In The Wake of the Bounty 1933

Australian film releases: The Story of the Kelly Gang 1906-10 | Australian film posters 1906-71 | Strike 1912 | Strike 1912 AI | For the Term of His Natural Life 1927 | Metropolis 1928 | In the Wake of the Bounty 1933 | Captain Thunderbolt 1951 | Picnic at Hanging Rock 1975 |

Newspaper advertisement, March 1933.

1. Introduction

Errol Flynn

In the Wake of the Bounty was a docudrama produced by Charles Chauvel and is notable for two reasons: firstly, its place in the history of Australian film making, and secondly, as the first screen appearance of Tasmanian and future Hollywood actor Errol Flynn (1909-1959). It was also the second Australian film to cover this iconic historical episode in which the crew of HMS Bounty, under Fletcher Christian, mutinied against the infamous Captain Bligh.

The first film on the topic was the 5 reel (100 minutes) Mutiny of the Bounty (1916), directed by Raymond Longford and co-written with Lotte Lyell, but now lost. This was followed by a number of Hollywood productions. All told we therefore have the following:

1. Mutiny of the Bounty (1916), directed by Raymond Longford, 100 minutes;
2. In the Wake of the Bount7 (1933), directed by Charles Chauvel, 66 minutes docudrama; 
3. Mutiny on the Bounty (1935), starring Charles Laughton and Clark Gable, 132 minutes; 
4. Mutiny on the Bounty (1962), starring Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard, 178 minutes; and 
5. The Bounty (1984), starring Australian Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins, 132 minutes.

Robert Dodd, Fletcher Christian and the mutineers set Lieutenant William Bligh and 18 others adrift, 28 April 1789, aquatint on paper, 1790.

The film which is the subject of this article is the 66 minute long In the Wake of the Bounty, which premiered at the Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney, on 15 March 1933. A YouTube copy of the original 1933 film is linked below. Whilst it runs for 66 minutes, this version unfortunately sports a large logo on the lower right and is presented in widescreen, unlike the original cinematic format.

In the Wake of the Bounty 1933 (widescreen, plus watermark), Classic Hollywood Movies, YouTube, duration: 66 minutes. 

Another copy is available here,  running 65 minutes, with normal framing as at the premiere, and no logo interference. A third copy is also available here which is the second copy colourized and runs for only 59 minutes. 

A theme throughout all the variant Bounty films and historical texts is the attraction of the sailors to the Pacific islands native women of Tahiti as one of the drivers for the mutiny. The inclusion of film which addressed this issue caused Chauvel a lot of problems in getting his own film through the local censors. This attraction continued through to 1962 when actor Marlon Brando married his Tahitian co-star Tarita Teriipaia.

Marlon Brando as Fletcher Christian, and his third wife Tarita Teriipaia, who played Maimiti in Mutiny on the Bounty, 1962.

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2. Production details

Title: In the Wake of the Bounty

Format: Combined documentary and dramatic elements (docudrama).

Production Company: Expeditionary Films, Sydney.

Production dates:

• Filming: March - November 1932
• Pitcairn Island: March - June 1932
• Tahiti: July - August 1932
• Sydney: September - November 1932
• Editing: December 1932 - January 1933

Producer: Charles Chauvel

Director: Charles Chauvel

Assistant Director: Elsa Chauvel.

Scenario: Charles Chauvel.

Photography: Tasman Higgins.

Monologue: Arthur Greenaway.

Film Editor: William Shepard.

Musical Director: Lionel Hart.

Sound Engineers: Arthur Smith and Clive Cross.

Sound: Cinesound Recording.

Versions: English, Spanish and German.

Actors and others seen on screen:

• Lieutenant William Bligh - Mayne Lynton
• Fletcher Christian - Errol Flynn, paid £10/week.
• Michael Byrne - Victor Couriet (The Bounty's Blind Fiddler)
• Midshipman Young - John Warwick
• Quintrell - Stanley Robbeau 
• Isabella (a native girl) - Patricia Penman 
• ? - Edward Silvini
• ? - Claud Turtin
• ? - Marie Rosenfeld 
• Tahitians
• Pitcairn Islanders

Duration / Length: 66 minutes / 6,500 feet.

Budget: £6,500.

Release date: 15 March 1933, Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney. 

