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Billy Budd

  • 19621962
  • ApprovedApproved
  • 2h 3m
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
4.6K
YOUR RATING
Billy Budd (1962)
Trailer for this film based on the novel by Herman Melville
Play trailer3:01
1 Video
24 Photos
AdventureDramaWar
When a good-hearted sailor accidentally kills the master-at-arms, his superiors have to decide whether to hang him or set him free.When a good-hearted sailor accidentally kills the master-at-arms, his superiors have to decide whether to hang him or set him free.When a good-hearted sailor accidentally kills the master-at-arms, his superiors have to decide whether to hang him or set him free.
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
4.6K
YOUR RATING
    • Peter Ustinov
  • Writers
    • Louis O. Coxe(based upon the play: "Billy Budd")
    • Robert H. Chapman(based upon the play: "Billy Budd")
    • Herman Melville(from the novel: "Billy Budd Foretopman")
  • Stars
    • Robert Ryan
    • Peter Ustinov
    • Melvyn Douglas
    • Peter Ustinov
  • Writers
    • Louis O. Coxe(based upon the play: "Billy Budd")
    • Robert H. Chapman(based upon the play: "Billy Budd")
    • Herman Melville(from the novel: "Billy Budd Foretopman")
  • Stars
    • Robert Ryan
    • Peter Ustinov
    • Melvyn Douglas
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 66User reviews
    • 18Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 1 Oscar

    Videos1

    Billy Budd
    Trailer 3:01
    Watch Billy Budd

    Photos24

    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    Peter Ustinov in "Billy Budd"
    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" Peter Ustinov 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    "Billy Budd" 1962 Allied Artists Pictures Corporation © 1978 Sanford Roth / AMPAS
    Billy Budd (1962)
    Billy Budd (1962)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Robert Ryan
    Robert Ryan
    • John Claggart - Master of Arms
    Peter Ustinov
    Peter Ustinov
    • Edwin Fairfax Vere - Post Captain Royal Navy
    Melvyn Douglas
    Melvyn Douglas
    • The Dansker - Sailmaker
    Paul Rogers
    Paul Rogers
    • Philip Seymour - First Lieutenant
    John Neville
    John Neville
    • Julian Radcliffe - Second Lieutenant
    David McCallum
    David McCallum
    • Steven Wyatt - Gunnery Officer
    Ronald Lewis
    Ronald Lewis
    • Enoch Jenkins - Maintopman
    Lee Montague
    Lee Montague
    • Squeak - Assistant to Mr. Claggart
    Thomas Heathcote
    Thomas Heathcote
    • Alan Payne - Maintopman
    Ray McAnally
    Ray McAnally
    • William O'Daniel - Maintopman
    • (as Ray McAnnally)
    Robert Brown
    Robert Brown
    • Arnold Talbot - Maintopman
    John Meillon
    John Meillon
    • Neil Kincaid - Maintopman
    Cyril Luckham
    Cyril Luckham
    • Alfred Hallam - Captain of Marines
    Niall MacGinnis
    Niall MacGinnis
    • Nathaniel Graveling - Ship's Master, Rights of Man
    • (as Niall McGinnis)
    Victor Brooks
    • Amos Leonard - First Mate, Rights of Man
    Barry Keegan
    Barry Keegan
    • Charles Mathews - Merchant Seaman, Rights of Man
    Terence Stamp
    Terence Stamp
    • Billy Budd - Merchant Seaman, Rights of Man
    John Hewer
    • Dubbing
      • Peter Ustinov
    • Writers
      • Louis O. Coxe(based upon the play: "Billy Budd")
      • Robert H. Chapman(based upon the play: "Billy Budd")
      • Herman Melville(from the novel: "Billy Budd Foretopman")
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Herman Melville had been writing poetry for thirty years when he returned to fiction with "Billy Budd" in late 1888. Still unfinished when he died in 1891, it was forgotten. Melville's biographer accidentally stumbled upon it when going through a trunk of Melville's papers in his granddaughter's New Jersey house in 1919. Melville's widow worked to help complete it, and it was finally published in 1924. Over the years, other unsatisfactory versions were published, but it wasn't until Melville's original notes were found that the definitive version was ultimately published in 1962. Coincidentally, Sir Peter Ustinov's movie version was released the same year.
    • Goofs
      When Budd is removed by a sentry after his trial in the captain's quarters a sheathed knife is clearly visible on his hip. Since he is being tried and held for murder it would be absurd to allow him to keep a deadly weapon on his person.
    • Quotes

      Billy Budd: There are many ways to lie, Mr. Claggert, but there is only one way to tell the truth.

    • Crazy credits
      As the cast is listed onscreen, the actors are heard stating their characters' names and ranks.
    • Alternate versions
      West German theatrical version was cut by approx. five minutes.
    • Connections
      Featured in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)

    User reviews66

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    Just as good as the novel!
    I saw this when it first came out and loved it! The makers of this film (from the UK) are to be praised for addressing a subject historically so controversial that their countrymen could object it has anti-British content based on familiar stereotypes. Yet it is undeniably true. The British Empire thrived on a system of enforced labor, which included plantation slavery, pressgangs in the Navy and crimping of soldiers into the Army. The practice of stealing American sailors off of American ships and forcing them into the British service remained a vexed question between the two countries even after the revolution. Americans who had won their freedom in the revolution had to surrender it to the same tyrants on the high seas. "Billy Budd" shows the tragic injustice of being forced to serve an enemy, suffer his contempt and be punished for the natural act of defending oneself.

    Technically, the film couldn't be better. The drama is excellently drawn in well lit black and white and cuts from scene to scene in a manner that never sacrifices clarity to suspense, telling the story as well as it can be told on screen. The close ups reveal all the nuances of character implied in Melville's great novel, making very accessible the emotion of righteous indignation, which is the film's final message. Today, a production crew like the one that made "Billy Budd" could make itself very busy faithfully translating literary classics onto the screen.
    helpful•20
    8
    • mbuchwal
    • Feb 12, 2005

    FAQ4

    • What is 'Billy Budd' about?
    • Is 'Billy Budd' based on a book?
    • How does the movie end?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 12, 1962 (United States)
      • United Kingdom
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Filming locations
      • Sierra Helada, Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain
    • Production company
      • Anglo Allied
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • 2 hours 3 minutes
      • Black and White

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