Customer Reviews

The Bounty

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(27)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Deftly directed by Roger Donaldson and beautifully acted, this is a well nuanced film. Based upon a true story and adapted from the book, "Captain Bligh and Mr. Christian", by Richard Hough, the film relates the series of events that brought about the eventual mutiny of the English vessel, The Bounty, by its crew. The mutiny was led by Fletcher Christian, the Master's Mate, and friend of Lt. William Bligh, Captain of the ship. The film opens with the trial of Captain Bligh (Anthony Hopkins) before the Admiralty Board, where he is questioned by Captain Greetham (Edward Fox) and Admiral Hood (Laurence Olivier). Captain Bligh then relates his account of why it was that he lost a ship under his command.

The star-crossed voyage of "The Bounty" started innocuously enough. Captain William Bligh (Anthony Hopkins) convinced his friend, Fletcher Christian (Mel Gibson), to set sail with him as Master's Mate to Ship Master John Fryer (Daniel Day Lewis). "The Bounty" was commissioned to set sail for Tahiti in order to obtain breadfruit plants for transport to Jamaica. In order to save time, the Captain would navigate a little used route around the horn of Africa to save time. It was to be a voyage to remember.

During the voyage, the viewer sees the tension build amongst the crew, as well as amongst the officers. The innate savagery and baseness of some of the seamen is personified by Charles Churchill (Liam Neeson), a seaman who needs little provocation. The disdain of the officers for the crew is best exemplified by John Fryer, the ship's Master, who seems to relish the cruelty of the punishments meted out to those crewmen found guilty of infractions. Tension then spills over between the crew and officers, as the rigors of the voyage eats away at morale. By the time the ship reaches Tahiti, the die is cast. Months on the lovely island creates a false reality and an indolence that sets the stage for what is to come. Fletcher's erotic romance with a Tahitian princess further erodes discipline and strains the friendship between Bligh and Christian. By the time they finally shove off and set sail back to England with the breadfruit plants that they had sought, the end is near.

Mel Gibson does a superb job with the role of Fletcher Christian. The viewer first sees him as an ambitious, yet kindly young man, who, having weathered the rigors and cruelties of the voyage, finds romance and peace on the idyllic island of Tahiti. Setting sail to return home and once again encountering the rigors and reality of a sea voyage, Christian seems to be a man on the verge of a nervous breakdown. With morale low among the crew, he makes a life defining decision. The rest is history.

Anthony Hopkins is simply brilliant in the role of William Bligh. Playing him as a hard working, by the book captain, he creates a three dimensional character that is sympathetic. Betrayed by friendship and beset by the fates, Bligh manages to pull together and save those men who were cast adrift in a dinghy with him. Masterful and mindful of his professional obligations, he makes an astounding voyage, believable because of the qualities of character infused in him by Hopkins' portrayal. The viewer senses, however, that he will forever be at a loss to comprehend Christian's actions.

This is a visually beautiful film, with stunningly lush island scenes. There is an original musical score by Vangelis that is wonderfully atmospheric. The performances by the cast are superlative. What more could a film lover ask for? Bravo!

I've seen both the Brando and the Gibson versions, and I feel the latter is far, far superior--as a story that holds together, that has a focal point, and that is entirely believable.

The suspense is high on two levels--1. when will Christian and the seamen become so enraged that they will flout Hopkins' order and mutiny, and 2. what will be the final judgement on Hopkins in the trial being conducted on whether or not he was responsible for the mutiny. As the story develops, the suspense keeps intensifying and escalating.

I think Hopkins and Gibson played their parts much better than did Howard and Brando. Hopkins expressed many levels of the Bligh character, showing the inner conflict that gripped him--i.e., trying to be fair and human to the seamen and yet needing to exercise stern discipline to enable the ship to accomplish its purpose. His acting was absolutely marvelous, showing how he was being torn apart while at the same time trying to maintain his sanity. However, in the Howard version, all we see is a viciously sadistic personality--one note--without much depth or dimension. Gibson's performance was also excellent as his tension and anger gradually build to a breaking point, but even here he refrained from exerting the violence that he could have. You can't help but sympathize with him.

There are many touching moments in the story that make this a most memorable film. I was never bored or uninterested for even a moment--the suspense and drama just kept building and developing as I eagerly wondered how the story would finally end.

Well worth buying and seeing more than once.

This is a fabulous movie with a fantastic cast and story line. It is, of course, the story of HMS Bounty, and her ill-fated trip to Tahiti in the 18th Century. This version is closest to the interpretation of what happened there that most historians favor today. Bligh (Anthony Hopkins) is neither hero nor villain--merely a sea captain faced with the task of taking his ship on a two-year journey to the other side of the world--a journey that would roughly compare today with a space voyage to Mars. Bligh was picked to captain this voyage for the very good reason that he was reckoned at that time to be the best navigator in the British Navy. (Bligh had been Navigator for the great Captain Cook on that earlier voyage to the South Seas).