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Newspaper advertisement, Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney, March 1933.

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3. Chronology

It is unclear how early Charles Chauvel formed the view to make a film around the mutiny on the HMS Bounty. By early 1932 he had begun the preliminary production process. 

1932

* March - Charles Chauvel and his wife Elsa Chauvel, plus cameraman Tasman Higgins, sail to Pitcairn Island.

* 29 August, Sydney Morning Herald:

MUTINY OF THE BOUNTY

Reconstructed for Films.

Mr. Charles Chauvel returned to Sydney on Saturday, after travelling 15,000 miles in little known parts of the Pacific Ocean to make a film depicting the mutiny of the Bounty for Expeditionary Films, Ltd., an Australian company. Every effort has been made to produce the film historically, and present a faithful picture of the wanderings of the mutineers before they reached Pitcairn Island, where they burned the Bounty, and Lieutenant Bligh's epic voyage of 4000 miles in an open boat to Batavia, after he had been cast adrift with 18 loyal members of his crew. Mr. Chauvel followed the route of the Bounty and saw the remains of the ship lying in the clear water at Pitcairn Island. Native dances were filmed at Tahiti, where the mutineers stayed. Natives had to be specially chosen, as knowledge of primitive dances is rapidly dying out.

Members of the party had an unpleasant experience at Pitcairn Island. They were inspecting the coast in an open boat, when the engine failed, and they were blown out to sea. They managed to make repairs just before sunset, and make a dangerous return to the Island through the surf, which is always heavy. Mr. Chauvel said that his company believed that Australian history was too much neglected, and attempts would be made to fill in the gaps. Arrangements have been made for copies of the film to be prepared with Spanish and German comment.

* 29 August - Chauvel and team return to Sydney. Footage was confiscated by Customs, but returned.

* October - Chauvel registers a script for copyright entitled The Story of Pitcairn Island.

* 10 October, Townsville Daily Bulletin:

'MUTINY OF THE BOUNTY.'

Mr. Chauvel's Film.

Mr. Charles Chauvel, the Australian film producer, who recently went to Tahiti and Pitcairn Island, and photographed scenes for his picture 'The Mutiny of the Bounty,' has encountered difficulties with the Australian Film Censor (Mr. Cresswell O'Reilly). At present (says the 'S.M. Herald') Mr. Chauvel is engaged on the filming of other scenes for the production of the Cinesound studios, near Bondi Junction. The greater part of 'The Mutiny of the Bounty' will be made up of the Tahitian and Pitcairn scenes, but, until the local work is finished, the business of cutting and assembling the picture into its final form cannot be begun.

Mr. Chauvel states that the Pacific Island material has come to Australia in its original form. Some of it he intended to use; and other sections would, in the natural course of things, be discarded. In its present chaotic form it has been seized upon by the Commonwealth Censorship, and, almost toto, denied the right of entry into this country. Mr. Chauvel claims that this action is unfair. In the Chief Censor's report, he says, one can see clearly that the disconnected series of 'shots,' with no logical progress of incident, has been judged as though one episode followed another, as it would in a completed drama. In none of the scenes did the natives wear less clothing than African natives did in the American production 'Congorilla,' which had recently been screened at the Plaza Theatre.

He and his associates had been warmly congratulated, not only by the administration of the Tahitian Islands, but also by the missionaries there, because they had tried to reproduce faithfully the Tahitian dances. Instead of making up travesties of them as most American directors did. 'The Mutiny of the Bounty' would have a strong historical and ethnographical interest. He did not intend to introduce any suggestion of an improper element. The whole matter is at present the subject of an appeal to the Minister for Customs (Mr. Gullett), who has just returned from the Ottawa Conference.

