We have Anthony Hopkins, Daniel Day-Lewis, Laurence Olivier, Mel Gibson, and Liam Neeson all in the same movie?? Looking back across 40 years, that's one hell of a cast.

History Buffs casually returning after 2 months feels like a holiday event, I respect the quality over quantity content

The fact Bligh managed to sail almost 4,000 miles on a rowboat, in one of the most desolate naval journeys and without any charts deserves a movie in its own right.

Bligh's successful passage of the Pacific Ocean on the seven meter long Bounty's launch, with 18 men of his crew on board, is considered as one of the greatest navigational feats of all time. In terms of his ability as a sailor and navigator, Captain Bligh was without a doubt a genius.

A little fun fact about Bligh's ability to map the islands he was visiting: The map he made of Hawaii while traveling with Captain Cook was still in use in the 1960s. It was that accurate. Imagine having the eye of a satelite in times of wooden ships oO

Hey guys, I made a geographical error. Kupang is in modern day Indonesia not Timor-Leste! So sorry for this missing this

Hopkins' portrayal of Bligh was unforgettable.

A couple of corrections on the RN: 1) The vast majority of the Navy's captains were commoners, often of quite modest backgrounds. This was even more the case with midshipmen. Aristocrats preferred the army, where they could purchase commissions, leave was freely available, and there was no hard service required except in wartime. 2) In 1787 there may have been a few pressed men, but not many. With the end of the American war in 1784, the Treasury closed the purse-strings and the Admiralty, as usual, placed the majority of its ships "in ordinary" and paid off (discharged) their crews. There was a surplus of seamen, and no need to press any.

Fun Fact: in the 1935 version of Mutiny on the Bounty, Charles Laughton had to lose 55 pounds in order to fit into his costume as William Bligh, which used Bligh's actual measurements at the time, and Clark Gable had to shave off his lucky mustache for the sake of historical accuracy because at the time facial hair was not allowed in the British Navy.

Man, being forced to dance by your boss...When I worked retail in a mall, I had a boss who once tried to make us dance in front of the store to attract customers. All I can say is I understand why they wanted to mutiny.

I never thought I'd see the day. Nick is actually praising a Mel Gibson historical Movie. Great video.

I watched this movie in my late teens, and I was in awe of how the movie didn't "took sides" by portraying "heroes and villains", but rather showed very convincingly each of the characters perspectives. It's was a little disturbing finding myself understanding and agreeing with everyone's attitudes and perspectives. To this day, I have no idea if I would have ended up in Pictarin, Tahiti or in the little boat with Cap. Bligh, if I had been part of that crew.

It's crazy to think that most of the modern people living on Pitcairn island are descendants of the mutineers on the bounty. It really brings the history to life.

Interesting fact, the Bounty replica used in the 1962 film was lost in 2012 during hurricane Sandy. 14 people were saved, by others weren't so lucky. Very sad end to the replica of such a ship.

Fun fact. One of the British ships to find the last mutineers on Pitcairn island was the HMS Briton. On it was a young Francis Crozier who would later go on to be second in command of the Franklin expedition to find the northwest passage. Small world

I am a descendant of Fletcher Christian and love the accuracy of the History Buffs. I hear all sorts of stories and of course the Mutiny features on our island, alongside Convict settlement. I learned something new by watching this and never considered that things may have been different had there been Marines on board. One other thing, Bligh was an amazing seaman to get back home and all the while charting different islands as he travelled. But no mention that he actually faced a second Mutiny in Australia. Have seen the Mel Gibson/Anthony Hopkins version many times over and both actors absolutely brilliant, as were the many other famous actors in the movie. Thank you History Buffs now subscribed and will be watching other History stories many of hours of entertainment and learning.

Ive always found it fascinating that Blythe actually sailed that small boat to a Dutch post over 1000 miles away with only a few lost men. Im not a navy man,but that seems to b impressive.

William Bligh as a new Captain commanded the HMS Glatton at the Battle of Copenhagen under Lord Nelson, not Trafalgar. Bligh made a key decision that led to Nelson's Victory at Copenhagen.

