up again with director Jun Fukuda for that Godzilla flick. Now Sato captures the adventurous spirit of the ocean through his energetic and memorable themes, although I do wish he had made greater use of Flamenco-influenced jazz to complement the film’s Canary Islands setting.
Given the English title “The Mad Atlantic” and the synopsis (which only really applies to the very end of the feature) I expected a much different film. It was unfortunately weary in a lot of areas and didn’t do much as it could for plot or character drives. A few performances, the setting, soundtrack and certain character dynamics may make a decent watch if you are a fan of the cast here. However, it’s ultimately a film I enjoyed more for its potential than its execution, and I doubt I’ll return to it anytime soon.