* Charles Chauvel - a fourteen part, illustrated series by Chauvel, comprising a diary of the visit to Pitcairn Island, a history of the mutiny, and an account of aspects of life on the island:

1. Island where men still live in 18th century: South Seas descendents of mutineers, no.1, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 17 October 1932.
2. Christian sails into new seas: Long voyaging of the Bounty mutineers, no.2, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 18 October 1932.
3. The burning of the Bounty: How Quintal disposed of Bligh's ship, no.3, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 19 October 1932.
4. Little wars of early Pitcairn: Violent deaths of mutineers. Natives vow vengeance, no.3, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 21 October 1932.
5. Dream of John Adams: How he saved his people, no.5, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 22 October 1932.
6. Pitcairn's isolation: How first movie cameras arrived. Bounty's grave, no.6, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 24 October 1932.
7. Dangers of the surf at Pitcairn: Landing a risky job, no.7, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 25 October 1932.
8. Pitcairn's vanished race: Stone Gods and script. Skeleton's head rests on priceless pearls, no.8, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 26 October 1932.
9. The graveyard of the Pacific: Skeletons and pearls. Elizabeth Island mystery, no.9, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 27 October 1932.
10. Town built of wrecks: Mountain and sea for its heritage. Pitcairn Islanders learn to climb like goats, no.10, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 28 October 1932.
11. Daily life on Pitcairn: How they twice returned from exile, no.11, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 29 October 1932. 
12. One family tree: Only six surnames on Pitcairn, no.12, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 31 October 1932.
13. Pitcairn first with women's votes: Boys outnumber girls in ocean arcadia, no.13, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 1 November 1932.
14. Catch rats for sins: Pitcairn's aid to the world, no.14, Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 2 November 1932.

* 22 October, Smith's Weekly, Sydney:

Catty Communications

Errol Flynn, the tall good-looking lad who is engaged to Naomi Dibbs, has been selected by Charles Chauvel to play an important role in his talkie, "The Mutiny of the Bounty," and I hear that he photographs and records quite wonderfully. What a pity Naomi couldn't get a "break," too, as I've heard she thinks she is another Garbo. Some of her creations certainly out Hollywood Hollywood. 

Yours, Kitten, Sydney.

* 20 November, The Sun, Sydney:

FILMING THE "BOUNTY"

Producer's Own Drama

A little over three weeks ago a man walked on to the set where Mr. Charles Chauvel was filming a scene from "In the Wake of the Bounty." He was a direct descendant of John Adams, the member of the Bounty's crew who brought religion to the Pitcairn settlement, and was immediately given a small part in the picture.

The last scenes of this Expeditionary Films. Ltd. production will be completed at the Bondi studios by the end of the month. One of its chief actors, Errol Flynn, has returned to his Islands plantation. A young Englishman, Flynn had done no stage or screen work before a chance meeting between him and Mr. Chauvel led to his being offered the part of Fletcher Christian. But all concerned in the picture are enthusiastic about his appearance and ability. Mayne Linton, who needs no explanation, has the part of Lieutenant Bligh. Victor Gouriet is a blind violinist, who some twenty years after the disappearance of the mutineers sits down in a seaport tavern to tell the tale of the Bounty. From this prologue the picture leads on to the reconstruction of the whole thrilling voyage - the adventures of the sailors in Tahiti, and their desperate journey into the lonely Pacific.

MORE THAN HISTORY

"In the Wake of the Bounty," however, is not merely an historical film. Its most thrilling and unusual sequences begin with the modern arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Chauvel and their camera-man in Tahiti. From there they go in the old track of the mutineers, down through the Paumotu Archipelago, land at Pitcairn, and show world audiences the life and customs of the islanders. Drama more poignant than any imagining has been taken from incidents which occurred during the Chauvels' visit. There was the tragedy of the baby who died, while the wireless operator waited feverishly for a vessel parting to come within range of his feeble crystal set. The island has no doctor, no nurse, and, until the Chauvels came, not even a first-aid kit. Other members of the cast are Stanley Robbeau, as Quintrell, of the Bounty's crew, John Warwick as Midshipman Young, Patricia Penman as Isabella (a native girl), and, in the modern section, Marie Rosenfeld. Mrs. Chauvel has acted continually as assistant-director to her husband.

* Studios were built at Cinesound, Bondi, and footage shot. Actors included Errol Flynn.

Newspaper advertisement, Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney, 1933.

1933

* January - February - The Commonwealth Film Censor orders three cuts in the Tahiti episode (bare-breasted swimming and dancing "mischievous brown girls") and one in the Australian footage (a flogging). Chauvel protested and the cuts were eventually reinstated.

* 27 January, The Sun, Sydney:

"BOUNTY" FILM

CENSOR INSISTS ON DANCE CUTS

The fate of "In the Wake of the Bounty," which has been before the Commonwealth Censor (Mr. Creswell O'Reilly) is again in the balance. Today Mr. Charles Chauvel, who went to the South Seas to obtain authentic matter for the film, was informed that certain cuts must be made.