I'm not a big fan of Mel Gibson, but the way he played Christian is spot-on. In interviews at the time, he said he saw Fletcher Christian as a stupid, self-absorbed and hormonal boy physically and mentally unable to resist the temptations offered by Tahiti. Gibson brings that out brilliantly in this movie. Far from the heroic Fletcher Christian of other movies, Gibson's Christian is an utter twit who was unable to think past his own undergarments. I thought it was unfair that he wasn't nominated for any awards, because to me it's the most true-to-life portrayal of Christian we're ever likely to see.

After the 1984 movie, the ship was used as a commercial/tourist attraction on Sydney Harbour. My employer had a Christmas lunch function in late 1995 aboard the ship. Feeling very bold, I approached the Helmsman to have a turn at the wheel. (that was not included in the service). I was given the wheel, "steady has she goes", and under full sail helmed HMS Bounty as she passed under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

"I am in Hell" was my favorite line in the whole movie. Blows my mind that it came from the actual ships logs.

A good point Caroline Alexander makes is about the financial situation of the gentry of the ship (there were quite a few acting as ab seamen). Almost all were from declining families, including Fletcher, so they didn't have much to come back to.

The story of the mutiny itself is only a small part of this tale. And one of the precipitating factors, unmentioned here, was the fact that the crew spent their time on the island laying about, and when time came to leave all the sails were moldy, which incensed Bligh. Contrary to the popular opinion, Bligh was the good guy, and Christian was largely responsible for the debacle. And his trip across a thousand leagues of sea is legendary. Then there's the almost Shakespearian unravelling of life on Pitcairn for the mutineers. And the few who were loyal to Bligh, but wouldn't fit on the lifeboat, were left on Otaheite. Among them was Peter Haywood, who was writing a dictionary of Tahitian to English. The British sent Edward Edwards in the aptly named Pandora to find the mutineers, and when he arrived in Otaheite Haywood immediately reported to the ship, and was just as immediately arrested for mutiny, along with all the other loyalists, who were mostly NOT mutineers, as this program suggests. They were stripped naked and chained together, with no head privileges in a box at the forward section of the ship that was dubbed Pandora's Box. Edwards, who was as incompetent a seaman as he was a cruel human being, ran Pandora aground, and intended to let them all drown until one of the seaman--against orders--unshackled them. Then they chained these pasty Englishman on the beach, in the tropics, with no shade. They returned to England eventually, and were sentenced to hang. Haywood continued to work on his dictionary right up until the hanging, which was called off, literally at the last possible minute. Their ordeal is woefully understated in this program.

The casting was spot on, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Mel Gibson, Daniel Day Lewis, Liam Neeson. Also being made in the 1980s with no CGI and massive special effects shows that you can make a great movie by just remaining true to the source material.

A postscript to add on Bligh’s later career was his time as Governor of New South Wales, where he tried to clean up the fledgling colony and it resulted in the Rum Rebellion.

I never understood why they didn't just title this movie "Mutiny On The Bounty". It's such an iconic title. No one would've confused it with other versions.

Bligh's open boat voyage is to me, the single most incredible documented sea voyage. His ability as a navigator was sublime and it proves that he was not simply an effective commander, he was quite good. There is no way they would have survived if he was not. Regardless of the might-have-beens, the fact of the matter is that HE brought them to safety. In terms of the navigation alone, I think this makes him a very good candidate for being the best naval navigator in world history. edit: A reminder of context. The distance from New York City to London is around 3,500 miles.

The performances in this film are so dang crisp. Anthony Hopkins knocks it out of the park with that single teardrop in the scene where the court declares him innocent.

"Mutiny on the Bounty" was one of the first books I read on my own as a little kid, the "Great Illustrated Classics" books. Thank you so much for this video!

I enjoyed Caroline Alexander’s book, that was when I realized how young these guys were. In the movies Captain Bligh was played by middle aged men when in real life he was in his early thirties and Fletcher was barely out of his teens.

What I love most about this film, aside from the tour de force performances, is the attention to detail. How real Bounty feels. The uniforms are presentable, but not pristine. The look and feel of the Admiralty. Incredible film.

As a kid, I thought the film was almost hypnotic. I was obsessed with the story, and the performances.

Never even heard of this one before, but after looking up the cast it has literally everyone in it. I'm amazed at how this one flew under my radar all this time.

