Mutiny on the Bounty

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

Good Old Fashioned Adventure Movie, 2009-01-05
I hate adventure movies and got this when I only had four minutes to pick something off the shelves of the public library. I watched two of them before I got down to this--not really expecting to see it through. br /So, imagine my surprise when I, not only sat through the whole thing, but actually enjoyed it. It's a great story---who cares if it's not historically accurate--we can Google for that. It moves along quickly. We see the horrible stuff but somehow it gives us enough happy scenes so you don't just want to turn the film off. The stay in Tahiti is a rest, not just for the sailors but for the viewers. br / br /It is a terrific story and it does help to know that it actually happened, more or less. What really brings it home is the acting. As everyone here has said, Charles Laughton, as Captain Bligh is a most despicable hero--not just hideously cruel but there's something about his pudgy body and puffy, pouty mouth that really gives you the creeps. br /His perfect counterpart, the gorgeous, hunky, dimpled Clark Gable is endearing from the opening scene in which we see he is a man's man, but has a heart. Oh, those dimples! br / br /He truly deserves the heart of the beautiful native girl who falls in love with him. The plot twists a bit, holding your interest, as Gable as Christian, the hero, has to make some heavy decisions. Even though the film is a bit long by our standards, it held my interest to the end. br / br /Then, there is an incredible short added to the DVD which was made in the style of the newsreel features of the time. It shows what happened to the group that Christian led to Pitcairn Island. We always wonder what happened to folks after the end of the film, and this fills us in. What is really strange is the tone of this feature which emphasizes the terrible crime of the mutineers, and the unhappy moody character of Christian. It's a total flip from the tone of the movie but it is interesting to see actually footage of the inbred people who populated the island at the time of the film. One wonders where they got the starchy nice clothes that they wear to the three church services that are held every Sunday and why they choose to remain there...that would be a good subject for another film.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

A classic with a 2-star presentation, 2008-09-10
The story of mutiny on HMS Bounty has been told and retold many times. It may be classified as an allegory for what power and corruption can generate (think American Revolution). When people are pushed too far, either in reality or in their own mind, the result is backlash, such as occurred on HMS Bounty. There have been many theatrical versions of MOTB from the first in 1916 to the last Gibson-Hopkins version in 1984. The most notable were the 1962 Marlon Brando and the 1935 Clark Gable versions. Of all, the most memorabe one was the 1935 run. The acting was top-notch and showed a compassionate Fletcher Christian torn between duty and human responsibility culminating in the mutiny in the 1780s. On the flip side was the superb rendition of Captain William Bligh by the indomitable Charles Laughton, one of the greatest actors ever to grace stage and screen. Like a politician, Laughton displays a man who is doing everything to insure his future comfort at whatever expense to his conscience or to others. He is totally self-centered with little regard for his men and possesses a somewhat sadistic flair. The entire film is enjoyable from beginning to end and draws the viewer in with it. Now for the 2-star presentation! It appears that this was a straight transfer from a previously produced VHS Print. One wishes that Criterion could have gotten into the act since they do not usually put out a product unless it has been pain-stakingly restored with images that are clear and sharp as the original film was (Hint to major studios releasing their films). Overall, however, the rating remains 10 on a one-ten scale for one of the finest motion picturs ever produced.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

Clark Gable?, 2008-02-15
If this is the 1962 version of "Mutiny" it must be the Marlon Brando version and not the 1935 original that the synopsis suggests. This was filmed when Brando began to enjoy the fruits of his acting labors. In an era of tight white naval dress pants, he reportedly went through over 20 pairs due to tears from weight fluctuation. He began honing the behavior that characterized his later persona (difficult and odd) while on set and fathering the first of his children off it. In love with the location, he later bought an nearby island and married his co-star. All this attempt at contentment didn't help his performance or MGM for which he spent needless millions through countless retakes and bizarre demands.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

I'd hate being in THIS Navy, 2008-01-12
What more can I say about this classic film? It is simply one of the best sea epics and even more so because it's relatively factual about a brutal sea captain of the British Navy. The acting, direction, art direction are all excellent. While mutiny is usually not a good thing, the true story guides the viewer to understand why Mr. Christian felt that he had no choice. And for this choice, he and his crew were punished, not by the courts, but by themselves in a self imposed marooning in a desolate island. The film makes us feel the agony of land lovers being pressed into service on a naval ship and abused by a cruel and dishonest captain, until good men reached their breaking point.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Ageless Filmaking / DVD Could Be Better, 2007-12-29
The main event here may be an acting titan taking on a screen great's immortal charms, but the whole production holds up as a terrific work of filmaking. Great production values and editing. There are visceral thrills you get from few other films of the time. Also, the movie's portrait of the Tahitians is surprisingly naturalistic and serious. And I love the fact that Gable doesn't bother for a second to affect an English accent. br /The quality of the picture on the DVD is all over the place -- it would be nice to have a restored version of the movie and some extras on its making or the subject's historical background. (Think of how Warners might have mounted the release of this classic on DVD.)