"The producers," said Mr. Chauvel, "consider that the portions which the Chief Commonwealth Censor demands shall be cut away are absolutely essential to the story and in no way offensive. The producers will now apply to have 'In the Wake of the Bounty' brought before the Censorship Appeal Board." Mr. Chauvel added that some of the dance scenes which Mr. O'Reilly demands shall be eliminated have a peculiar interest, because the music was supplied by the Methodist Tongan Choir under the direction of a Methodist clergyman. This gentle man first saw the dances screened and then supplied the true Polynesian music. He expressed the opinion that the scenes were artistic and handled with delicacy.

* 30 January, Daily Standard, Brisbane:

Censor Objects to Scene

SYDNEY, To-day. The scene in the Australian picture, "In the Wake of the Bounty," to which Mr. Creswell O'Reilly objects, was made in a Sydney studio. ' It shows a "cat" about to be used on a mariner on the Bounty. Mr. O'Reilly's powers do not extend to censoring this Australian-made scene in Australia. It is with the export film only that he is dealing. The makers of the film have appealed to the Appeal Board (Brigadier-General Mackay), who will see the scene as soon as possible, perhaps this week.

* 4 February, Daily Telegraph, Sydney:

| BY THE WAY | Insult and Injury |

"The Australian film version of Nordhoff and Hall's Mutiny on the Bounty was censored; the Tahitian dance scenes were taken out," says the New York "Herald Tribune."

It is true that Charles Nordhoff and James Hall, two Americans who have lived for some years off and on in Tahiti, have lately written a book, "Mutiny on the Bounty," which is something of a best seller in U.S.A. But the Australian picture, "In the Wake of the Bounty," made by Charles Chauvel and censored by Creswell O'Reilly, is not a version of the book.

* 2 March, The Labor Daily, Sydney:

"Mutiny of the Bounty"

The Charles Chauvel picture, "In the Wake of the Bounty," has finally been passed by the censors, and is scheduled for release at the Prince Edward Theatre on Wednesday, March 15. This picture has been held up over the last three months, and has created more than ordinary amount of comment in motion picture circles. It deals with the mutiny of Lieutenant Christian and his supporters against Commander Bligh, of the "Bounty," and graphically depicts the latter's adventures after they have been set adrift in the Pacific in an open boat. The main portion of the picture takes place in Tahiti and Pitcairn Island, where the direct descendants of these pioneers are still to be found. Most of the cast is composed of Pitcairners, who were discovered to have remarkable acting ability. The first half of the programme will be made up of Australian short features.

* 15 March - The film is released at the Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney, by Universal Pictures.

* 22 March, Everyone's, volume 13, number 682, Sydney:

“IN THE WAKE OF THE BOUNTY” 

Exchange: Universal.

Cast: Mayne Linton, Errol Flynn, Victor Gouriet, John Warwick, Edward Silvini, Claud Turtin.

Director: Charles Chauvel.

Releasing Theatre: Prince Edward (extended season).

Length: 6500ft.

Charles Chauvel, to whose credit are several successful Australian silent pictures, has departed from the beaten path of screen entertainment in a manner that puts him in a producing class of his own. His picture is as revolutionary as was “Grass,” the first of the remarkable nature dramas filmed by Cooper and Schoedsack.

Chauvel has delved into a great sea adventure - the mutiny of the Bounty and its aftermath more fantastic than fiction, the founding of a new world on the isolated rock in the Pacific Ocean that is Pitcairn Island. How he, his wife, and cameraman Tas Higgins embarked upon the enterprise has already been related by “Everyone's.” The result of their efforts is a picture of extraordinary scenic beauty, of dramatic flashes, and of absorbing revelation. In unfolding events leading up to the mutiny, the story is told supposedly in an old London tavern by the blind fiddler who was acquitted on a charge of mutiny after Bligh and his boatload of survivors had reached England. The dramatic sequences of the tale are punctuated by vistas of Tahiti, its women and its natural splendor that exceed in beauty anything the camera has hitherto found in those isles of romance. Then the picture shifts to Pitcairn Island as it is to-day, populated by the 200 descendants of the mutineers and their native women. Spectators are taken to the historical scenes of blood, crime, faith and disillusionment that marked Pitcairn’s foundation. They see the ribs of the old Bounty lying beneath the sea; they catch the spirit of these exiles in the everlasting battle with the elements.