This is an incredible story, done twice before of course. This version is far and away my favorite. There are no stereotype heros or villains in this telling. Gibson is simply wonderful as Fletcher Christian, Hopkins as Bligh rings true. The rest of the cast is similarly excellent.

As superb as the movie was, the best part of the movie is the outstanding theme music by Vangelis. The music is beautiful, haunting, and not to be forgotten. This is an example of how the musical score to a movie can really contribute to the overall experience.

I do not understand why this film was not a bigger hit. Gibson is a better Fletcher Christian than Brando, and Hopkins is perfection as Captain Bligh. ...

This movie ranks as one of the most well-done historical movies - ever. Mel Gibson is terrific as Fletcher Christian, and Anthony Hopkins (as Captain Bligh) conducts himself precisely as I would imagine a 19th century British Navy captain going about his business. The movie also stars a young Daniel Day Lewis and Liam Neeson - before either was a really big-name star. None other than Sir Laurence Olivier portrays the admiral who sits in judgment of captain Bligh.

I saw a documentary on the HMS BOUNTY that was shown on the History channel. This movie is pretty darned accurate in its depiction of what actually happened. There was not a whole lot that was Hollywoodized in it, which is rare for an historical movie these days.

The trek of some 2,000 miles over the ocean in an open boat that Bligh & his men had to undertake remains to this day one of the most brilliant feats in maritime history. Without charts or navigation instruments, Bligh got the boat to safe harbor using nothing more than the stars for direction. Some may believe that this part of the film was fabricated - it was not. The journey really WAS that perilous.

I do have one note for parents: the PG Rating is a bit mis-leading. There are gorgeous Tahiti women who frolick around topless once they reach the island. Needless to say, I don't object to this, but parents may want to take caution. I realize the makers of the film believed it to be nudity in a NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC sort of way, but these women are gorgeous!

If you're a fan of navy history and want to find out what really happened aboard the HMS BOUNTY, this movie belongs in your DVD collection. It ranks among my favorite navy movies of all time.

Finally a film that does justice to this compelling story. One could not ask for more talent with a cast that includes Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Mel Gibson, Liam Neeson, and Daniel Day-Lewis. The characters are fleshed out in a believable way. Gone are the prissy affectations of Brando's Fletcher Christian and the cartoonish buffoonery of Charles Laughton's Captain Bligh. Anthony Hopkins makes the character of Captain Bligh much more human. He is actually a regular person, if a little misguided, who watches his crew become intoxicated by the beauties of Tahiti. Vangelis' soundtrack is marvelous, he really creates his own atmosphere that totally complements the film. This is the definitive version of this saga, don't miss it!

The 1935 black & White version of "Mutiny on the bounty" may have won an oscar for Best Picture at the time, but will likely strike modern viewers as dated and unrealistic. Marlon Brando's 1962 remake is the most epic, captivating and compelling version even though it failed at the box office when first released; indeed the '62 version is a masterpiece (see my Amazon review). But Mel Gibson's 1984 version, simply called
"The Bounty," is without doubt the most historically accurate and realistic film version of the infamous mutiny.

THE PLOT: The Bounty mutiny story is so fascinating because it's TRUE. William Bligh, as acting captain, was sent on a mission in December 1787 to bring breadfruit plants from Tahiti back to England. Bligh intended on circumnavigating the globe in fulfilling the mission. Unfortunately he and his crew failed to get around Cape Horn, South America, and had to go the long way around Africa. It thus took them 10 months to reach Tahiti, wherein they were forced to stay another 5 months due to the breadfruit's "dormant" period. The natives were friendly and the women beautiful. It comes as no surprise that the crew naturally fell under the spell of the Polynesian paradise; Fletcher Christian even married the King's daughter, Maimiti. But after 5 months they had to get on with their mission and return to Naval discipline and England. Three and a half weeks later on April 28, 1789, Fletcher took over the ship with 18 other mutineers. 22 remained loyal to Bligh and 2 others were neutral. Christian set bligh and 18 loyalists adrift in the ship's launch boat and then sailed back to Tahiti where he dropped off 16 men but picked up 6 Tahitian men and 11 native women, including Maimiti. Fletcher 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, seemingly a perfect hiding place to live out the rest of their days.

WHAT WORKS: As already stated "The Bounty" is the most historically accurate version. It also has the most realistic vibe, which isn't to say that the '62 version isn't believable, it's just that this '84 version strikes the viewer as completely REAL. It's almost as if the film takes you back in time to view the actual events.

