Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) **

In 1935 Columbia Pictures president Harry Cohn had the great distinction of awarding the first “Oscar” for Best Picture (it was actually called Outstanding Production at that time) to MGM’s nautical classic Mutiny on the Bounty. His studio had no film nominated (which is difficult to believe since 12 films were up for the award), so he was just happy to be asked to the party. Anyway, between 1927-1934 the award wasn’t known as the “Oscar”, so technically this was the first Best Picture to win the “Oscar”—one of those tricky questions for you trivia buffs out there. It also holds the honor of being the first remake (1933’s In the Wake of the Bounty) to win Best Picture. In the end, the film was nominated for 8 Academy Awards and only won one, but at least it won the biggest prize of all. Of course, they may have picked up the Best Actor award if it hadn’t been for the fact that the three male leads (Clark Gable, Charles Laughton, and Franchot Tone) were nominated against one another. I suppose Victor McLaglen was quite happy about this, because he took home the award for his performance in The Informer.

The screenplay was a monumental undertaking, as screenwriters Talbot Jennings, Carey Wilson and Jules Furthman were given the task of adapting the first two volumes of Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall’s 1932 The Bounty Trilogy to the big screen. For the amount of story they had to work with, I think it is a miracle the movie was only 132 minutes long. Perhaps this is one of the reasons they were nominated for an Oscar (they lost out to The Informer, too!). There was an actual Mutiny on the Bounty, but, like most Hollywood films based on true stories, this was not a completely accurate retelling. For example, Captain Bligh wasn’t reprimanded in this incident but, in fact, promoted to Vice Admiral for his actions.

Director Frank Lloyd also picked up a nomination (he lost to John Ford, who, you guessed it!, directed The Informer—was there a conspiracy?) for heading MGM’s $2 million over-budget film. Good thing for Lloyd that it was also the top-earner of 1935, at $4.5 million. Of course, producers Irving Thalberg and Albert Lewin couldn’t complain since they signed off on a film primarily shot on location in Tahiti and Catalina Island. Perhaps Lloyd’s greatest accomplishment on this film was getting Clark Gable to shave off his cherished mustache.

The story begins in 1787, aboard the H.M.S. Bounty, which is bound for the breadfruit capital of the world, Tahiti. Once there, the crew’s mission is to transport the cheap foodstuff to plantations in the West Indies. Charles Laughton gives one of his most memorable performances as the sadistic and abusive captain of the Bounty, Captain Bligh. Some genius at MGM thought Wallace Beery was the best actor for this role. Really? Wallace Beery better than Academy Award winner Charles Laughton? I hope someone got a promotion for averting this disaster. Anyway, before the ship can set off from Portsmouth, Captain Bligh has one bit of business to attend. A crew member must be flogged for violating a rule. The problem: he’s dead. No matter, he still must be flogged to send a message to the rest of the crew. Does the audience really need to know any more about Bligh? First Officer Fletcher Christian (Clark Gable), who is used to working with this nutcase, tries his best to heed his captain’s orders while at the same time gaining the respect of the crew. This only infuriates Bligh more, which, in turn, causes him to do things that makes Christian grow to resent him. In addition to Fletcher, Midshipman Roger Byam (Franchot Tone), who is on his first cruise with Bligh, is astounded and shocked by the captain’s behavior.

By the time the ship lands in Tahiti, Fletcher is out of favor with Bligh and is not allowed to go ashore. Instead, Byam goes ashore and falls in love with the beautiful Tehani (Mrs. Marlon Brando, Movita Castaneda). Not wanting to hog all the beautiful island women, Byam concocts a plan to allow Fletcher to go ashore. Once there, he also falls in love with Maimiti (Mamo Clark), the granddaughter of the island chief. The crew spends six months in paradise and then, once they have got all the breadfruit they can carry, they must set off for the West Indies. Having led a carefree, happy existence on the island, the men soon become reacquainted with Captain Bligh’s strict running of the ship. Some of the men can’t take it and decide to abandon ship and return to the beautiful Tahitian women. When they are captured, Bligh orders their flogging and demands that the ship’s very ill doctor, Dr. Bacchus (Dudley Digges), attend. What a clever last name for an alcoholic!!! Any way, Dr. Bacchus dies after leaving his bed to obey Bligh’s order. This causes Fletcher to break and he intervenes in the flogging and starts a mutiny. Bligh is tied to the mast and becomes the victim of countless insults from his crew. Luckily for him, Fletcher is an honorable man. When the crew decides to kill him, Fletcher saves him and sets him and some of the non-mutineers out to sea in a small rowboat. Unfortunately for Byam, who doesn’t support the mutiny, there is not enough room for him in the boat. Put out to sea, Bligh swears vengeance and promises he will live to see every last mutineer hang. A master sailor (but a total SOB), Bligh does manage to travel the high seas over 3,500 miles to reach the East Indies.