From the exhibitor’s angle, “In the Wake of the Bounty” is a good offering if presented with a strong dramatic or comedy feature in association. The picture needs that support, and its best spot seems to be on the first half of the programme so that the show closes on the more conventional style of entertainment the public expects.

Censorship Stipulation: “For General Exhibition.”

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“IN THE WAKE OF THE BOUNTY”

A conflict of opinion so sharp as to cause comment throughout the whole Sydney trade surrounds the current bill. Facts are straight forward enough. The premiere of "In the Wake of the Bounty" on Wednesday night, March 15, was, as far as the personnel of the audience was concerned, one of the most brilliant the Prince Edward has known for many months. The aftermath is unhappy. The house is not doing the business anticipated; the producer contends that the supporting show is to blame; the management retorts that the picture, despite early favorable judgment, is not proving of Prince Edward calibre. Because of this disagreement. “Everyone's” decided to cover the program again, after having witnessed the premiere: and this was done last Tuesday night, not with the idea of settling an argument, but in justice to both parties. For that reason this review is presented in a different form, each item being analysed separately.

ALBERT CAZABON AND ORCHESTRA in a selection from “H.M.S. Pinafore.” As usual this was merely a program preliminary to get the audience seated.

‘CALL OF THE SURF.” A local interest film produced by Jack Fletcher, dealing with Sydney beaches. On opening night it seemed much over length. At second inspection it had been trimmed considerably and moved faster. Sound recording was inferior. It got a fair hand on both occasions.

KNIGHT BARNETT AT ORGAN. On opening night Knight Barnett presented a group of numbers under the general title, “What a Woman Will Do.” The cycle consisted of “One Fine Day” (“Madame Butterfly”), “Mother o’ Mine,” and “She Does It All for Me.” The last-named was a humorous offering vocalised by the organist, but as a whole the act did not score. At second visit it had been changed, Barnett reviving an old favorite, “A Trip With Annie Laurie,” in which the Scotch air is rendered in the tempo of various nationalities. It registered very strongly and the house wanted more.

PARAMOUNT SOUND NEWS. This was changed. Opening night’s issue not so good as that now being screened.

“SOCIETY’S SHAME.” This was produced in aid of the Golden Fleece Kindergarten. The players — or rather, the offenders — included Commander Gifford, aide-de-camp to the Governor of N.S.W., the Nawab of Pataudi. Maurice Tate and Arthur Mailey; a pathetic bunch of males and females who allegedly belong to that nondescript strata that passes as Sydney Society; and three well-known stage people whose names we mercifully omit because we aren’t sure that, when consenting to appear in the picture, they were fully aware of what they were letting themselves in for. The burlesque was filmed silent and J.C. Bancks, cartoonist, supplied the descriptive monologue. Heaven help us. The credit title mentioned something about “comedy by J. C. Bancks.” Comedy! In next Sunday’s “Sun” we expect to see Ginger Meggs disowning his creator. Friends and relations of the perpetrators laughed uproariously on opening night. We moaned. On Tuesday’s inspection the picture had been shortened and switched around. Surprisingly, the cash customers accepted it. Which only goes to show it must contain something humorous that we can’t see — or else the sight of the aide-de-camp to His Excellency making a pictorial fool of himself comes under the heading of “Educational.”

ALBERT CAZABON AND ORCHESTRA. As his orchestral feature, Albert Cazabon chose “Melodies of the Motherland,” embracing “Wee McGregor Patrol,” “Last Rose of Summer,” “Men of Harlech” and “The Merrymaker’s Dance.” It provided average entertainment. Catching the show again, a change was noted. The somewhat negative “Merrymakers Dance” finale had given place to the spirited “Land of Hope and Glory,” winning much better audience response.

STAGE PRESENTATION— OLD FASHIONED GIRLS.” A melodious quartette of vocalists in an effective stage setting with the Prince Edward ballet in a quiet costume routine. On opening night the stage looked cramped, the vocalists being ranged against a grand piano on O.P. and the ballet working diagonally across stage from prompt-side. At second inspection the piano had been drawn back into the wings, giving more stage space and permitting a far freer finale. The presentation was definitely improved.

