Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Frank Lloyd

Writers:

Talbot Jennings (screenplay) &
Jules Furthman (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

1936 (Germany)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | History

Tagline:

A Thousand Hours of Hell For One Moment of Love!

Plot:

Fletcher Christian successfully leads a revolt against the ruthless Captain Bligh on the HMS Bounty. However, Bligh returns one year later, hell bent on avenging his captors.

Plot Keywords:

Tahiti | Bounty | Mutiny | Voyage | Tyrant

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Charles Laughton	...	Bligh
Clark Gable	...	Christian
Franchot Tone	...	Byam
Herbert Mundin	...	Smith
Eddie Quillan	...	Ellison
Dudley Digges	...	Bacchus
Donald Crisp	...	Burkitt
Henry Stephenson	...	Sir Joseph Banks
Francis Lister	...	Captain Nelson
Spring Byington	...	Mrs. Byam
Movita	...	Tehani
Mamo Clark	...	Maimiti (as Mamo)
Byron Russell	...	Quintal
Percy Waram	...	Coleman
David Torrence	...	Lord Hood

Runtime:

132 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Polynesian

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Canada:PG (video rating) | South Korea:12 (2003) | New Zealand:G | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | Argentina:13 | Australia:G | Germany:12 | USA:Approved (PCA #1531) | UK:PG (video rating) (2002) | Netherlands:12 | UK:A (original rating)

Filming Locations:

French Polynesia

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Irving Thalberg cast Clark Gable and Charles Laughton together in the hope that they would hate each other, making their on screen sparring more lifelike. He knew that Gable, a notorious homophobe, would not care for Laughton's overt homosexuality and would feel inferior to the RADA-trained Shakesperaean actor. Relations between the two stars broke down completely after Laughton brought his muscular boyfriend to the island as his personal masseur. They were an obviously devoted couple and would go everywhere together, while Gable would turn away in disgust. In addition, Laughton felt that he should have won the Best Actor Oscar for The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934). In the event, he was not even nominated and the award went to Gable for It Happened One Night (1934).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Dr. Bacchus is telling to Christian how he lost his leg, the Bounty rolls, knocking him down, but the brandy bottle clearly remains on the table. Next shot the bottle has disappeared.

Quotes:

Lt. Fletcher Christian: He doesn't punish men for discipline. He likes to see men crawl.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis: Zelda, Get Off My Back (#2.17)" (1961)

Soundtrack:

Rock-a-Bye Baby

A Movie Worth Seeing!

Few stories have stirred the imagination as much as the infamous mutiny aboard the HMS Bounty, in 1789, and this movie captures the spirit of that historic event very well.

Clark Gable stars without his trademark mustache (and British accent) as Fletcher Christian, the officer in charge of the mutiny. Fortunately, his performance as Christian was strong enough so that the average viewer would overlook that particular flaw (unlike Kevin Costner's turn as Robin Hood in 1991's "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves").

Franchot Tone's portrayal of Midshipman Roger Byam was sympathetic, as he appeared to be more of a witness to the events than a participant. Byam's plea for reforms in the British Navy at the end of his court martial put a cap on a memorable performance. It should be noted that one of the factors in creating the Best Supporting Actor/Actress categories at the Oscars undoubtedly came about as a direct result of this movie, with three men nominated for Best Actor. If Best Supporting Actor had existed, Tone would have been up for (and likely received) Best Supporting Actor.

And then there's Charles Laughton. As Captain Bligh, Laughton made the most of his scenery-chewing role. Fortunately for him, the open-boat sequence added depth to his character, avoiding the cliché of Bligh being a cruel and inhuman sea captain. Unfortunately for him, his likeness graced cartoons and magazines for decades as a depiction of controlling and maniacal leaders.

While watching this movie, I began to notice a few plot points that Herman Wouk must have used for his novel "The Caine Mutiny". For example, Byam sees a tall ship and asks if it's the Bounty, but the Bounty is a smaller ship behind it; likewise, Ensign Keith spots a proud new vessel and asks if it's the Caine, but the Caine sits beyond, a small minesweeper full of rust. Captain Bligh obsesses over two wheels of missing cheese; Captain Queeg turns his ship upside-down over a few pounds of strawberries. And both Bligh and Queeg believe the whole crew of their respective ships are against them, even going so far as to conjecture a conspiracy theory based upon half-heard (and innocent) conversations. By the way, I am not trying to discredit "The Caine Mutiny" in any way; both the novel and the 1954 movie (starring Humphrey Bogart) are classics in their own right, and I recommend both reading the book and seeing the movie.

"Mutiny On the Bounty" is a well-made movie, with one of the best musical scores I have heard. When I heard the violins sweeping into the theme music at the opening titles, I knew right away I was in for a good time. Strong performances, great camera work, a well-written script, and an astounding musical score. All in all, this is a movie worth seeing!