|
Frequently Bought Together
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Product details
|
Reviews
Amazon.co.uk Review
The Bounty is the third screen version of one of the best-known stories in naval history, here with Anthony Hopkins as Lieutenant William Bligh and Mel Gibson as Fletcher Christian heading an extraordinary cast including Laurence Olivier, Edward Fox, Daniel Day-Lewis, Liam Neeson, Bernard Hill and Dexter Fletcher. HMS Bounty's voyage to Tahiti of 1787-9 and its infamous consequences are recounted with far greater historical accuracy than in the 1935 or 1962 Mutiny on the Bounty. The movie is gorgeously shot on location in Tahiti, England and New Zealand as well as on a full-size recreation of the original Bounty.
Roger Donaldson's film benefits from a literate screenplay by Robert Bolt, who here as in Lawrence of Arabia (1962), brings real insight into the English institutional mind in conflict. Hopkins is at his complex best and Gibson offers more depth than his usual two-dimensional hero persona; here Bligh and Christian emerge as complex men gripped by circumstances beyond their control. The haunting score by Vangelis contributes immensely to a very underrated film which deserves to be considered a modern classic.
On the DVD: There is an excellent 52-minute "making of" documentary that mixes historical information with on-location interviews. A 12-minute overview of previous screen versions of the story is narrated by the film's historical consultant, Stephen Walters, who also provides a somewhat stilted but nevertheless informative audio commentary. The second audio commentary is from director Roger Donaldson, Producer Bernie Williams and Production Designer John Graysmark, who genuinely appear to enjoy reminiscing and have real enthusiasm for the movie. Also included is a fascinating 28-page booklet.
This is the stuff Special Editions should always be made of, and this would be one of the finest DVDs on the market were it not for the transfer of the film itself, which appears to be a reprocessed version of the same NTSC anamorphic 2.35:1 transfer found on the bare-bones Region 1 DVD, with no sign of PAL speed-up. The picture not only shows considerable grain in some scenes, but also demonstrates marked compression artefacting and enhancement shimmer on all horizontal lines, making some scenes extremely ugly. For such a beautiful film it is a most disappointing transition to the digital format. Most unusually for a UK release, the disc is region free.--Gary S Dalkin
Product Description
Anthony Hopkins and Mel Gibson lead a stellar Oscar winning cast including Sir Laurence Olivier, Daniel Day-Lewis and Liam Neeson in this action packed adventure bursting with spectacular battles, raging storms and an intensity as powerful as the mighty sea itself! Filled with commanding performances, memorable dialogue and superb action scenes, The Bounty has everything fans of swash- buckling adventure could want.
Hopkins stars as William Bligh, a real life sea captain who, in 1787, steered HMS Bounty on a 27,000 mile voyage into danger, chaos and madness. After 31 days battling severe sea squalls and Bligh s ever increasing cruelty, the weary crew is relieved to land on the tropical island of Tahiti. But soon their tyrannical captain wants to set sail again and the desperate men turn to first mate Fletcher Christian (Gibson) to help take the ship by force.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
* AUDIO COMMENTARIES: 1) DIRECTOR ROGER DONALDSON, PRODUCER BERNIE WILLIAMS & PRODUCTION DESIGNER JOHN GRAYSMARK. 2) HISTORICAL CONSULTANT STEPHEN WALTERS.
* THE MAKING OF THE BOUNTY DOCUMENTARY.
* THE BOUNTY ON FILM GALLERY.
* THEATRICAL TRAILER.
Hopkins stars as William Bligh, a real life sea captain who, in 1787, steered HMS Bounty on a 27,000 mile voyage into danger, chaos and madness. After 31 days battling severe sea squalls and Bligh s ever increasing cruelty, the weary crew is relieved to land on the tropical island of Tahiti. But soon their tyrannical captain wants to set sail again and the desperate men turn to first mate Fletcher Christian (Gibson) to help take the ship by force.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
* AUDIO COMMENTARIES: 1) DIRECTOR ROGER DONALDSON, PRODUCER BERNIE WILLIAMS & PRODUCTION DESIGNER JOHN GRAYSMARK. 2) HISTORICAL CONSULTANT STEPHEN WALTERS.
* THE MAKING OF THE BOUNTY DOCUMENTARY.
* THE BOUNTY ON FILM GALLERY.
* THEATRICAL TRAILER.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Of all the films so far to tell the fascinating story of the ill fated voyage of HMS Bounty, this 1984 version attempts to get closest so far to the truth. That the ships catain, William Bligh was a sadistic tyrant as portrayed with gusto by Charles Laughton and Trevor Howard, was misleading, to the point of innaccuracy. Anthony Hopkins portrayed Bligh here as a man of immense personal ambition, obsessed with circum-navigating the globe, to the extent that, in his quest for perfectionism, he constantly found fault with his petty officers.
It was here that the seeds of the imfamous mutiny on the Bounty was sewn. And in particular, the relationship between once friends Bligh and masters mate Fletcher Christian breaks down entirely. The film tells the great story of the Bounty voyage, from the time of it's first vision, to collect Breadfruit plants from Tahiti and transport them to the West Indies for food to feed the slaves, the time spent on Tahiti, the mutiny, Blighs long boat voyage, right through to the founding of the first settlement on Pitcairn island of the Bounty mutineers.
