MovieChat Forums > Hornblower: The Duchess and the Devil (1999) Discussion > what do you think? Archie.

what do you think? Archie.

posted 19 years ago by crumpeteer_penultimate
10 replies | jump to latest

Hey, just wondering what people think about Archie's sanity and state and how he got to Spane and why he didn't want to go back to the Indy, that is to say, why he would rather die (i think we all know the answer to that...)

Ok, so i'll say what i think.I'll keep it short. I think that he had mild depression (not anorexia...) I think he got sent to Spane because:
A: French prisons were overcrowded and there doesn't seem to be ANYONE in El Ferrol except Horry and Arch and the rest.
B: He gave the Frogs trouble and so was sent to Don Masserado Al Fredo AKA pasta sauce.
Next, I reckon the most obvious answer to the last question is that he thought Simpson was dead and HOratio was never really smart enough to tell him at least we don't see it, but he must have said it at some stage, or else, i don't think Archie would have gone back to the Indy...
anyway,
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Luv le petit chein. err, ignore th@

"why are you talking, Mr Wolfe, when you have...nothing to say..."

[–] LadyDewhurst 19 years ago

Finally!!! A post!!! But, my friend, it seems you and I are the only ones to stalk the HH1 boards.
So... here it is...

1. WHY?
We all know how Archie got to be in the jolly boat out in the middle of the sea. My guess is that he was picked up by the Spanish and taken to the prison.
About the lack of prisoners, I think that you're right. We don't see any shots of other prisoners. Why? Cause there were none!!!
And with him giving the French trouble I recon they would've just shot him. I was actually suprised that Archie survived at all after being found by the enemy (yeah, weren't we all?). He was of no value to them and it would have been easer to leave him in the jolly boat to die rather than using ship's rations to feed a Brit.
So to my next theroy/question/statement... why did they use up a whole cell for one person? He was of no use to anybody. Was Don Pasta Sauce on a power trip and enjoyed putting men in the obliette? As already stated there were no other aparent prisoners.
But perhaps we're analizing this too much, and we're not ment to notice these things :)

2. TO BE OR NOT TO BE
Poor Archie. Certainly it was Horatio's entry that really triggered Archie into suicide attemps. I'm guessing, infact going by the majority of answers, it was the memory of Jack Simpson. (I'm not going into details about WHY because I think we all know already and I'd only be repeating it.) I think the main reason for beleiving this is because when Archie is in the sick bed and wakes up frightened muttering 'Simpson... Simpson...' Bad dreams were aparent in this movie and The Duel. Both relating to and triggered by Simpson.

Wow... it took me nearly a whole page to state the obvious... but it was fun!

"But chopping off the heads of the nobility isn't going to fill their bellies, is it!"

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] Laced-With-Fire 18 years ago

i think they used up the cell for Archie cos if there were others there then Horatio would have wanted to rescue them too and that little boat was crowded enought as it was.
And although I'm not sure why Archie was brought back I'm glad they did anyway cos I like him.
Amd yeah it was Horatio that triggered the suicide bid, probably because he reminded Arcie of previous experiences.
And I think i've just been babbling.

[–] Crazymist 17 years ago

I'm not gonna repeat the last three posts, but I agree with you. Archie was there because he was being moved further and further from England each time he tried to escape, and he tried to kill himself rather than go back because he didn't know Simpson was dead.

[–] phenixarizona 16 years ago

I don't think Horatio 's entry pushed Archie to commit suicide.I think he was already hopeless and broken before that but horatio 's arrival made it worse, that's true .Archie was missing for a long time, 1 year ,maybe more , he tried to escape 4 times in france( i don't know the puniton for escape but maybe he was beaten or flogged) and the last one,( in spain) he was put in this hole (the oubliette) for a month with no room to stand up or lie down . think about it; 1 month in this bloody hole suffering from loneliness,hunger and thirst ( remember horatio's state after 1 or 2weeks,not more)was enough to break anyone .
Archie wanted to die to let horatio and the crewmen escape , he thought he was a "poids mort " (don't know the word ) burden ? .
also, horatio was a reminder of his time in the justinien and the indy with this bully simpson.and at first , archie didn't know simpson was dead.so the fit ,the fear he was feeling was quite nomal .

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] phenixarizona 16 years ago

he abused him.let's see ...Archie is terrified by Simpson , more than anyone else.his personnality changes when simpson come back aboard the justinien then the indy.he has fits ( clayton:"they've started again (the fits) I'd feared as much( cos Simpson is back)")
clayton to Horatio after his beating (about Simpson) "you don't know half of what he is capable of"
before the attack when kennedy goes down to get his hat , Simpson is waiting for him in the shadow "it's been a long time .Jack missed you boy."

[–] rebkad 14 years ago

Personally, I thought it was more depression that he hadn't been able to escape, he was alone and had been abused and now he had too much time to brood on Simpson's abuse. The return of HH, someone who hadn't been 'sullied' by epilepsy or abuse, all confident and sure he could escape, was probably too much. 'Poids mort' means dead weight - Archie thought he was finished, he'd get everyone killed, so thought the kindest way would be to slip quietly away and not make demands on HH. The moment HH gets incarcerated, its like he comes to and realises he needs to take charge and help out - he needs to be needed. ~~Swoon~~ dear Archie

[–] CGSailor 14 years ago

As a big Battlestar Galactica fan, I was shocked that it took me halfway through this episode to realize that Archie was played by Jamie Bamber (Lee "Apollo" Adama from BSG).

I joined the Navy to see the world, only to discover the world is 2/3 water!

[–] a-bollinger 13 years ago

Just shows what a versatile and good actor Jamie Bamber is. Very underrated, I think. Should have got his chance on the big screen long ago. Wake up, executives!! He did a great job as Archie and an equally great one as Lee "Apollo". (This poster is a big Galactica fan, too ;-)