MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY

In 1936, the Oscar for Best Picture was awarded to Mutiny on the Bounty. Though the tale is a real one, the movie is an adaptation that takes several liberties. In 1787, the English Naval ship HMS Bounty set sail for Tahiti on a mission that would have the crew at sea for over two years. The mission was led by Lieutenant William Bligh, an extremely cruel and sadistic man who doled out punishments and abuse in order to break the spirit and will of his crew. In 1789, as the ship was leaving Tahiti for its return voyage, many of the crew members seized control of the Bounty. This mutiny was led by Fletcher Christian who set Bligh, and many crew members still loyal to him, adrift in a launch ship.

Charles Laughton portrays Bligh to a pouty perfection. Bligh is not a coward with power, he’s an intelligent and skilled officer who takes advantage of everyone and everything for his own benefit. Ordering the whipping of a man who is already dead, denying proper rations to his crew, and stealing supplies then blaming the thefts on crewmen are just a small portion of his sociopathic cruelty. Clark Gable as Christian gives a solid performance, first as Bligh’s number two and eventually as his adversary.

The movie does a great job of setting the period and building the tension that occurs as soon as the ship’s voyage begins. One can’t help but wait in anticipation for Bligh to get his comeuppance. However, once the actual mutiny occurs, it happens so quickly that it is almost anti-climactic. The second half of the film deals with the ramifications of the mutiny for both Bligh and his loyalists and for Christian and his followers. A final confrontation between the two protagonists never happens and their stories are left somewhat unresolved. The second half of the film simply sails to its eventual finale.

The grandeur of the Bounty and the majesty of the open oceans were captured extremely well by director Frank Lloyd. In some scenes, the scale of the waves doesn’t quite match the scale of the people or ships but given that the effects were created eighty-some years ago, this can be easily overlooked. Overall, I enjoyed the film, but it’s not one that I would gush with loads of praise. But to be sure, I won’t be forgetting Laughton’s portrayal anytime soon!