It’s a fascinating story that has been explored by novelists, poets, playwrights, visual artists and documentary makers before but it’s not the inspirational underdog tale we’re used to seeing in the multiplex.
The Mercy doesn’t tell us to “follow our dreams”, it urges us to take a hammer to them before they drive us mad.
Films as downbeat as this don’t tend to pack them in on a Saturday night, which could be why the story’s only big-screen treatment has been Gonka Veka – a 1986 Soviet film that presented Crowhurst as a victim of a corrupt capitalist system.
James Marsh (director of the Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory Of Everything) tells a more human story.
Here, struggling inventor Crowhurst (Colin Firth) is a foolish but decent old stick who realises he is well out of his depth before he even sets sail. But a clause in the contract with his sponsor (Ken Stott) states he will forfeit his house and business if he doesn’t finish the race.
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To protect his wife (Rachel Weisz) and safeguard the futures of their four children, the Devon inventor half-heartedly sets off in pursuit of his dream but when his self-designed yacht begins to fail he dramatically changes course.
He decides to float around, report false positions on his radio then sneak home in last position. As nobody checks the log books of the loser, he should be home and dry.
Sadly, the failures of his competitors and the successes of his PR man Rodney Hallworth (David Thewlis) see this plan taking on water.
Firth puts in a powerful but very uncomfortable turn as the misguided dreamer and Weisz gives a nuanced performance as his perhaps too loyal wife Clare. It’s a well-made film but a very difficult one to watch. Perhaps it’s just a little too straight, too.
The real Crowhurst was raised in India as a girl until the age of seven. His family lost everything during Independence and he was forced to leave the Royal Air Force after a mysterious scandal. This bizarre backstory could have been explored by a more inquisitive scriptwriter or perhaps one not shackled to a big budget and an A-list cast.
Perhaps the independent drama Crowhurst, due out some time this year, will sail a little closer to the wind.