After living in the Caribbean I can attest to the fact that bread fruit trees did make it to the Caribbean and the ancestors of it's intended target group still grow it and eat it. Pretty good potato substitute. Neutral in flavor so can be used in many applications.

I think the movie does a tremendous job correcting the narrative that Bligh was a ruthless leader that didn't care. The truth was he was on his own in very difficult conditions with a crew that didn't want to be there. I think it's a real testament to Bligh's capability as a navigator that he managed to make it back to England. I'd argue he may have been the best navigator to ever live and he earned it from a non-aristocratic background, which is even more impressive.

I love all 3 versions of the movie with Gable, Brando, and Gibson. The Gibson movie however, seems to have been the most faithful to Bligh's log, which he kept meticulously even during the voyage to Timor. It's a fascinating read and is well-depicted in many of the scenes.

Can you please do Glory (1989)? It’s a great movie that honestly deserves more recognition given the story, acting, historical context, accuracy, and stars

I always found the second half of the story where Bligh and his loyal men struggle to survive and navigate back to civilization more interesting than the first half.

Out of all the films done on the Bounty Mutiny, “The Bounty” is generally considered to be the most historically accurate (although the film does have its own biases and emphases, particularly when it comes to the personal relationship between Bligh and Christian). As always Nick, you do an excellent job reviewing this film, warts and all! Aloha 😊🎬⛵️🤙🏼👏🏼 P.S. If you’re interested, Pacific Islands historian Greg Dening wrote a fine study about the Bounty called “Mr. Bligh’s Bad Language,” focusing on how Bligh’s ill chosen words and personal insults undermined his leadership with the crew, and his relationship with Fletcher Christian. Highly recommended. 😊🤙🏼

Another great video as always. Have you ever considered doing a review of Liam Neeson’s 1996 Michael Collins? It’s a great film about the Irish war of independence and is an underrated masterpiece of historical cinema. It’s highly accurate to the real events and people who lead Ireland to independence. I’d love to see what you think about it.

Watching from Norfolk Island! This story was drilled into us as kids. We watched this movie when we were perhaps a bit too young for the subject matter and it's a bit contentious for locals but I always loved it.

Fun fact. After the bounty Bligh was given command of the new New South Wales colony in Australia. It wasn’t too long before ANOTHER mutiny happened to him. Seventeen years after the Bounty mutiny, on 13 August 1806, he was appointed Governor of New South Wales in Australia, with orders to clean up the corrupt rum trade of the New South Wales Corps. His actions directed against the trade resulted in the so-called Rum Rebellion, during which Bligh was placed under arrest on 26 January 1808 by the New South Wales Corps and deposed from his command, an act which the British Foreign Office later declared to be illegal.(From Wiki)

One of my favourite movies. I've watched it off and on all my life. I've always loved the soundtrack by Vangelis, R.I.P. Mel Gibson working with Sir Anthony Hopkins is brilliant.

The Bounty is one of my top five movies. It has it all - scenery, music, drama, tension, conflict, romance and action.

In Anchorage Alaska, we have a story about how one of our area features got its name from Bligh. When Cook’s expedition sailed up the eponymous Cook Inlet, it came to an apparent fork of the waters. They approached a nearby native village and inquired what lay ahead. They were told that the northern fork tapered to a river that was sourced by a large glacier, no Northwest Passage was to be found. The Southern one was a fjord with strong currents, and probably also ended with a river. Cook sent his men to map the northern one, and they found it as the natives had said. They named the arm, river, and glacier “Knik”, after the village. Convinced that the southern one was the same and with winter coming on soon, the crew were pretty eager to leave it behind and head south, but Cook ordered them to map it out too. Bligh was in charge of this mission. Upon making it as far as they could up the treacherous arm, and finding no evidence of a continuation to open water, Bligh notated on the chart “Turn, again” (I like to imagine an exasperated exclamation mark). And thus it is called Turnagain Arm to this day.

4:00 "He was still a lieutenant" This remind me of the US Wilkes Expedition in the 1840s where Lt. Charles Wilkes tried to become captain before his fleet sailed. He never got the promotion and, in many views, became draconic during the multiple years ago expedition. When the surviving ships returned to the US, he and his officers put court martials against each other. Sea of Glory by Nathanial Philbrick talks about forgotten expedition.

