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Mutiny On The Bounty [1962]


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Lumpy and long, but the dramatic centrepiece is fabulous
Review date: 2008-03-01 Rating: 10 out of 10

Whether or not it is another slight exaggeration of real events, as often happens, this film tells its story with real passion, and lingers in the memory. Some of the off board scenes when we get to Tahiti are quite turgid, and really do make the viewer feel like they're on the same long journey, which is a shame, as the long passage at sea, brilliantly filmed and magnificently acted, is really what it's all about. I suppose something had to give in this movie, just to be able to get the whole story in, but that's film making for you. All the best stuff takes place on the ship, and the director uses absolutely everything to crank up the dramatic tension which bubbles along beautifully from a little to the exploding point. The harsh methods of Captain Bligh are well supplemented by the stormy weather conditions, the rumbling unrest of the crew, and the casual insolence of Chief Petty Officer Christian. Brando was a surprising, but unquestionably brilliant piece of casting, which really gave this movie the big dramatic kick it has in the middle.

That exploding point, when the mutiny ignites, and the long build up to it are what makes this movie really worth watching. It is a pity the rest of the film seems like a dull anti-climax after this, but in a way it is a tribute to the magnificently catty and very real looking enmity between Bligh and Christian. These are both world class performances by the actors and they absolutely make the movie, despite it tailing off when the two of them are no longer together. With a bit of reworking, this version of the story would have been an untouchable masterpiece, so good is the pairing of Howard and Brando, and so great the drama they create. But as it is it's well worth a watch now and again.

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Reviews


Mr Christian Meets The MGM Lion
Review date: 2007-10-06 Rating: 6 out of 10

From the golden age when films had overtures and intermissions and souvenir programs comes Mutiny On The Bounty, a movie with both the virtues and the vices of the three hour epic. Obviously thrilled with the success of Ben-Hur, that grand old studio MGM decided to remake another of their classics. But, by all accounts, it was a production plagued by almost as much turmoil and difficulty as Fox's Cleopatra from the same era. And, like that film, the running time kept getting reduced. So the surviving film is a somewhat reduced vision but, even so, it's hard to understand why it's taken so long to appear on DVD in a restored version. The previously unseen prologue and epilogue on Pitcairn Island appear as an extra rather than being incorporated back into the film. As in the cinema all those years ago, the movie we see is sometimes spectacular, other times merely bizarre.

And bizarre is a fairly obvious word to describe the casting of Marlon Brando as Fletcher Christian (a role attempted with varying success in other films by actors such as Clark Gable, Errol Flynn and Mel Gibson). Brando's portrayal of the chief mutineer is no more consistent than his wandering accent. Yet he is such an extraordinary actor that he is always watchable. The other key role - that of the infamous Captain Bligh - is enacted with proper stiff upper lip bulldog determination by a seemingly uncomfortable Trevor Howard, doing his best to avoid impersonating Charles Laughton. The other star name in the cast is Richard Harris as an angry young man of a seaman with a permanently dismayed expression as though he had just walked into the mainmast. Once or twice, Brando and Harris try to out-method act each other, but there is not a lot of obvious enthusiasm in the central roles. That is left to a rollicking gang of colourful and dependable character actors who play the crew - Percy Herbert, Gordon Jackson, Noel Purcell, Duncan Lamont, etc. The less said about Brando's love interest Tarita the better.

Once you get used to the eccentric performances and get away from the pathetic process shots of Portsmouth harbour, the film is quite a rousing adventure. Bligh's trademark discipline and lashings begin almost immediately so that the violent storms of attempting to round Cape Horn seem a relief. Once the ship arrives in Tahiti, everything changes. The photography is never less than beautiful and the music (by Bronislau Kaper) is a classic example of an epic score. Like the sailors, the audience would probably prefer to remain on the island. Once back at sea, it's evil Bligh versus goodly crew again. The famous mutiny itself seems curiously low-key and the subsequent events a bit rushed. Except for Brando's death scene which goes on and on (a trend of the time - see Charlton Heston in El Cid). But when it's all over, it seems a voyage worth taking.

