In 1841, young Ishmael signs up for service aboard the Pequod, a whaler sailing out of New Bedford. The ship is under the command of Captain Ahab, a strict disciplinarian who exhorts his men to find Moby Dick, the great white whale. Ahab lost his leg to that creature and is desperate for revenge. As the crew soon learns, he will stop at nothing to gain satisfaction.
Acting
Peck's unhinged Ahab speeches—pure theatrical madness.
Practical Effects
That infamous rubber whale still somehow works.
Cinematography
Oswald Morris's harsh, beautiful Atlantic grays.
Director
John Huston
Gregory Peck
Captain Ahab
Richard Basehart
Ishmael
Leo Genn
Starbuck
James Robertson Justice
Capt. Boomer
Harry Andrews
Stubb
Bernard Miles
The Manxman
Noel Purcell
Ship's Carpenter
Edric Connor
Daggoo
Mervyn Johns
Peleg
Joseph Tomelty
Peter Coffin
Francis de Wolff
Capt. Gardiner
Royal Dano
Elijah
Friedrich von Ledebur
Queequeg
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Gregory Peck despised his performance and Huston's direction; he later called it 'the worst thing I ever did.'
Huston co-wrote the screenplay with Ray Bradbury, who had never written a screenplay before and famously fought with the director.
US