Thanks for this Nick. It is a great film. I have read that book by Caroline Alexander too. If anybody is interested in part of the real story. That book is a must read. The film is definitely the best of all the films about The Bounty.

Over *three thousand miles* Quite simply one of the most incredible displays of seamanship in human history; immediately after some of the worst!

Some performance from Anthony Hopkins, a force of nature, he played a quite sympathetic version of Captain Bligh. Great speaking voice, all those rounded vowels and rolling ‘rrrrr’s’. Brilliant actor, he should have won an Oscar for this performance,

Pitcairn Islands became a very disturbing place in the late 90s early 2000s with investigations and arrests being made for underage sex with its inhabitants which saw those charged and found guilty having to build their own prison on the island

My father told me to watch this version of the movie some years ago and I did, and he was absolutely right. The Anthony Hopkins version of Bounty is absolutely amazing!!

Blythe needs a series. He went from losing a ship in one of histories most famous mutinies, to losing the entire country of Australia.

Can we just take a minute to appreciate this cast! I mean... WOW!!!! Anthony Hopkins, Mel Gibson, Liam Neeson, Bernard Hill... I even recognised a few others from other big films! I hadn't even heard of this film before but now it's going straight on lol!

I kind like how GIbson does the "going crazy hand to the forehead thing" he'd later do in the Lethal Weapon movies.

If you haven't seen it the TV show "Mutiny" with Ant Middleton is great. Some volunteers recreate the thousand mile journey across the Pacific on the same amount of rations as the crew did. It's insane how they managed to do it back then

A film I'd love you guys to cover is Paths of Glory. Like you Nick, I'm a massive film history nerd and love WW1 films. I'm aware it was based on a book on an actual historical event but it would be interesting to examine the war from the french perspective and harsh punishments inflicted by the military.

I"m a bit dodgy on the details. But about 40 years ago, a descendant of Bligh set out to recreate Bligh's journey in the launch after the mutiny. I do not recall much, not even sure if they completed it. What I do recall is that he turned out to be something of an A-hole. The crew hated him so much that there was almost another mutiny. Which I found hilarious. *Edit...Found it...The Voyage of Bounty's Child (1984)

Incredibly, the HMS Bounty was not the only mutiny suffered by William Bligh in his long career. After spending a decade as a captain in the Royal Navy, the government was sufficiently impressed at his reputation for discipline that they appointed Bligh as governor of the New South Wales penal colony in 1806. Upon taking the post in Sydney, Bligh became so unpopular that he provoked a rebellion resulting in him being deposed in a coup by a cabal of military officers.

I wait for new HB videos for weeks on end, and they never disappoint. Another gem to add to the film library.

My father was obsessed with this movie and my mother with the one with Clark Gable😅 thank you for this video and for explaining so easily the difference between officer, warrant and enlisted

Regarding the Bounty's return route, Joseph Banks reminded the Admiralty that the breadfruit is a tropical plant sensitive to freezing temperatures and that the expedition's commander should take steps to avoid freezing weather on the return journey. (HMAS Bounty, formerly the collier Bethia, was outfitted with a heating and irrigation system to help the saplings cope with adverse weather designed by Banks personally, but it was untested and consequently deemed to be of questionable reliability.) The movie has Bligh insist on returning by the Drake Passage, giving Christain and the crew a more immediate cause for the mutiny. However, the real William Bligh was nothing if not an obedient officer, so that part of what is otherwise the best film treatment of this fascinating piece of history, is probably inaccurate. The real William Bligh would rather have his ship lost at sea than arrive in the "sugar islands" with a cargo of dead breadfruit saplings.

It would be nice to see a series like Hornblower to be reviewed. Since it's only based on books. I think it can be reviewed on the same premise as Master & Commander, trying to show the history at the time. Then being able to film on location such as the historic dockyard at Portsmouth. Although being dramatized a bit which would sway people to not watch it and how not well known it is within the history community. The same can be said for Greyhound, showing how escorting an Atlantic convoy was like and the pressure put upon officers to ensure safe. Then there's it's large historical inaccuracies such as the ship classes and the hull numbers either not being era accurate and non existent respectively (Why HMS Eagle is portrayed by ORP Błyskawica I have no idea). Atleast they try to reference some of the ships that were used for the film such as the reference to the USS Kidd in a line of dialogue which I assumed they filmed onboard, and HMCS Dicky using the same livery as HMCS Sackville.

