# H.M.S. Defiant > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/H.M.S._Defiant > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/H.M.S._Defiant.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.M.S._Defiant > Source revision: 1355849306 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Not to be confused with [HMS Defiance](/source/HMS_Defiance) or [USS Defiant](/source/USS_Defiant). 1962 British film H.M.S. Defiant Original UK film poster Directed by Lewis Gilbert Screenplay by Nigel Kneale Edmund H. North Based on Mutiny 1958 novel by Frank Tilsley Produced by John Brabourne Starring Alec Guinness Dirk Bogarde Anthony Quayle Maurice Denham Nigel Stock Cinematography Christopher Challis Edited by Peter R. Hunt Music by Clifton Parker Production company G.W. Films Ltd Distributed by Columbia Pictures Release dates 22 February 1962 (1962-02-22) (Premiere)[1] 15 April 1962 (1962-04-15) Running time 101 minutes Country United Kingdom Language English Budget $2 million[2] ***H.M.S. Defiant*** (released as ***Damn the Defiant!*** in the United States[3]) is a 1962 British naval [war film](/source/War_film) directed by [Lewis Gilbert](/source/Lewis_Gilbert) with a screenplay by [Nigel Kneale](/source/Nigel_Kneale) from [Frank Tilsley](/source/Frank_Tilsley)'s 1958 novel *Mutiny*,[4] and starring [Alec Guinness](/source/Alec_Guinness), [Dirk Bogarde](/source/Dirk_Bogarde), [Anthony Quayle](/source/Anthony_Quayle), [Maurice Denham](/source/Maurice_Denham), and [Nigel Stock](/source/Nigel_Stock_(actor)). Shot in both [CinemaScope](/source/CinemaScope) and [Technicolor](/source/Technicolor), the plot concerns a mutiny aboard the fictitious title ship at around the time of the [Spithead mutiny in 1797](/source/Spithead_mutiny). ## Plot In 1797, the humane [Captain](/source/Captain_(Royal_Navy)) Crawford is in command of the [frigate](/source/Frigate#Classic_design) HMS *Defiant* during the [French Revolutionary Wars](/source/French_Revolutionary_Wars). He soon finds himself in a battle of wills with his [first officer](/source/Executive_officer), the sadistic and supercilious first lieutenant, Mr. Scott-Padget. The lieutenant believes that Crawford is too soft on his crew, and also disagrees with the captain's decision to follow his orders to sail to [Corsica](/source/Corsica) despite word that [Napoleon](/source/Napoleon)'s army has [overrun](/source/Italian_campaigns_of_the_French_Revolutionary_Wars) much of Italy. Scott-Padget has powerful family connections, which he has used in the past to "beach" two previous commanding officers with whom he disagreed. Knowing that Crawford is helpless to intervene, Scott-Padget subjects the Captain's son, [Midshipman](/source/Midshipman) Harvey Crawford, to excessive daily punishments so as to gain leverage over the captain. Meanwhile, some of the crew, led by seaman Vizard, are preparing a written petition for better conditions, in conjunction with similar efforts throughout the British fleet. They eventually pledge nearly the entire crew. In the Mediterranean, the *Defiant* encounters a French frigate escorting a merchant ship. After a sharp engagement, a boarding party from the *Defiant* captures the French frigate, and the merchantman surrenders. Crawford dispatches his son as part of the prize crew tasked to sail the captured merchantman to a British port, thereby placing him out of Scott-Padget's reach. Crawford tells Scott-Padget that bringing his son with him was a mistake, but now he's "put it right!" He further vows to take actions that will "astound" his second-in-command. Before long, Scott-Padget is confined to quarters as punishment for insubordination. His humiliation is compounded by the requirement that he appear on deck every two hours in full dress uniform, a punishment usually reserved for young midshipmen. Soon, *Defiant* fights and captures a [Venetian](/source/Republic_of_Venice) frigate, taking on many prisoners. Crawford is severely wounded in the action and eventually