Mutiny on the Bounty (1962 film) performance is intended either as a travesty or a lark." "Variety" called the film "often overwhelmingly spectacular" and "generally superior" to the 1935 version, adding, "Brando in many ways is giving the finest performance of his career." Brendan Gill of "The New Yorker" wrote that the screenwriter and directors "haven't failed, but a genuine success has been beyond their grasp. One reason for this is that they've received no help from Marlon Brando, who plays Fletcher Christian as a sort of seagoing Hamlet. Since what Fletcher Christian has to say is so much less interesting than what Hamlet has to
Mutiny on the Bounty (1962 film) Bounty took nine months to make rather than the scheduled six and arrived after filming had started. In January 1961, after three months of filming, Reed flew back from location with, reportedly, an "undisclosed ailment". In actual fact he had quit over differences in the direction of the story. He was replaced by Lewis Milestone, who later estimated only five minutes of the final film was Reed's. "Reed was used to making his own pictures," said Milestone. "He was not used to producer, studio and star interference. But those of us who have been around Hollywood are like alley cats.