I just watched it because you of, and man, I loved this movie. The culture clash elements to me are the most interesting. The Tahitians and british can't be any more different in their social cultures. The british man seeing a completely different way of life that they have known, and seeing how much better it is, was amazing to watch. Many times in life you go to a new place, and because the people are different (and much more psychologically better), you feel instantly happier, and you want to throw away the previous version of you. These men saw what they could be, and wanted to quickly throw away the british side of them. Amazing to watch

They need to make this story as a multiple part streaming series. With the success of AMCs The Terror, I can see it working.

One of my favorite historical movies. Saw it when it came out and still own it to this day. It builds the mutiny up perfectly, the dredd in the score is perfection. Thank you for the memories.

I have a friend from the Marshal Islands. He looks like your typical Polynesian however, his family claim that they are descendants of British stollaways. My friend finally took a DNA test a few years ago to determine whether is family lore was true or not and it turns out he is 8-12% British!

Love the incredible amount of info and detail provided through the very eloquent narration. Truly fascinating!

It is always a great week when there is a new history buff episode! Thanks for your hard work!

Fantastic video. The aftermath of the settlement of Pitcairn is also fascinating and tragic, you can see how a lot of the cultural and social issues that led to the mutiny ended up playing out over generations to come. For anyone based in London, I stumbled across William Bligh's grave at the church at Lambeth Palace (now a museum) completely ignorant that he was buried there!

Even if I've never heard of the film or historical event, gotta love this content. 3 films I'd love to see covered: JFK (1991), Zodiac (2007), Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

The whole story of the Bounty and the mutiny that followed has always fascinated me, and I loved this depiction of the events. Watched it at least twice. Thank you for making this video.

This is my favorite piece you've done so far. Super interesting and captivating story. Thank you!

I don't believe the narrative that Bligh was a tyrant or taskmaster anymore so than any other ship's captain of the time. He actually seems to have taken particular care for the wellbeing of his charges and was unusually tolerant of their behaviour while on shore in Tahiti. The true story of what happened is I think much more interesting: that the mutineers were so completely seduced by the native Tahitian way of life - particularly enjoying the sensual pleasure involved in mingling with the young Tahitian women - that they absolutely descended into a downward spiral of hedonism and eventual barbarism. What's even more interesting, and which you don't see in the movie is what happened after the remaining fugitives settled on Pitcairn island: their descent into perpetual drunkeness, and the barbaric way they treated the Tahitian men and women they had taken with them, and their treament of each other, and the eventual violence that ensued. It's like a real life Lord of the Flies type of story.

It's always a delight to see a new video from this channel! May I recommend "The Last Emperor" (1987), "Pentagon Papers" (2017) and "De Gaulle" (2019) for future episodes?

One thing missing from your review was mentioning that the island of Pitcairn is inhabited to this day by the descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian wives. The main (and only) settlement is called Adamstown and it's located by the Bounty Bay where HMS Bounty was scuttled.

I just stumbled upon your channel and I immediately subscribed. The Bounty is one of my favorite films and I love the historical breakdown with scene cuts! I'm looking for my next watch!

I was wondering when you were going to get to this one. I love this film. It was SO well done. The cinematography and the casting is brilliant. The score, I absolutely love the Vangelus score. I never would have picked synthesizers for a high seas film set in the 1700's, but after seeing it, I cannot imagine this film without it.

Excellent as always! Really appreciate the passion and the knowledge that is evident in every video. There is only one minor point within what you could call a footnote; Bligh was with Nelson at the battle of Copenhagen (where he was commended by Nelson for his part), not Trafalgar (Bligh was on his way to New South Wales at the time). After the battle, Nelson sent Bligh to present a gift of Copenhagen porcelain to Lady Hamilton. In the covering letter Nelson commended Bligh for his seamanship and worthy character.