SUBSTITUTION. On opening night one of the Efftee Barrier Reef series, “Coral and Its Creatures,” was a much-appreciated offering but because of some slight similarity to the subject matter of the feature, it had been replaced when we caught the show the second time, by a Mack Sennett singing comedy starring the popular Bing Crosby, whose “Blue of the Night” was the best of three crooning numbers.

That review of the first half covers all changes noted by "Everyone's.” With the exception of the Bing Crosby number, all were made the day after opening. The fault I've found with the first-half in its original form was the preponderance of “interest” stuff as distinct from theatrical material, and the fact that every picture was a one-voice affair. The alterations have lifted it right up to concert pitch and the audience takes it well.

‘IN THE WAKE OF THE BOUNTY." - Reviewed elsewhere in this issue. Of particular interest is the audience reaction. Those to whom this type of picture has special appeal cannot speak sufficiently highly in its favor. Personally we consider it a distinct achievement. But that doesn’t alter the fact that the bulk of the Prince Edward regulars do not regard it as Prince Edward entertainment. They endorse its technical excellence, its beauty of photography and its theme, but the entertainment they want is the specialised drama or comedy on which the theatre’s clientele has been built. “In the Wake of the Bounty” has not proved itself strong enough to carry the show, although in a house such as the Lyceum it might have done so. Too much has been asked of it, that’s all.

With concession tickets to clubs and societies, and by bringing forward the theatre-parties that generally are reserved for later in the season, the management is doing its best to keep the Bounty afloat for three weeks. Faber est suae quisque fortunae. And, by and large, as with a man, so, too, every picture is the maker of its own fortune. Initial faults in the bill have been corrected, and box-office disappointments should have no alibis.

ESTIMATED NEWSPAPER ADVERTISING: 205 inches costing £125. EMPIRE. NOTE. — It will not he possible to strike a business average, on which a box-office percentage can be based, until the Empire has run four weeks as a first-run house. Business still above regular gross.

* 12 April, The Australian Worker, Sydney:

THE MUTINY OF THE BOUNTY.

The association of man with the sea has been productive of many strange and wild adventures, but of none stranger or wilder than that of the mutineers of the Bounty. What those men did, and what followed upon their unlawful seizure of the ship in which they sailed, will always remain one of the most fascinating epics of real life, unsurpassed in the whole range of fiction and drama. The story has often been told, and we listen to it again and again with unabated interest, because of the vivid human passions it involves, passions both squalid and romantic, and because of the picturesque and almost Arcadian setting of the action.

A little while ago Dr. Mackiness gave us an elaborate account of the mutiny, and its sequel in his biography of Bligh, dealing with every aspect of the affair, and enriching and supporting the narrative with all the documental evidence available. It seemed, reading his meticulous work, that the last word had been written on the subject. But the mutiny's tumultuous history is apparently inexhaustible as a literary theme, for now comes 'In the Wake of the Bounty,' by Charles Chauvel, and once more we are gripped by the familiar tale'.

Mr. Chauvel, with the object of making a picture film, went to the lotus islands that seduced the sailors of the Bounty from their duty. This section of his book is intensely interesting, for the author has a descriptive art that makes us see the things that he has seen, and puts us on intimate terms with the people he has met. Then he takes us to Pitcairn, one of the loneliest islands in the world, where Christian Fletcher and his last followers succeeded in eluding the ship sent out from England to capture the mutineers.

The story of the Bounty's men on this forlorn piece of land, assailed on all sides by angry waters, is one so charged with primitive emotions, dark impulses and lurid sensations that it has held the whole British race enthralled for a century and a half.

Mr. Chauvel tells it with a dramatic power that is enhanced by the terseness of the telling. His style is clear and forceful, and he achieves his effects with an economy of words that undoubtedly contributes to the stark realism of the scenes he brings before us. Altogether a valuable and absorbing book. Published by the Endeavour Press. Price 6/-. H.E.B.

* 20 April, Daily Standard, Brisbane:

"IN THE WAKE OF THE BOUNTY"

Charles Chauvel Interviewed.

