Adventure Movies

I am a huge fan of adventure movies. You know, those huge, expensive lush, films set in exotic locations where travelers are beset with problems and strife while seduced by the beauty of the land and its peoples. A couple of them leap to mind.

First, Mutiny on the Bounty. A sailing ship, a mean-spirited captain, a rebellious and heroic crew in the Tahitian Islands is about my version of movie heaven.  I have seen 2 versions of this classic tale. One, starring Trevor Howard as the sadistic Capt. Bligh and Marlon Brando as Fletcher Christian, was very good. The original, starring Charles Laughton and Clark Gable was better. Really, with all of the magnificent scenery, it could have starred any decent actors and I would have loved it; having a fine cast was just a bonus. A tale of cruelty and rebellion, of desperate men risking all for freedom appeals to a spirit that I believe lies in all human hearts. Most of us will never have the chance to do anything so magnificent. The world of such opportunities seems closed to us for awhile and we seem to be stuck settling for small victories, if we're lucky, but I swear, in every heart there is that urge to set sail for fair lands where we can be free.

Another such film is Papillion, a film starring Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman. McQueen, as the title character, is a petty criminal, falsely convicted of murder in France and sentenced to Devil's Island, the infamous French penal colony surrounded by water and thought to be inescapable. So, of course, he sets out to escape. Repeatedly, he is caught and placed into the wretched hell of solitary confinement. Each time, when released, he tries again. It is a tale of the indestructible human longing for freedom. It is a beautiful film.

From Tarzan, through the great Errol Flynn movies like Robin Hood and Capt. Blood, on through Peter O'Toole as Lawrence of Arabia, adventure movies are a way artists have found to capture the essence of the human heart. Full of fighting, plotting, traveling, wonder and, here and there, love, they are a lot of fun and downright inspiring. After a dull day at work in this era of dull uniformity in a world that seems small and tame, let your mind go into these dreams of adventure. They're good for the soul.