I love that history has stories like this. Just the average dude who is fairly accomplished for who he is and where he came from, but nothing exemplary until he's put to the test. And because he's just a genuine guy trying to do his best by giving his men a healthy life on a dangerous voyage, he ends up being the hero of the story. I don't know, stories like this make me kind of emotional. You know that quote from the Imitation Game? "It's the people who no one imagines anything of who do things that no one can imagine." This is that quote brought to life. It feels like Hollywood always struggles to make characters that are actually just regular people. And to see them do it so well here is really great. The story of the Bounty is just a really great commentary on the human spirit. It is kinda sad that the whole mutiny happened in the first place though. I guess we're all just naturally suspicious too.

“I love the paradigm at 22:20 when William Bligh, with much confidence, told his superiors that he treated his men fairly and justly, and that the mutiny was orchestrated by Fletcher Christian and the crew’s life in Tahiti. You can truly see in his words the bitterness that William still feels of the personal betrayal from Fletcher . A person so stubborn to perform his duty for what his title commanded that he lost track of the discontent of his crew.”

Ahh The Bounty! What a great story. Thanks for doing this one! Loved the score by Vangelis.

I am never disappointed by a new History Buffs episode!

I really like these History Buffs videos. Thank you very much for your hard work to make these videos.

I can live with some of my sailors stealing my coconuts as long as they don't touch my strawberries

Living in St Petersburg, FL for many, many years, my everyday walk would take me down the Pier and past the Replica HMS Bounty moored at its end. When the ship foundered in the Atlantic during Hurricane Sandy, it broke my heart, made all the more tragic by the lost of her captain and the most junior member of the crew.

You should have mentioned Bligh getting in trouble again as governor of Australia

While I've heard of the Mutiny on The Bounty, I didn't know the fate of the mutineers. Absolutely fascinating

I don’t much care for British naval history and I can’t see a big difference between this video and your others, but this somehow remains my favorite of your videos. I keep finding myself coming back every few months without being able to explain why.

I remember seeing this movie around high school and getting a little obsessed with the story. I then read Mutiny on the Bounty for a book report and the following books (Men Against the Sea and Pitcairn's Island) just to get the full story. It absolutely fascinated me.

Wow, for once, (with the exception of We Were Soldiers) Mel Gibson's in a historical movie covered by History Buffs that doesn't make us (and Nick) wanna tear out a new one in the same way as Braveheart, The Patriot, and Apocalypto. I'm impressed.

Love seeing the uploads! Always high quality and well worth the wait. :)

Glad to finally see you make another movie that (a) you appear to respect, (b) I haven't seen, and (c) how I have not heard of this movie especially with the cast of Hopkins, Day-Lewis, Gibson, Neeson, Olivier, and others!

HMS Bounty was originally built as a collier named Bethia in my home city of Kingston Upon Hull. She was built by the Blaydes family, who's Georgian house still stands and was my place of work in the late 80s.

One of my favorite movies! I saw this when it came out and I was in high school. It gave me a great appreciation and curiosity for history. It felt authentic. The story is wonderful.

I do really enjoy your well made and accurate historical videos. Thanks for that.

For me, Anthony Hopkins is the best Bligh. And this film version is the more historically accurate. I have read a few books about the infamous mutiny and this video is interesting and informative. Thank you.

We attended this in my World History class- it came out when I was a senior in high school. I did very much like the movie and our teacher was cool af like this. It was relatively accurate and the acting (well, other than a handful of certain actors) was stupendous. In fact Mr. Fields even asked us if we had anyone who stood out to us- most correctly said Anthony Hopkins, which isn’t wrong, but the easy pick since he was the lead and portraying someone known to us. I instead chose DDL, (didn’t use 3-names, just called him Lewis) there was just something about the guy that drew me to him. Mel had already starred in Mad Max and Road Warrior so must of us knew of him, and even then he was pretty ham-handed in his portrayals.

"Mutiny on the Bounty" was my favorite book when I was a preteen. The 1937 film was my favorite movie for years. And in 2013 and last summer, I visited Admiral Bligh's grave at Lambeth Palace as part of my visits to the UK. Thank you for this addition to your amazing work!

Excellent work. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

You are back!!! I am so excited! I don’t even know what this movie is that you were talking about, but you popped up and I’m just so thrilled to see that you are back❤❤❤❤