To go right from the beaten track, bringing to life on the screen, long-forgotten pages of history against authentic backgrounds, is the aim of Mr. Charles Chauvel, the Australian producer for Expedition Films, who has just completed "In the Wake of the Bounty," a film record of the dramatic story of the mutiny of the crew of the Bounty. The picture comes to the Wintergarden on Saturday, April 29.

Blending historic drama with natural beauty, tho picture tells the story of the seamen casting their captain adrift, making for the enchantments of Tahiti, and later taking up the story with the settlement of the survivors on Pitcairn Island.

"The story has been reconstructed as faithfully as possible," explained Mr. Chauvel, in conversation with press representatives yesterday. "I worked from Bligh's own log and sketches, which are in the Mitchell Library, Sydney."

Most of the dialogue, he said, was actual fact, taken from accounts of the trials of some of the mutineers at Spithead, England, and statements made by Bligh and others are included in the film. The speech of the leader of the mutineers, Fletcher Christian, before the mainmast, is heard in the film.

"There are the direct contrasts of the softness of Tahiti in the first sequences, and the grim isolation of Pitcairn in the second half," explained Mr. Chauvel. The ship scenes were taken in the studio in Bondi, the rest of the story was produced in the surroundings where the mutiny took place.

The film company first visited Tahiti and then Moorea. The latter is land being regarded as the most beautiful of all the South Sea Isles. Mr. Chauvel enlarged upon the beauty of Moorea's beaches and surroundings. "The Upunohu Lagoon," he said, "is the most remarkable sight I have seen in my life.It is still and mirror like, with towering mountains reflected in its depths. There are remarkable beds of colored coral."

On Tahiti the company rented a beach and a lagoon, had a village constructed, and combed the sur rounding villages for girls for a Tahitian ballet. The dance sequences led to a dispute with the Commonwealth Censor, but after eight months of argument those were eventually retained in the picture. In the Pitcairn sequences the story followed the lives of the people, descendants of the mutineers and of the natives.Mr. Chauvel found particularly helpful the wonderful co-operation of the French Government.

The cast includes several well known players, Mayne Lynton as Bligh; Victor Gouriet as Micheal Byrtie, the blind fiddler; John Warwick, as Midshipman Young; and Errol Flynn, a promising newcomer, as Fletcher Christian. A native princess, Tetia, also appears in a scene. After nearly two years spent in research, practically a further year in production, and writing a book on the story, Mr. Chauvel is still keenly enthusiastic about it. "It has so many extraordinary angles," he said. In its drama, romance, and unusual settings, he considered, "In the Wake of the Bounty" should appeal to the members of every family.

* 3 June - Theatre De Luxe, Melbourne.

1935

* MGM purchases rights to the film and it is re-edited to form two travelogues: Pitcairn Island Today (1935) and Primitive Pitcairn (1936).

* MGM releases Mutiny on the Bounty (1935), starring Clarke Gable as Fletcher Christian.

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Newspaper advertisement, Prince Edward Theatre, Sydney, 1933.

4. Sydney Morning Herald articles 1933

During March 2023 two articles on In the Wake of the Bounty from 1933 were republished, as follows:

New Films.

"In the Wake of the Bounty."

20 March 1933

Mr. Charles Chauvel’s film, “In the Wake of the Bounty,” contains some exquisite views of the South Seas. Not even in “Moana,” “Tabu,” and “White Shadows,” which are regarded as setting the world standard in this sphere, will one find more lovely photography, more perfect realisation of the lights and shadows in tropical landscape. The cameraman (Mr. Tasman Higgins) has realised the value of motion as a means of filling out the flatness of screen perspective into a more stereoscopic effect, and the gliding of the camera to and fro across land and water gives a splendid feeling of depth and distance.

Since the motive on which the scenic effects are strung is the mutiny on board the Bounty, and the settlement of the survivors on Pitcairn Island, Tahiti and Pitcairn form the locations. There are pictures of mist floating over ragged mountain peaks; of yachts mirrored in palm-fringed waters; and some remarkable glimpses of heavy seas dashing against a reef. A foreword to the film says that it does not claim to be a drama. The narrative about the Bounty serves only as a unifying influence, and a means of explaining the origin of the Pitcairn settlement. As a matter of fact, the bursts of dramatic action are distinctly the weakest part of the film. In these scenes, which take place mainly in the ship’s focscle and the captain’s cabin, the lighting is defective, the make-up indifferent, and the acting of a stilted, artificial order. The only players who carry much conviction are Mr. Mayne Lynton as Captain Bligh, a peppery, obstinate old martinet, very much on the lines of the same personage grown older in Doris Egerton Jones’ stage play, “Governor Bligh,” and Mr. John Warwick, as one of the ship’s company.

