Disconnects galore!

I realize this movie was a challenge to make.

But the filming techniques used to create the illusion of an old man at sea fall apart because of so many glaring inconsistencies as well as cheap visual effects.

First off, the scenes with Tracy filmed against a green screen which was then combined with open ocean footage look completely at odds with the actual footage of rolling waves and marine animals shot at sea. In one instance, sharks are shown attacking a carcass underwater as the sunlight brightly shines on the backs of the predators. This same footage is then intercut with a shot of Tracy lit by weak studio lights and then composted with a dim cloudy sky.

Then there are the shots of the fish as it starts to succumb to being hooked: to make the supposedly dying but totally fake rubber marlin appear less "fake," the cameraman shot through a "fish-eye" lens which blurs and distorts the image. Unfortunately, the rubber fish still looks unabashedly FAKE!

I guess audiences of the time bought the whole package - particularly given that Spencer Tracy was the star.

However, in the wake of later films actually shot at sea - not just "Jaws" but also the Marlon Brando version of "Mutiny on the Bounty" as well as "Hawaii" starring Julie Andrews - OMATS comes off as "dated."

"Don't call me 'honey', mac."
"Don't call me 'mac'... HONEY!"