This version also gives the most balanced and positive portrayal of the infamous Captain Bligh, played by Anthony Hopkins to great effect. Indeed the film stresses that he was exonerated in the matter. But it also hints of his character flaws that ultimately provoked the mutiny. In real life Bligh had a bad tempor and was abusive & insulting to his subordinates. The other two versions show an event that really happened on the Bounty: two big cheeses came up missing on the ship and Bligh unjustly blamed and punished members of his crew even though it was he himself that stold them!

Perhaps Bligh's biggest flaw was that he lacked the ability to inspire loyalty in others; by all accounts he was a real bastage to be around when he was in authority. Lending creedance to this is the fact that, even though he was exonerated in the Bounty case, he provoked ANOTHER mutiny years later in New South Wales, Australia!

Despite all this Bligh was certainly a brilliant seaman and navigator. The film shows this with Bligh and the 18 loyalists on the adrift launch. After failing to settle on near islands due to unfriendly natives, Bligh navigates the small craft over 3600 miles to Timor in 47 days on very few provisions. He didn't have any charts or compass. All he had was a sextant and a pocket watch. Although all of the loyalists survived this incredible journey 5 later died due to ailments sustained in the voyage. The '62 version barely addresses this miraculous event but "The Bounty" devotes quite a few scenes to it.

The score by Vangelis is very fitting. The best part of this composition is heard during the end credits. The film shows Fletcher, the mutineers and the Tahitians stranded on Pitcairn as they sadly observe
The Bounty go down in flames. They know they can never go home again. Vangelis' unique piece then plays out over the credits. It perfectly captures the mood and setting. It's so magnificent sometimes I just play the end credits sequence. It's definitely one of the most emotionally potent endings in motion picture history.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK: Although Gibson is more realistic as Fletcher Christian than Marlon Brando, especially since Gibson was closer to Christian's real age of 23-25 (Brando was 36-37 during filming), Mel simply lacks Brando's captivating charisma.

The Tahitian scenes seem to lack pizzazz; the film almost crawls to a halt (which is the the exact opposite of Brando's version). It doesn't personally bother me because the film is attempting to show us what leads to the mutineers' decision to take the ship, but some viewers may have a problem with it, in particular those with ADD.

"The Bounty" also fails to give any glimpse of what life would offer the mutineers & Tahitians on Pitcairn Island. The '62 version, on the other hand, devotes a number of scenes to this part of the story. This is not a negative to me, however, since showing subsequent scenes on Pitcairn would ruin the powerful end sequence noted above.

FINAL ANALYSIS: "The Bounty" is the most historically accurate and realistic version of the infamous mutiny even though Brando's version is the most epic, engaging and compelling. I recommend seeing both versions back to back, which is what I usually do. Both versions are amongst my favorite films of all time. In fact, I consider them masterpieces.

The film runs 2 hours and 12 minutes; Brando's version is 3 hours.

THE FATE OF THE MUTINEERS: There was ample land, water and food for the 9 mutineers, 6 Tahitian men and 11 women on Pitcairn Island. Christian naturally became the established leader and many children were born. Although Fletcher treated the native men fairly, other mutineers treated them like servants and relations deteriorated. When John Williams' native wife died he took one of the Tahitian men's women as a "replacement," which naturally caused the Polynesian men to revolt. This conflict took place 3.5 years after they arrived on Pitcairn. The result was that five of the mutineers died, including Christian, and all six of the Tahitian men. Of the four remaining mutineers, one died in a drunken fall and Quintal was killed by the other two after a drunken fit of rage. The remaining two mutineers had a bible from the ship and became devout Christians, converting the Tahitian women and children and holding regular church services. Peace and goodwill reigned in the colony. Ned Young died in 1800 of asthma leaving John Adams (aka Alex Smith), 9 women and 23 children to be discovered by an American whaling vessel in 1808. Adams was interestingly granted amnesty by the British government. Today Pitcairn is home to about 50 people from 9 families, most descendants of the mutineers and Tahitians. Many adherents of Seventh-Day Adventism due to a mission in the 1890s.

It's not every day that you see a film with an all British cast. Since the 1981 Ocasr winning film Chariots Of Fire, the audience in the United States did not see a remarkable film from the United Kingdom Of Great Britian for some time. When The Bounty hit the big screen in 1984, the long wait had ended. And this film would go down in history as the best and most accurate adaptation of the historical mutiny.

Filmed on location in New Zealand, Polynesia, London, and at Pinewood Studios in England, Roger Donaldson definately put the material he had been given to very good use. Robert Bolt, who wrote the screenplay also did his research well. With such leading actors as Mel Gibson, Sir Anthony Hopkins, the late Sir Lawrence Olivier, Daniel Day Lewis, Liam Neeson, and countless others...this film was a box office winner. The cinema-photography was very sharp and beautiful, and the native women in the film, just as beautiful, native, scintillating, and sexy. Even the nudity of the women was in good taste.