Meanwhile, the mutineers return to Tahiti, where both Fletcher and Byam marry their Tahitian beauties. And for a whole year, the crew lives in paradise. But then one unfortunate day the Pandora, commanded by one Captain Bligh, drops anchor in the Tahitian harbor. Fletcher leads the mutineers on an escape from the island with the Bounty, while Byam and five other men return to Bligh. As psycho as ever, Bligh charges them with mutiny and places them in irons. Crazy for vengeance, Bligh recklessly pursues the Bounty and wrecks his ship. Miraculously, those who survive this crash also survive another rowboat expedition and eventually make it back to England, where Byam faces court-martial and is sentenced to hang. At his hearing, Byam reveals the true nature of Captain Bligh and the cruelty of flogging as a punishment. In true Hollywood style, Byam is pardoned and allowed to return to service in the navy, while Captain Bligh’s behavior is denounced.

And what happened to Fletcher? He and his crew took the Bounty to Pitcairn Island and promptly crashed and burned it so no one could ever leave. No doubt after seeing this movie thousands of women went home and dreamt they were stranded on a deserted island with Clark Gable.

Overall, and enjoyable adventure story. The cinematography is pretty impressive, but I definitely think it would have been better shot in color. The acting is top-notch and Charles Laughton does a great job portraying one of the most vilest characters in screen history.

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Captain Blood (1935) ***

Before 1935 Errol Flynn was an Australian nobody in Hollywood. He’d made five very forgettable films (only one of which he “starred” in) and his career was in neutral. And, then Robert Donat turned down (rather vehemently) the role of Captain Blood. Although he may have been a stingy S.O.B., Jack Warner often could spot diamonds in the rough and he saw something in Flynn’s raw animal magnetism and gave Flynn the role that would launch an adventurous career.

Based on Rafael Sabatini’s novel of the same name, Captain Blood was directed by Michael Curtiz and was nominated for 5 Academy Awards. Errol Flynn plays a 17th Century Irish doctor who is found guilty of treason in England after treating a man wounded in the Monmouth Rebellion (this was a rebellion to overthrow King James II). Sentenced to slavery in the West Indies (specifically Port Royal, Jamaica), he is condemned to the sulfur mines after refusing to allow the colony’s military commander, Colonel Bishop (the strangely entertaining Lionel Atwill), to examine his teeth. Attracted by Blood’s open defiance of her uncle, the plucky Arabella Bishop (Olivia de Havilland) decides to rescue Blood from sure death and buys him for 10 pounds. Oh, what would a gorgeous woman want with a rebellious slave stud? Get your minds out of the gutter! Blood is openly resentful towards Arabella for interfering and the two often trade barbs with one another, but she’s still the boss (kind of). Both Arabella and Blood are fiery, strong-willed individuals, so it is great fun to watch their scenes together. In particular, de Havilland seems to have a mischievous gleam in her eye throughout the film. This was the first of eight film pairings for Flynn and de Havilland—one of the most successful in screen history.

In the begging of his servitude with the Bishops, Blood finds himself working on their plantation. When Arabella sees that Blood is getting the lash a bit too much for his unchecked attitude, she decides to set him up in a more cozy position. It just so happens that the governor of Port Royal has gout, and who better to treat him than Dr. Blood? Later, she rescues him again when she provides an alibi for him when he is making plans for an escape. This sets up one of the more comical scenes of the film: Blood apologizes and tries to explain why he’s been so rude to Arabella. Her response is pure delight, “I've had men tell me they had reasons for admiring me. And some few, it came, had reasons for loving me. But for a man to store up reasons for resenting me. How refreshing!" For some reason Blood thought this was an invitation to a kiss—oh, no you didn’t! Slap!