loses his arm. Discovered among the prisoners is a key aide to Napoleon, from whom the British learn important information about a [planned invasion of Britain](/source/Napoleon's_planned_invasion_of_the_United_Kingdom). With Crawford incapacitated, Scott-Padget takes command, but his brutality goads the crew into a premature mutiny. Appealing to their patriotism, Crawford convinces Vizard and the other mutineers to sail for the main British fleet blockading [Rochefort](/source/Rochefort%2C_Charente-Maritime) to warn them of the impending invasion. Crawford promises to intercede for the crew as best he can, on the condition that none of the officers are harmed. As the *Defiant* reaches the fleet at Rochefort, they receive word that the main British fleet [has already mutinied](/source/Spithead_and_Nore_mutinies), with the [Admiralty](/source/Admiralty_(United_Kingdom)) agreeing to all of the sailors' demands and granting an amnesty to those who took part. The crew's jubilation at the news is cut short when a hot-headed seaman, Evans, murders Scott-Padget. Realising that they are now all doomed to punishment as mutineers, an enraged Vizard kills Evans. Their only course now is to try to escape with the ship. Just then, the French fleet sallies out from port, and a French [fireship](/source/Fireship) is sighted heading straight for the British flagship. As the only ship under sail, the *Defiant* has the unique opportunity to save the flagship. Once again, Crawford appeals to the crew's patriotism, making no promises but convincing them to intercept the fireship. Vizard is killed in the ensuing action, living just long enough to hear a message from the British admiral thanking *Defiant* for their honourable actions. The mutiny is over and HMS *Defiant* joins the fleet. ## Cast - [Alec Guinness](/source/Alec_Guinness) as Captain Crawford - [Dirk Bogarde](/source/Dirk_Bogarde) as Lieutenant Scott-Padget - [Anthony Quayle](/source/Anthony_Quayle) as Vizard - [Maurice Denham](/source/Maurice_Denham) as Mr. Goss (Ship's Surgeon) - [Nigel Stock](/source/Nigel_Stock_(actor)) as Senior Midshipman Kilpatrick - [Richard Carpenter](/source/Richard_Carpenter_(screenwriter)) as Lieutenant Ponsonby - [Peter Gill](/source/Peter_Gill_(playwright)) as Lieutenant D'Arblay - David Robinson as Midshipman Harvey Crawford - [Robin Stewart](/source/Robin_Stewart) as Midshipman Pardoe - [Ray Brooks](/source/Ray_Brooks_(actor)) as Hayes - Peter Greenspan as Johnson - [Tom Bell](/source/Tom_Bell_(actor)) as Evans - [Murray Melvin](/source/Murray_Melvin) as Percival Wagstaffe - [Victor Maddern](/source/Victor_Maddern) as Bosun Dawlish - [Bryan Pringle](/source/Bryan_Pringle) as Marine Sergeant Kneebone - [Johnny Briggs](/source/Johnny_Briggs_(actor)) as Wheatley - [Brian Phelan](/source/Brian_Phelan) as Grimshaw - [Toke Townley](/source/Toke_Townley) as Silly Billy - [Declan Mulholland](/source/Declan_Mulholland) as Morrison - [Walter Fitzgerald](/source/Walter_Fitzgerald) as Admiral Jackson - [Joy Shelton](/source/Joy_Shelton) as Mrs. Crawford - [Anthony Oliver](/source/Anthony_Oliver) as Tavern Leader - [Russell Napier](/source/Russell_Napier) as Flag Captain - [Michael Coles](/source/Michael_Coles_(actor)) as Flag Lieutenant - [Andre Maranne](/source/Andr%C3%A9_Maranne) as Colonel Giraud - [James Bolam](/source/James_Bolam) as Midshipman Assisting in Operation ## Reception In a contemporary review for *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*, critic [Bosley Crowther](/source/Bosley_Crowther) wrote: "The perennially popular topic of wooden ships and iron men, of eighteenth-century square-riggers, naval martinets and mutineers is handled with the kind of graphic splendor that should set a million boyish hearts aflame ... [Y]ou will know that you've sat through a picture that does not make much psychological sense but has the rich and rosy luster of a blood-drenched seafaring romance. ... So, if you're for naval roistering, here is your cup of rum."