Sherry Chandler

Speaking of thugs who are commanding the boat, this week’s Netflix adventure was “The Sand Pebbles,” the movie in which Richard Crenna got to do his turn as a crazed ship’s captain (well, boat in this case) and for which Steve McQueen got his only Oscar nomination. Robert Wise reportedly directed “The Sound of Music” as a filler so the studio would let him finish this movie, which was filmed in Taiwan and beset by difficulties.

That was 1966, the year “A Man for All Seasons” won best picture and “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” got eleven nominations. I have a feeling that watching Taylor and Burton chew the scenery now would, maybe, be a little painful.

But “The Sand Pebbles” has aged well, perhaps because it is sadly relevant, with its portrait of American racism and a China torn by the beginnings of a Civil War and Chiang Kai-Shek’s rise to power. Even then, apparently, we were backing war lords and practicing “gunboat diplomacy.” (Substitute HumVees now and the situation is about the same.)

1966 also saw nominations for “Alfie,” and “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming!” Paul Scofield as Sir Thomas More beat out Burton, Michael Caine, and McQueen for Best Actor. Poor Steve. What a year to be nominated. His style of acting was always more physical than verbal, and he was up against a bunch of great talkers.

“The Sand Pebbles” is a great movie, gorgeous and awful to watch.

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I need to mention the performance by the Japanese-American actor listed in the credits as Mako (full name Makoto Iwamatsu). His performans as Po-Han, the bilge coolie whom McQueen trains to run the engine, is masterful. He, too, was nominated for an Oscar for Best-Supporting Actor. He appears to have been woefully undercast ever since.