How do the container ships

As someone who spent 21 years at sea in the Merchant Navy I would like to point out that Captains do not 'take the wheel,' that's the job of the helmsman, and he is only going to be there in manoeuvring waters, not deep sea. That's for the autopilot. (I know this, I used to fix it when it went wrong.) Bridge wing lookouts are usually given other tasks in daylight hours, the bridge officer of the watch would then be responsible for keeping a lookout via mark one eyeball and radar.

With the advent of radars that alarm on target detection then the mark one eyeball is probably used less when deep sea sailing.

A small craft is easily missed by said eyeball and radar when even a moderate sea is running, although I agree a flare should be spotted. Sadly many ships are probably guilty of poor watch keeping with regard to visual lookout, especially since the crew numbers on these ships has been cut to the bone.


Fortytwo? FortyTwo? what sort of puerile, pathetic, stupid answer is that? Everyone knows it's 43.

Those ships practically run on auto pilot; nobody really pays attention. It's not like someone is constantly at the helm. They usually run a skeleton crew as well. And did you see how huge those ships were?? Our man was hardly a significant sight comparatively.

well ... if they had notice the flares .. it would have been a different movie, would it not? ... not what they were going for.

All argumentative claptrap aside, this part of the movie was extremely realistic. If you've read _any_ real-life accounts of people in exactly Our Man's predicament (and as a sailor I have a morbid obsession with them), you know that ships and aircraft routinely blow right by shipwrecked sailors. Even when the distressed set off flares. Even when they attempt to raise them on the radio!

I've heard some discussion that ship captains may intentionally leave people to die because there's no money in not being a psychopath, but the realistic issue seems to be two-fold: 1. you're a tiny, tiny speck in a huge ocean that's had nothing in it for hours, days, weeks, or months, and 2) ships and planes run automatically now, and captains either don't post a watch, as they're supposed to, or the watch is reading a book or playing Nintendo, because... (see Point 1).

But the fact that it happens is well documented. In Survive the Savage Sea (book; true story, from the 80s I think), they get passed by about a dozen ships before a Japanese long-haul fishing vessel finally rescues them.

By the way, I've been in a similar, though not as deadly, position myself, and had my distress signals ignored by passing vessels and even one police officer (!). The vessels may not have seen me, even though it was broad day and this was inshore -- not the middle of the ocean. As for the cop, well... maybe he thought I must have done something to deserve it? I don't know. The point is, I asked for help several times but only got it after hours of trying.

I've got my questions for Our Man (why no flare _gun_, and lots and lots of flares? Why no backup radios in the life raft? Why no radar reflector? Why no life jacket? I could go on), but the part about being ignored/missed by two container ships was not only not fakey, it was unrealistic because it was _only_ two.

(By the way, I'm not one of those sailors who trashes this movie. Yeah, the hero's operation is... suspect. He doesn't have some standard gear -- some of it required by law [flare gun, EPIRB...], he doesn't take some obvious precautions. But it's a movie. About a man. In dire straits (no pun intended). It's a good movie about that, even if it's not a maritime safety PSA.)

The first ship he encountered was in daylight, it's completely unrealistic that they would ignore him.

The trope that foreign shipping crews are somehow apathetic to the codes of the sea is a plot device here. But not realistic.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and viewing experience, but it feels like there is a lot of excessive analyzing going on (epidemic across all films, but specifically with this one). I haven't actually seen this film, but it is on The List; I came here seeking feedback to see how the film has been received. I am surprised at the focus on specifics - unfavorable focus.

I don't believe that the unseen flares, missing EPIRBs, or "oversights" in proper seamanship are "lazy plot devices". They are simply smoothed over details that are unnecessary or unimportant to the story being told. Again, this is my opinion based on the feedback I have read.

This isn't a National Geographic Special, a documentary, or training film. It is an allegory, meant to show the triumph of the human spirit. The details are important only in how they relate to the DIRECTOR'S story; it is his story being told, and therefore his purpose we should explore - what is he trying to tell us, what does he want us to see, to learn, to know? Maybe it is to pack better, but I don't think so. Rather than focus on the lack of dialogue ("how can you not talk to yourself?"), study how Our Man communicates through other means. Supposedly we know nothing about Our Man, but if we watch, what can we learn, what do we know? If he is lacking proper equipment is he naive, ignorant, overconfident? The story isn't about the unseen flares and whether that is "real", it is about what happens next.

Let the film wash over you, affect you, make you think or feel. Spend less time trying to find mistakes, to out think the director. If it was a puzzle, there would be more pieces.

It is possible, however, that we're all just supposed to remember to bring the EPIRBs.

I immediately thought of the cruise ships that refuse to help various fishermen, refugees, and pirates. If they stopped for everyone they see then it would throw off their schedules.

A boat that size takes a _long_ time to stop, so I can understand them heading off into the distance but yeah, it's unbelievable that whoever was on watch didn't see two flares and radio it in, let alone drop a boat/similar.