Mutiny on the Bounty Two-Disc Special Edition (1962): In 1787, the HMS Bounty set out on a journey that took it through perilous seas to a tropical paradise... and into history as one of the most ill-fated vessels ever to sail for King and country.
Lewis Milestone (All Quiet on the Western Front) directed this colour-drenched spectacular nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Filmed before in 1935 and again in 1984's The Bounty, the gripping tale, based on a true story, centres on two men. Marlon Brando puts his own stamp on the role of first officer Fletcher Christian, the tormented first mate transformed into a man of action. Trevor Howard is Capt. William Bligh, uncompromising in his command and his cruelty. "Fear is [my] best weapon," Bligh proclaims. But it's also the most costly, driving men to desperation... and to mutiny.
Julius Caesar (1953): Brando sets aside his familiar T-shirt for a toga to give a compelling portrayal of imperial loyalist Antony in Shakespeare's towering tale of friendship and betrayal. Julius Caesar, nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and a winner for Best B&W Art Direction/Set Decoration, remains one of the best movie adaptations of Shakespeare as directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz (Oscar-winner for All About Eve, A Letter to Three Wives). Atop the stellar cast, John Gielgud plays lead conspirator Cassius (later at the other end of the dagger as Caesar in the 1970 movie version). James Mason is tormented Brutus.
The Formula (1980): Big oil (and bigger conspiracy) runs the mazelike thriller world of The Formula, directed by John G. Avildsen (Rocky). George C. Scott portrays police detective Barney Caine on a trail of deceit and death which leads him to uncover a secret formula for a non-polluting synthetic fuel that wouldn't just revolutionize the oil industry. It would destroy it. While trying to make headway in the case, he may be only where certain powers allow him to be - powers like Marlon Brando, the oil magnate and 'mover-and-shaker' Adam Steiffel. And Marthe Keller is a woman of mystery who's player or pawn - or both.
Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967): "An Army post in peacetime is a dull place." So begins Carson McCullers' famous novel of secret passion, Reflections in a Golden Eye. But beneath the smooth surface of military routine at a Georgia army base, a deadly tension mounts. Elizabeth Taylor and Marlon Brando star in this startling screen version that, like the book, crackles with mysterious exotic energy. They play the Pendertons, he a hidebound career officer wrestling with inner demons, she a caged lioness demanding love, whatever the source. Their off-kilter relationship plays out under the voyeuristic gaze of a soldier (Robert Forster) soon to become the focal point of tragedy.
The Teahouse of the August Moon (1956): "Serious actor" Marlon Brando displayed his versatility by getting laughs in this comic delight based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning play and co-starring two top-model Fords: Hollywood star Glenn and stage star Paul, the latter recreating his Broadway role. The film is the story of the U.S. military's occupation of Okinawa, post World War II, and their attempt to introduce western concepts such as democracy to a small village that's only interested in getting a teahouse built. Brando plays a Japanese interpreter named Sakini, with more smart maneuvers than Admiral Halsey and his fleet, who keeps the construction of both the teahouse and the plot moving at a merry clip.