[5] *[Films and Filming](/source/Films_and_Filming)* ranked *H.M.S. Defiant* ninth among the most popular films in Britain for 1962.[6] ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** *The Times* online archive 22 February 1962 page 2 1. **[^](#cite_ref-deal_2-0)** ["Nat Cohen's Many Deal with Yanks"](https://archive.org/details/variety-1962-01/page/n486/mode/1up?q=%22loss+of+innocence%22+%22lewis+gilbert%22+%22kenneth+more%22). *Variety*. 31 January 1962. p. 4. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** [IMDb: Release dates for *H.M.S. Defiant*](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055884/releaseinfo) Retrieved 16 April 2013 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Tilsley, Frank (1958). [*Mutiny*](https://www.amazon.com/Mutiny-Frank-Tilsley/dp/B000CZ48L0#mediaMatrix_secondary_view_div_1419683104950). Reynal. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Crowther, Bosley (20 September 1962). "Screen: Guinness in 'Damn the Defiant'". *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. p. 29. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** British films are tops at box office Author: Douglas Marlborough Date: Monday, 10 Dec. 1962 Publication: Daily Mail p 3 ## External links - [*H.M.S. Defiant*](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055884/) at [IMDb](/source/IMDb_(identifier)) - [*H.M.S. Defiant*](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/damn_the_defiant) at [Rotten Tomatoes](/source/Rotten_Tomatoes) - [*H.M.S. Defiant*](https://web.archive.org/web/1/https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/72116/enwp) at the [TCM Movie Database](/source/Turner_Classic_Movies#TCMdb) (archived) - [*H.M.S. Defiant*](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/22912) at the *[AFI Catalog of Feature Films](/source/AFI_Catalog_of_Feature_Films)* v t e Works by Nigel Kneale Bernard Quatermass Television The Quatermass Experiment (1953) Quatermass II (1955) Quatermass and the Pit (1958–59) Quatermass (1979) The Quatermass Experiment (2005) Film The Quatermass Xperiment (1955) Quatermass 2 (1957) Quatermass and the Pit (1967) The Quatermass Conclusion (1979) Radio The Quatermass Memoirs (1996) Other television scripts Arrow to the Heart (1952) Wuthering Heights (1953) Nineteen Eighty-Four (1954) Wuthering Heights (1959) The Year of the Sex Olympics (1968) The Stone Tape (1972) Bedtime Stories (1974) Beasts (1976) Kinvig (1981) The Woman in Black (1989) Stanley and the Women (1991) Sharpe's Gold (1995) Other film scripts The Abominable Snowman (1957) Look Back in Anger (1959) The Entertainer (1960) H.M.S. Defiant (1962) First Men in the Moon (1964) The Witches (1966) Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982) Related articles The Séance at Hobs Lane v t e Films directed by Lewis Gilbert The Little Ballerina (1947) Once a Sinner (1950) Scarlet Thread (1951) There Is Another Sun (1951) Emergency Call (1952) Time Gentlemen, Please! (1952) Cosh Boy (1953) Johnny on the Run (1953) Albert R.N. (1953) The Good Die Young (1954) The Sea Shall Not Have Them (1954) Cast a Dark Shadow (1955) Reach for the Sky (1956) The Admirable Crichton (1957) Carve Her Name with Pride (1958) A Cry from the Streets (1958) Ferry to Hong Kong (1959) Light Up the Sky! (1960) Sink the Bismarck! (1960) The Greengage Summer (1961) H.M.S. Defiant (1962) The 7th Dawn (1964) Alfie (1966) You Only Live Twice (1967) The Adventurers (1970) Friends (1971) Paul and Michelle (1974) Operation Daybreak (1975) Seven Nights in Japan (1976) The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) Moonraker (1979) Educating Rita (1983) Not Quite Paradise (1985) Shirley Valentine (1989) Stepping Out (1991) Haunted (1995) Before You Go (2002) --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [H.M.S. Defiant](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.M.S._Defiant) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H.M.S._Defiant?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.