Amazon.com Director Roger Donaldson (Thirteen Days) has breathed vibrant new life into the classic story of the mutiny on the Bounty. With a dream cast--Mel Gibson, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Sir Laurence Olivier, Liam Neeson, and Daniel Day-Lewis--and a script by Robert Bolt (Doctor Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia), The Bounty takes a revisionist tack through the well-charted waters of an oft-told tale. Hopkins's Captain Bligh is no raving sadist in the Charles Laughton mode. (Laughton played Bligh in the first Mutiny on the Bounty, 1935.) Instead, Sir Anthony plays Bligh as a hard-nosed imperialist explorer simply trying to get the job done in the time-honored manner: on the backs of the poor gobs under his command. Still, when Bligh's suppressed powder keg of rage finally blows, Hopkins is formidable indeed. Mel Gibson gives one of the most soulful performances of his career as mutiny leader Fletcher Christian. He's also at the height of his blue-eyed, buff good looks, and his romance with Tahitian maiden Mauatua (lovely Tevaite Vernette) is decidedly erotic. Liam Neeson is a veritable force of nature as the scrappy seaman Charles Churchill, and Daniel Day-Lewis is sublimely hateful as Master John Fryer, a pompous toady. With special effects to rival those of The Perfect Storm, the alluring eye candy of a tall-masted schooner under full sail, lush tropical greenery, and bevies of bodacious South Sea Islands babes, plus a gripping story line, The Bounty deserves a rescue from undeserved obscurity. --Laura Mirsky
Product Description Oscar winners Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson lead a stellar cast that includes Sir Laurence Olivier Daniel Day-Lewis and Liam Neeson in this action-packed adventure bursting with sensational battles raging storms and an intensity as powerful as the mighty sea itself! Bristling with commanding performances blazing dialogue and "superb action scenes" (Los Angeles Times) this "spectacular movie" (New York Magazine) is "everything a high-adventure fan could want" (Variety)!Hopkins delivers "a brilliant portrayal" (Boxoffice) as William Bligh a real-life sea captain who in 1787 steered The Bounty on a 27000-mile voyage into danger chaos and madness. After 31 days of battling severe sea squalls and Bligh's ever-increasing cruelty the weary crew is relieved to finally land on a remote island. But soon their tyrannical captain wants to sail again and the desperate men turn to first mate Fletcher Christian (Gibson) to help them take the ship by force...or die trying.System Requirements:Starring: Mel Gibson Anthony Hopkins Edward Fox Laurence Olivier Directed By: Roger Donaldson Running Time: 130 Min. Color Copyright 2003 MGM Studios.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE UPC: 027616854742
DiasppointedJuly 6, 2008 0 out of 3 found this review helpful
I liked this movie alot, up until the crew gets to the island. I was not prepared for the excessive nudity, and it was offensive. The nudity was upper body of island females. It was done to be authentic to the time and place, and perhaps the islanders really lived that way. So, if nudity doesn't bother you in this context, then you would probably enjoy this movie. If you find nudity in movies as inappropriate as my family does, then I would not purchase this movie.
Sex At Sea: Roger Donaldson's "Bounty"...February 8, 2008 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The premise of this Australian film is to purpose an historically more accurate and plausible explanation for the famed "mutiny on HMAV (His Majesty's Armed Vessel) Bounty." That proposal is that Captain (actually "Lieutenant") Bligh (Anthony Hopkins) was a working class stiff trying to be upward mobil and had basically a working class mouth -- i. e. he was too verbally abusive, not the fictional physical sadist that Charles Laughton portrayed in the 1930s classic.
Moreover like every would-be middle class sort Bligh was a sexual prig of sorts and deeply resented "Mr Christian's" (Mel Gibson) liason with the comely Tahitian chief's daughter -- indeed a hint of suppressed homosexual attraction and jealousy is present. Bligh though is a great sailor and a genuinely brave man; Christian in this film is the self-indulgent one, the upper class "gentleman" who yields to temptation and even a sexual obsession which turns out, it appears, to be rather less rewarding than the "south sea paradise" it may have suggested.
The principals are, as usual, very fine in their roles -- Hopkins is a bit "mannered" as his performances often are but Gibson is straight on, "clean" and Daniel Day Lewis shows up in a supporting role in which he manifests his "darkly" mysterious persona. Wonderful on location scenery and the familiar story is again made interesting and compelling...
The most accurate and realistic version of the infamous mutinyDecember 5, 2007 4 out of 4 found this review helpful
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.
great movieDecember 2, 2007 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Awesome movie, just a pity there wasn't time to cover the pitcairn story and also more on Bligh's boat journey to timor.
Forget This Edition!November 29, 2007 2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If u love this movie, like I do, forget this region 1 edition and go for the UK region 0 disc. The UK disc has two exclusive commentaries and lots of extras not found on the US disc. It, the UK disc, is also NTSC (the US television system) so is perfect for US customers.
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