Productions from abroad have so accustomed audiences to the mobile use of the camera in interior scenes that these of Mr. Chauvel’s seem uncomfortably static. However, things might have been much worse. At least, the dialogue is straightforward, and calculated to appeal to intelligent people; which is more than one can say for some other Australian productions which have come to the screen during the last year or two.

In arranging spoken comment to accompany the non-dramatic portions of the film Mr. Chauvel has shown excellent judgment. The diction is always good; but not affected. The voice does not run on and on and on, as though the speaker were taking part in an endurance contest; but allows pauses for reflection at times when the visual action can tell its own story. The descriptive matter itself, apart from the manner of its delivery, is admirable in the clearness of its exposition. The film as a whole, too, has been most carefully and ingeniously planned. The dramatic episode at the end, unlike the earlier attempts at drama, is genuinely moving; and, from a visual point of view, has a dynamic quality which allows it to rank with the finest overseas work. “In the Wake of the Bounty” was screened on Wednesday at the Prince Edward Theatre.

Film Censorship.

Methods Criticised.

Producers' Difficulties.

24 March 1933

The Commonwealth film censor was criticised by speakers at a meeting of the Film Society last night. Mr. Charles Chauvel, the producer of “In the Wake of the Bounty,” described the passages in that film which the censor at first deleted and which would have remained out of the film if he and his colleagues had not engaged In a six-months’ struggle with the authorities. Australia was being flooded with salacious sex-dramas, he said, yet Australian producers were being compelled to choose only stories of a simple, witless type. The censor had at first forbidden the scene in “In the Wake of the Bounty” that depicted the flogging of the sailor Quintal. It would be impossible to depict scenes from the early history of Australia without offending the censor, who had the power of deciding what films should be sent out of, as well as brought into, Australia. An Australian producer was not allowed to show droughts, bushfires, or probably, floods.

Professor W. J. Dakin said that it was unfortunate that the public was so lackadaisical in the matter. If there had to be a censor, he should be a man who had travelled, and who was widely read. M. Meuret, lecturer in French at the University, spoke on the conditions of film productions in France, and described two films “Mädchen in Uniform” and “The Blue Light” which are among the most notable of recent German productions.

British actor Trevor Howard, Captain Bligh in the film “Mutiny on the Bounty” (1962) with Mayne Lynton, who had played Bligh in the 1933 film.

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5. References

Chauval, Charles, In the Wake of "The Bounty" - To Tahiti and Pitcairn Island, Endeavour Press, Sydney, 1933, 157p.

Christian, Fletcher, Muting on the Bounty, 3 December 1794.

From the Archives, 1933: In the Wake of the Bounty, Sydney Morning Herald, 17 March 2023. 

Nordhoff, Charles and James Norman Hall, Mutiny on the Bounty, 1932. 

Pike, Andrew and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1998.

Reade, Eric, Australian Silent Film Lansdowne Press, Melbourne, 1970, 192p.

The Mutiny of the Bounty, 1916, bountyclub.ch, accessed 17 June 2026. 

Vagg, Stephen, Forgotten Australian Films: In the Wake of the Bounty, FilmLink, November 2025.

Wikipedia, Errol Flynn, Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026.

-----, Fletcher Christian, Wikipedia, accessed 2 June 2026. 

-----, In the Wake of the Bounty, Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026.

-----, Mutiny of the Bounty (1916), Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026. Stars: George Cross and Wilton Power. Produced by Raymond Langford.

-----, Mutiny on the Bounty 28 April 1789, Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026.

-----, Mutiny on the Bounty (novel 1932), Wikipedia, accessed 2 June 2026. 

-----, Mutiny on the Bounty (1935), Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026. Stars: Charles Laughton and Clarke Gable.

-----, Mutiny on the Bounty (1962), Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026. Stars: Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard.

----- The Bounty (1984), Wikipedia, accessed 30 May 2026. Stars: Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins.

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Last updated: 30 May 2026

Michael Organ, Australia