Mutiny on the Bounty [Blu-ray]

1787. HMS Bounty sets out on a journey through perilous seas to a tropical paradise... and into history as the one of the most ill-fated vessels in naval lore. Lewis Milestone (All Quiet on the Western Front) directs this color-drenched spectacular nominated for seven Academy Awardsr including Best Picture. Filmed before in 1935 and again in 1984's The Bounty, the gripping story centers on first officer Fletcher Christian (Marlon Brando), a dandy transformed into a man of action, and Capt. William Bligh (Trevor Howard), uncompromising in his command or his cruelty. "Fear is [my] best weapon," Bligh proclaims. But it's also the most costly, driving men to desperation and mutiny. Richard Harris, Hugh Griffith and Richard Haydn also star in this epic adventure.

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip.... Based on the classic novel by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall, this magnificently-photographed three-hour tour charts the tortuous and tragic course of the Bounty, which, in 1787, sailed from England to Tahiti on a "grocer's errand" to transplant breadfruit plants in Jamaica. As the voyage progresses, tensions mount between the heartless disciplinarian Captain Bligh (a commanding Trevor Howard) and his chief officer, Fletcher Christian (Marlon Brando), who does not subscribe to Bligh's philosophy that cruelty with cause is not cruelty. Richard Harris costars as John Mills, an abused crewmember who plants the seeds of treason against Bligh. Mutiny on the Bounty is a see-worthy saga that boasts a provocative Brando performance (his Christian is initially so foppish he makes Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow look like Errol Flynn in The Sea Hawk) and great action set pieces (a raging storm as the Bounty attempts to navigate Cape Horn). And in how many did this film inspire dreams of sailing away to Tahiti? Brando was among them. He married his ravishing costar Tarita, and later bought himself a French Polynesian island. This "Special Edition" replicates the film's original prestigious road show presentation, complete with Overture, Intermission, Entr'acte, and Exit music. --Donald Liebenson