As Blood and his friends continue their escape plans, the island is attacked by Spanish pirates. This causes the necessary diversion for them to make their escape. Yet, when they get to their hidden boat they find it damaged and unseaworthy. Not letting this deter them, they decide to take over the weakly guarded Spanish boat. After subduing the Spanish crew, and thus, saving Port Royal, the escaped prisoners are told by Colonel Bishop (who somehow made his way to the ship) that the king might reduce their sentences for their bravery. They toss him overboard and become the Pirates of the Caribbean (take that Johnny Depp!), with Dr. Love becoming Captain Blood.

Later, in a stop in Tortuga, Blood meets French pirate Captain Levasseur (Basil Rathbone). This was the first of many screen partnership between Rathbone and Flynn. Drunk as a skunk, Blood forms a partnership with this most untrustworthy Frenchman. The partnership is rather fortuitous, because Levasseur soon captures an English ship carrying Arabella and an emissary of the king, Lord Willoughby (Henry Stephenson). Levasseur wants to sell them back for a ransom, but Blood decides to buy them for a handful of pearls. Both Arabella and Levasseur aren’t happy with this deal. She, because it’s a blow to her pride—Blood is the boss now. Levasseur, because he has plans for the haughty prisoner. Blood is forced to draw his sword on Levasseur, thus ending their already fragile partnership. In the first of many crossed saber scenes between Rathbone and Flynn ensues, and Levasseur is killed. This is a great swordsmanship scene that was timed to the incoming waves. Filmed at Laguna Beach, in this scene Rathbone had to fall at exactly the same moment that a wave was coming in and could cover him and then wash back out to sea to reveal his dead body. They did it in one take.

Good news, King James II is dead and William and Mary are now the rulers of England—praise be upon the Glorious Revolution of 1688! Lord Willoughby informs Blood that he will grant the entire crew a pardon if he returns them to Port Royal. When Arabella tells him she wants nothing to do with his pirate way of life, he decides to return his new purchases to Port Royal. This could be a problem, because due to his rather profitable ventures on the high seas, the governor of Port Royal has been replaced by Colonel Bishop, who has sworn vengeance on Blood. When the ship returns to Port Royal they find it under French attack. It would seem that instead of protecting the colony, the English fleet is out at sea trying to hunt down pirates. In a bit of irony, Blood and his crew overtake the French ship and save Port Royal yet again! As a reward, Lord Willoughby appoints Blood the new governor of the colony and Arabella gives in to her love for her heroic hunk.

The chemistry between Flynn and de Havilland is undeniable. I always appreciate how well de Havilland seems to play feisty but refined women. In addition, the role reversal between the two lovers is enjoyable to watch. Plus, she could always carry off just about any costume they put her in in her many period films.

Besides being a great adventurous love story, this film made good use of special effects, camerawork, and a fantastic Oscar nominated musical score. Director Curtiz carries the film at a past pace and makes good use of cinematographers Ernest Haller and Hal Mohr. Eric Wolfgang Korngold’s score is very memorable as well. Although it lost the Best Picture Oscar to Mutiny on the Bounty, Captain Blood stands alone as one of the greatest pirate films (pre CGI) ever.

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King Kong (1933) **

“’Twas Beauty killed the beast”—one of the all-time greatest final lines in film history came from this 1933 classic directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack. Considered a fantasy/adventure film, this low-budget, B-movie revolutionized the way filmmakers looked at special-effects and the use of model work. In addition, these same technical innovations, such as 18 inch miniature models, stop-action animation, and rear projection, helped break every box-office record and saved RKO from bankruptcy. Truly a visual spectacle, it’s difficult to believe this was shot in a studio.

I suspect Madame Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve rolled over in her grave when she learned that the male lead in her classic 1740 tale about a beauty and her beast would be played by none other than a giant gorilla. Se La Vie, Madame, don’t be angry with screenwriters James Ashmore Creelman and Ruth Rose for putting a new twist to an old story—it worked.