Hopkins delivers an Oscar winning perfomance as Captain William Bligh, as does Mel Gibson in his role as First mate Fletcher Christian. Both actors from Wales and Austrailia portray the characters as human beings with very human faults. There is no villian or hero in this version. It boils down to faults on both sides. Both Bligh and Christian. Liam Neeson gives an excellent portrayal of Charles Churchill, a very scrappy seaman with an explosive force of nature. And Daniel Day Lewis gives a very hateful and sneaky performance as the ill fated John Friar. A character who gets the fate that he deserves in the end.

From an historical point of view, the film was right on the mark. That also includes the sets, costume designs, and other factual parts of the film. Most of all Vangelis's musical score for the film is just as beautiful as his score was for Chariots Of Fire and Blade Runner.

If you enjoy history, fine acting from the ebst in the United Kingdom, and other certain aspects, I would recommend this version of the mutiny on the bounty. It is beautiful, haunting, explosive, and powerful on all levels of cinema.

Everybody knows already the story of The Bounty and how it ends. The battle of wills between Captain Bligh (excellent Anthony Hopkins) and Fletcher Christian (equally excellent Mel Gibson). What prompted me to write a review is another review, one from Mr. Stefan Schott from Germany (December 29, 2000), who gave the DVD one star! He said that the dialogues were so distorted that it is impossible to watch the movie and that image quality is below average.

First, maybe the quality of the copy in Europe (Region 2) is different from the one that sells for Region 1.

I bought the DVD yesterday and watched it last night. This is a prime example of low price/high quality DVD. The widescreen is a perfect media to set off the visual quality of that movie. The sunsets are marvelous, the close-ups are stunning and the scenes filmed at the water's edge leave us breathless. As for the audio quality, I did not find any flaws. The sound is perfectly clear and the dialogues are all audible.

Obviously, Mr. Schott had a much different experience than I did with the DVD version of "The Bounty". I just wanted to bring that to the attention of potential American buyers so that they will not be put off by Mr. Schott's review.

The only let down of this DVD is that there are no extras. At that price though, the fact that the movie itself on DVD is exceptional is worth the price.

There are actually four movie versions of the Bounty mutiny. The 1935 Gable/Laughton version, the 1962 Brando/Howard version, the 1982 Gibson/Hopkins version, and an obscure silent Australian version from the 1920's. This one is the best, although in my opinion they went too far to repair the slander done to William Bligh by the other versions. True he wasn't the vilain the other movies portrayed him to be, but he was the object of TWO mutinies afterall. (A second mutiny when he was Governor of New South Wales. So he couldn't have been the PERFECT leader.) Nevertheless, I think they did get the story right this time. Accurately showing Blighs courage and ability as a sailor, as well as his decency and strength of character. The settings and locations are wonderful, as is the ship that they built for the movie (its actually steel with wooden planks bolted to the outside.) Lewis and Neeson are excellent in their supporting roles, and Gibson and Hopkins are great in the lead roles. (Lawrence Olivier and Edward Fox are guest stars too!) The only downside to this movie is the cheezy VANGELIS soundtrack, done on a synthesizer! Its alright for a sci-fi movie like Bladerunner, but in a tropical paradise, in 1797, it just doesn't fit somehow. Sadly, they portrayed John Fryer as a bit of a fool, which I don't think he was. In reality he was an older and more experienced sailor than Bligh. I guess they'll have to make yet another version to repair Fryers reputation! I can't wait.

The movie is excellent, but that is all you get on the DVD. The only extra is a grainy theatrical trailer. There is an abundance of supplemental material that could have been included. I've seen several documentaries about the Bounty mutiny and Pitcairn Island that would have made great extras for the DVD. In particular is a New Zealand made documentary, "A Fated Ship," that shows the construction of the replica Bounty that was used in this movie. It is a fascinating story. The replica was built for a set of two movies that were to be directed by David Lean ("Bridge on the River Kwai" and "Lawrence of Arabia") and produced by Dino de Laurentis. Lean dropped out of the project and De Laurentis was stuck with a full-sized, completely accurate replica of the Bounty. This documentary is far superior to the short, publicity fluff pieces that pass for "documentaries" on too many DVDs. But nothing like that is provided.

There is so much history associated with story of the Bounty that the potential for special features is vast. I would really like something like "A Fated Ship" or the Australian documentary about HMS Pandora, the frigate sent to retrieve the mutineers. But even a commentary track or a "behind-the-scenes" featurette would have been better than nothing.

It seems doubtful, but perhaps "The Bounty" will get a decent DVD release someday with a suitable suite of extras.