That's not to say the film does not have its problems. The long shooting schedule and other difficulties sometimes result in a disjointed and uneven feel. For instance, that excellent actor Hugh Griffith plays one of the main seamen. Very prominent early in the film, he is nowhere to be seen during the mutiny. Shortly afterwards, Brando makes him an officer and Griffith has a nice little speech. Then he completely disappears for the remainder of the film.

In many ways, the real star of the film is the Bounty itself. Unusually, the ship was completely built from the keel up especially for the film and later taken on its own publicity tour (both the construction and the tour feature in the DVD's extras). I can still recall clambering all over the ship when it visited my hometown of Baltimore, Maryland. If only the film were as solid and impressive throughout as the ship was.

Good Movie But Historically Incorrect
Review date: 2007-10-04 Rating: 10 out of 10

This is a good version of the Nordoff & Hall book.
However, Nordoff & Hall, who were a couple of American "Lafayette" pilots in the French Airforce, bummed around the Pacific after WW1 and picked up the story of the Bounty from the Pitcairn Island decendants of the mutineers (very biased, of course!)
So, let's put the story right.
Bligh was NOT a Tyrant. By the standards of late 18th Century Captains in the RN, he was a kind and tolerant man who took enormous care to keep his crew well fed, healthy and contented.
He also was a brilliant seaman, and was Cook's navigator on several of his voyages.
Fletcher Christian was a rich never do well, and the general assumption was that Bligh and Christian had shared a homosexual relationship on several previous voyages as well as the outward voyage of the Bounty.
When the Bounty arrived in Tahiti, the whole crew were seduced by the natives easy hedonistic ways, Christian especially.
When the time to take the breadfruit to the West Indies came, many of the crew became mutinous and in the end took over the ship.
Bligh and loyal crew members were cast adrift in a small boat but managed to sail 2500 kilometres to the Dutch East Indies, an almost impossible feat.
Apart from the misrepresentation of Bligh's character, it's an enjoyable movie.
Buy and enjoy

Thoroughly enjoyable and escapist adventure!
Review date: 2007-07-10 Rating: 10 out of 10

It has been a long time coming but the underrated 1962 version of 'Mutiny on the Bounty' has finally arrived on DVD. I have previously commented on amazon that this version had been unfairly savaged by the critics over the years. Criticisms has included over-length, poor acting (not forgetting Brando's accent) and an over-dramaticised death scene finale. As I had published in 1999: "After the release of the original 1935 version, many critics were quick to applaud this Frank Lloyd classic as the epitome of modern film-making. However, it can now be regarded as a slackly told adventure, although still very entertaining.

During the making of this version, leaks to the media of the problems which beset the production has not been helpful to its cause. Problems alerted included directorial conflicts (the resignation of Carol Reed for Lewis Milestone), delayed and rewritten screenplays, Marlon Brando becoming difficult onset etc.. It became quite clear that the knives of the critics were beginning to sharpen at the prospect of this remake of a universally acknowledged classic. It would also have been professional suicide for any of these original critics to think that this movie was to be anything other than a "turkey".

The main point of scathing by the critics was Brando's accent. I am Irish and I have had to endure dreadful "oirish" accents in movies throughout the years. So, when a main Hollywood star tries to make an eccentric interpretation of a real life English hero with an English accent, suddenly everybody gets particular to what part of England it is from. What Marlon Brando did was make a spirited if unsuccessful attempt at creating a different and more realistic Fletcher Christian.

The production was fine. The other performances are excellent, especially Trevor Howard's Captain Bligh (much more realistic than Laughton's interpretation) and most importantly, this version entertains. I accept that it could have been better but I do enjoy watching this version than the other two versions. It is not perfect and I appreciate that it is overlong - but even if you hate this remake you must admit that there is no way it deserves the scathing reviews it has received throughout the years".

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Trevor Howard
Marlon Brando
Richard Harris

Creators:
Richard Harris (Primary Contributor)
Trevor Howard (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
EAN: 7321900791977
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL, Special Edition,
Release date: 2007-07-09
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 178 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1962
Language: English (Original Language)

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