Trailer
Plot summary
The Bounty sails from Portsmouth in December 1787 on a voyage to Tahiti, where the crew is to collect breadfruit plants that will be transplanted in the West Indies. Captain William Bligh commands the ship, and he answers any infraction or defiance with harsh punishment. Fletcher Christian, the ship's executive officer, objects to the way the captain treats the men, while Roger Byam, an idealistic midshipman from a naval family, is torn between his loyalty to Bligh and his friendship with Christian. The enmity between the two officers deepens when Christian openly defies him. At Tahiti, Byam settles ashore with the chief Hitihiti and his daughter Tehani, and Christian, forbidden to leave the ship, disobeys to spend a day with Maimiti.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- During pre-production Laughton discovered that Bligh's tailoring establishment still possessed one of Bligh's original transaction records, containing the price as well as the measurements and type of material of his uniforms. At Laughton's request, the tailor used those records to reproduce the uniforms.
- Mutiny on the Bounty is the only film to have had three Best Actor nominations, and as a result of this the Oscars created a Best Supporting Actor category, beginning with the following year's awards ceremony.
- James Cagney, on hiatus from Warner Bros. during a contract dispute, was sailing his boat near where the film was shooting off Catalina Island. Director Frank Lloyd was an old friend, so Cagney asked for a small part, joking “I need the money”; Lloyd dressed him as a crewman for a few scenes.
- Second unit camera operator Glenn Strong was killed during the production after a barge the crew was using capsized off San Miguel Island.
- Director Frank Lloyd purchased the rights to the novel and offered to sell the project to MGM chief Irving Thalberg, on condition that he be allowed to direct and star, and that the film be shot on location in Tahiti. Thalberg agreed to let Lloyd direct, but rejected his other demands.
- Charles Laughton had a severe self-image complex about his weight and his looks, and suffered horribly comparing himself with the handsome, masculine Clark Gable. Laughton would constantly watch his own walk, gestures and face, making sure not to let the complex be projected.
- Clark Gable was initially opposed to playing Christian in Mutiny on the Bounty, since taking the part meant shaving off his trademark mustache.
- The film was originally conceived as a starring vehicle for Wallace Beery as Bligh and Robert Montgomery as Byam, but both were replaced before production began.
