Mutiny on the Bounty

For me, this was never going to be better than the Laughton/Gable version from 1935, but despite the rather hammily over-cooked effort from Marlon Brando, it does make for a decent enough version of the story of HMS "Bounty". It's a small ship with a big task. Sail round the world to Tahiti and procure some breadfruit trees then take them to the Caribbean for use a fodder for the slaves. Right from the outset, we realise that Captain Bligh (Trevor Howard) is not a man to mess with. He is a brutal authoritarian who punishes the slightest of misdemeanours from his crew mercilessly. As the voyage proceeds, fresh water runs short and the food starts to move about the plate by itself, the men turn to Lt. Christian (Brando) for some sort of relief. The two officers are pretty much at odds from the start with the flamboyant subordinate quite a contrast to the ship's more hardened master. It's their arrival on the island that finally causes the men to reach breaking point and for Christian to execute the unthinkable in maritime law. The story is history, so we now what happens as Howard turns in a remarkably convincing effort - his deep and gravelly voice helps too - as the commander who would rather water the trees than his men. Richard Harris, Hugh Griffith and a face of recognisable Britons pad out the crew effectively and the aesthetics of the production, especially at sea, are powerfully illustrative of the dangers to the sailors of the sea and their taskmaster. It does fall away a little towards the Pitcairn aspects of the story, and I just didn't love Brando's accent/overly theatrical effort - but is still well worth a watch.

The most captivating and compelling version of The Bounty story

The three versions of The Bounty story are 1. The 1935 black & white version with Clark Gable; 2. This 1962 Marlon Brando version; and 3. The 1984 one with Mel Gibson, simply titled "The Bounty."

The mutiny story is TRUE (SPOILER): William Bligh was sent on a mission in 1787 to pick up breadfruit plants from Tahiti and bring them back to England. He intended to circumnavigate the globe, but unfortunately failed to make it around Cape Horn, South America, and had to take the long way around Africa. It thus took them 10 months to reach Tahiti, where they were forced to stay another five months due to the breadfruit's "dormant" period. The natives were friendly and the women beautiful. With the exception of Bligh, the crew fell under the spell of the Polynesian paradise. But after five months they needed to complete their mission and return to England. Three and a half weeks later Fletcher took over the ship with 18 other mutineers. Christian set Bligh and 18 loyalists adrift in the ship's launch. He then returned to Tahiti where he dropped off 16 men, but picked up 6 Tahitian men and 11 women. Christian then set forth with 8 other mutineers and the Tahitians to elude the Royal Navy, ultimately settling on Pitcairn Island, which was well off the beaten path and misplaced on Royal charts, a fine hiding place (END SPOILER).

Mel Gibson's version is the most accurate, but Brando's is the most epic, as well as the most compelling despite its 3-hour length. The 1935 black & white version is disappointing. It's a fine film for its day, but it'll likely seem dated and fabricated to modern viewers.

Nitpickers grumble about historical inaccuracies, but the entire gist of the story is accurate: Fletcher was born to an aristocratic family who were losing their wealth (why do you think he takes the mission?); two cheeses did come up missing and Bligh was the culprit who unjustl...