It’s 1932 and the Depression is raging—you’d think director Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) wouldn’t have any trouble finding an actress to star in his picture. The problem, it seems, is most actresses would rather starve than travel on a boat to an undisclosed location for an indeterminate amount of time. So, like any good director he hits the streets looking for his potential leading lady. He finds her (Faye Wray) trying to steal an apple and rescues her from an angry fruit vendor. And, then, without a cue, she faints in his arms. Well, Carl, is there any better qualification for a leading lady than the ability to faint? Eureka, she’s perfect! After getting a good meal into her and convincing her that he wants her to star in his picture not in his bedroom, Carl has his female lead, Ann Darrow.

On what soon seems like an endless voyage to the South Pacific, Ann finds herself the only woman on the boat. She soon meets the ship’s first mate, Jack Driscoll (Bruce Cabot, but the role was first offered to Joel McCrea). He, and the other crewmembers for that matter, don’t like Ann being on board…something about women being bad luck for boats. Evidently he can see into the future, because when he sees Ann playing with the crew’s pet monkey (why do all ships have pet monkeys?) he makes a comment about beauty and the beast.

Somewhere in the middle of the trip, Denham informs a flabbergasted Captain Englehorn (Frank Reicher) that they are to travel southwest. According to his secret map (where was his decoder ring?), there is an uncharted island that can only be reached through a reef that is surrounded by extremely tall precipices, and then, once you get there you have to get through some pesky, massive wall. After setting the course, Denham turns to prepping Ann for her performance and does some preliminary camera shots. Perhaps Ann should have been a bit curious as to why he wanted her to practice blood-curdling screams.

Later, as the fog rolls in, the ship finds itself looking up at Skull Mountain and hearing the sound of drums and chanting. Having arrived at their ominous destination, a small party (loaded with a whole bunch of weapons) makes their way ashore. There, they find a “colossal” stone wall. They also see, and hear, natives dressed as gorillas chanting, “Kong, Kong” and dancing around what one can only assume is a human sacrifice. Denham views this as a Kodak moment and starts filming, which, in turn, causes he and his party to be noticed by the natives. Somehow Captain Englehorn knows their language (right) and explains that they’ve come in peace. This does not pacify the angry tribal leader, but he does broker a deal for Ann—six of his women for one golden woman. No deal, and the crew returns to the ship to regroup. Here, Jack shows concern for Ann’s safety and they share a kiss.

Ah, but those pesky natives don’t want to take no for an answer and decide to stealthily row out to the ship and capture the golden woman. After procuring their prize, they return to the island and prepare her as a sacrifice. Back at the ship, when Ann can’t be located but a native bracelet can, the crew sends out a rescue party. Meanwhile, the natives have opened the gate and tied Ann to the top of an altar. After securing her to her bridal chamber, they hurry back and lock the gate and then ring a gong. This evidently is a signal to Kong, because the next thing we hear are primal animal noises coming from the jungle. And, then, we see him: a giant ape/gorilla. This is one of those first images you just don’t forget. On cue, Ann starts screaming bloody murder and gains the attention of Kong. When he releases her from the altar, she faints, which makes it even easier to pick her up and carry her off into the jungle.

This is perhaps the best part of the film. The jungle scenes and the beasts held within this primordial world are just spectacular. Half the armed rescue party guards the gate while the other half pursue Ann and the beast’s giant footprints into the jungle. When they come upon a stegosaurus their bullets are no match for its protective armor. Good thing they brought bombs with them! After disposing of this creature, they hear Kong making his way through a swamp and quickly construct a raft to cross the ominous-looking swamp. Here they meet a brontosaurus, which overturns their raft and throws them into the murky swamp. Lunch is had by the brontosaurus, but a few men do escape. The violence of this scene is captivating. I especially liked when the creature eats one man head first. Hearing his pursuers, Kong places Ann in a tree and goes to find the rescue party. As the men are crossing along a log bridge Kong rips it up from the ground and shakes it, sending the men into a deep gorge and to their deaths. Miraculously (it is a film), Jack is the only man to make it across the bridge and he attempts to hide in some sort of vine thing. When Kong tries to grab him, Jack uses his knife to defend himself from Kong and to cut another vine that is occupied by a giant lizard. When Ann starts screaming again (yes, she does stop from time to time), Kong goes to gather her up and finds another dinosaur about to eat his golden woman. Oh, no you didn’t! Now, it’s time for a Battle Royale between Kong and the tyrannosaurus rex. This battle uses very impressive stop-action animation. The ferocious battle (I won’t describe it, you have to see it) ends when Kong rips open the jaws of his enemy and then beats his chest triumphantly. Having saved his golden woman, he gathers Ann from the tree and heads further into the jungle.