Added to that this DVD has a making of documentary, a 50 minute film tracing the Bounty story, both in cinema, and the actual voyage, and interviews with Anthony Hopkins, who gives his thoughts on Bligh. Even an extensive booklet, which interestingly, relates plans for a sequel, featuring the aftermath of the story, in particular, what happened to the Bounty mutineers on Pitcairn, a story long over due, in view of the popularity of the Bounty story. But, as this film goes back to 1984 and so far no sequel, don't hold your breath!
All in all, on the surface, a great buy DVD, but for one thing only; The quality of the DVD transfer is very poor indeed, quite the worst DVD quality I have seen so far. It is out of synch, with the voices ahead of the actors mouths, and in places, grain is prevalent. For a film of such stunning beauty, this is a dissapointment, to say the very least.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
So, this is my review of the September 2011 re release of The Bounty DVD.
Make no mistake the picture quality is absolutely horrendous. The colours are washed, there is lots of noise and the print looks as if it's been up scaled to DVD from a smaller size image.
There also seems to be something wrong with the motion. I'm not even sure how to explain that one I'm afraid but it does not seem right.
I also own the region 1 version of The Bounty which has a superior print of the movie with bolder and brighter colours (closer to the original theatrical print I would imagine), noticeably less noise and a picture that does not look up scaled.
I would recommend looking for that version rather than the September 11 edition.
Make no mistake the picture quality is absolutely horrendous. The colours are washed, there is lots of noise and the print looks as if it's been up scaled to DVD from a smaller size image.
There also seems to be something wrong with the motion. I'm not even sure how to explain that one I'm afraid but it does not seem right.
I also own the region 1 version of The Bounty which has a superior print of the movie with bolder and brighter colours (closer to the original theatrical print I would imagine), noticeably less noise and a picture that does not look up scaled.
I would recommend looking for that version rather than the September 11 edition.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:VHS Tape
In what is the fourth, and in my opinion, the best remake, not only in historical aspect of "Mutiny On The Bounty"(1935), this version features an impressive cast. A large star cast can have an adverse effect on a movie, but not in "The Bounty". Anthony Hopkins really shines as Captain William Bligh, making the character much more real than in other remakes. Besides that, it must rank as one of Hopkins finest performances on screen. Mel Gibson makes the most out of Fletcher Christian, the Master's Mate, but is either insecure or a little uncomfortable in his role because it seems that with his character Fletcher, he brawls and throws a fit most of the time. Laurence Olivier as Admiral Hood is always intelligent. Very good performances by Liam Neeson and Daniel Day-Lewis as Mate Churchill and John Fryer.
Applause goes to director Roger Donaldson who very cleverly avoids the good guy-bad guy pitfall of Christian vs. Bligh which so often mars epic adventures of this kind. In Donaldson's vision, the two adversaries become much more human and at times it's hard to tell who's the villain if there's any. Very refreshing to see!
Mention must be made on the incredible lush cinematography and the aptly scored tracks by Vangelis.
One would wish that the action would have been more evenly paced throughout the movie because towards the end it loses momentum and just moseys on. Having said that, I'll recommend this movie without reservation. A must see for Hopkins fans.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great story, below par DVD
Great story pity the DVD has problems,managed to get correct screen layout eventually with much fiddling with aspect ratio but that does not make up for distinctly below par image... Read more
Published 3 months ago by LeeH
About time
Yep, after all these years they have finally released a proper Anamorphic version of this wonderful film. A bit late now Blu ray is slowly edging forward. Read more
Published 8 months ago by B. T. Aris
Good film awful transfer
This is a great film with fine performances and great bonus features. However, the digital an anamorphic transfer is unbelievably bad. Read more
Published on 27 Oct 2009 by G. M. Radcliffe
Extrememly enjoyable
This is one of the most enjoyable films I have seen in years. Tha acting is brilliant throughout; the plot is gripping; the scenery is breathtaking and the music is unintrusive and... Read more
Published on 10 April 2008 by Peter Jones
---- brilliant ----
I first learnt about the history of this famous mutiny by harmlessly reading about islands in the Pacific Ocean on lonelyplanet.com. Read more
Published on 24 Jan 2006 by J. Newton
Great film, problematic DVD releases
How could a film with Mel Gibson, Anthony Hopkins, Daniel Day Lewis and Liam Neeson sink without trace? Read more
Published on 20 July 2005 by Trevor Willsmer
Excellent version of a famous tale.
This movie manages to portray Lieutenant Bligh in a much more symathetic (and historically accurate) light. Read more
Published on 27 Jan 2005 by Ms. H. Sinton
Sail On..
Fine performances from Both Mel Gibson as Fletcher Christian and Anthony Hopkins as Captain Bligh. Well made with excellent cinematography, beautiful locations and a haunting... Read more
Published on 9 Nov 2004
A timeless classic
I may be shallow, but the sight of a tanned and gorgeous, twenty something Mel Gibson (Fletcher Christian), in white cotton open necked shirt, wide eyed and vexed, is enough to... Read more
Published on 7 Nov 2004 by "mcleary24"
SPELLBINDING STORY OF A MOMENT'S MADNESS ON THE HIGH SEAS...
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. Read more
Published on 26 Jan 2003 by Lawyeraau
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