Somehow, Jack and Denham meet up—they are the only two surviving members of their group. Denham is sent back for reinforcements, while Jack is given the task of finding Ann and then signaling for help.

Meanwhile, Kong takes Ann to his humble abode: a cave atop Skull Mountain. The decorations include a very creepy snake-thingy, which tries to eat Ann when Kong leaves her for a moment. Oh, no you didn’t! Hearing yet more screaming (I wonder if they had earplugs on the island?), Kong remerges and has to teach snake-thingy how to treat guests. While being choked to death by the snake’s coils, Kong somehow manages to gather enough strength to bash the snake against a rock. With this household chore disposed of, Kong takes Ann to the balcony and shows her the view, where, you guessed it, she faints again. Watching his golden woman sleep, Kong examines his prize. When he hears a noise, Kong leaves Ann atop the cave while he goes to check inside. As Ann is trying to find a way to escape, a winged dinosaur (pterodactyl?) tries to snatch her up off the ledge. Kong returns just in time to save Ann, who is being lifted off the ground by the creature. As Kong is fighting the winged beast, Jack appears and grabs Ann and they start to climb down the very steep cliff via vine. After killing the beast, Kong is a bit miffed when he learns they are trying to escape. Seeing the vine, he tries to pull them back up the mountain, but this causes them to fall into the water at the foot of the mountain. The current pulls Jack and Ann downriver, which coincidentally, is in the direction of the village. They reunite with the crew and head toward the beach just in time to hear that a very angry Kong is at the gate. He breaks the giant door down and frantically searches for his golden woman, all the while destroying everything in his path. One native even finds himself being chewed to death by the beast. When Kong reaches the beach, Denham throws a gas bomb at him, which causes him to collapse, unconscious, to the ground. Denham then decides to take the beast as his pet and orders the crew back to the ship for chains. It would seem that such a beast would draw large ticket sales at an exhibit.

Back in New York City, Denham puts together a new Broadway spectacular: "KING KONG EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD.” If someone was charging $20 a ticket in the Depression, whatever was behind the velvet curtain must be awesome! When the curtain goes up the audience is faced with a giant ape/gorilla chained to a steel contraption. Denham has Jack and Ann come on stage and relays their story to the crowd. When flashbulbs start going off (plus the fact that his golden woman is with that other guy), Kong becomes irate and begins to break free from his chains. Jack tries to take Ann out of the theater and into a nearby hotel before Kong can get to her, but the beast catches glimpse of them. As he makes his way through Manhattan he wreaks havoc. Hearing a screaming woman from the hotel, Kong believes he’s heard Ann’s mating call, and he starts to scale the building. Reaching into one room he finds a sleeping woman who isn’t Ann, so he drops her to her imminent death on the street below. Finally, he reaches his golden woman and carries her through Manhattan. He takes out an elevated train and a number of cars on his way to what he perceives as the tallest tree in this asphalt jungle—the Empire State Building.

And this sets the scene for one of the most iconic images in film history. With armed airplanes circling, Kong swats at them like they are flies. When bullets rip through his body, Kong knows it’s the end. He takes one final look at his beauty and puts her down on a ledge and then falls to his death. Of course, Jack shows up and rescues Ann from the ledge, but who really cares…Kong is dead!

Overall, an impressive display of special effects—especially when one considers this film was made in the early 1930s. In addition, the story was a clever retelling of the classic Beauty and the Beast story. Another fabulous thing about this film is Max Steiner’s musical score, which was the first feature-length score in an American sound picture. All of the special effects were matched to Steiner’s score, and this made the action sequences even more dramatic.

Oh, and for those of you who enjoy watching those cheesy science fiction monster films, it all started with King Kong. And, what about the Japanese? Where would they be without their Godzilla—a byproduct of what was created in an RKO studio in the 1930s. Often repeated with some questionable remakes, but never surpassed, King Kong is a true classic film.

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