In a comment to last week's music selection from the Errol Flynn Robin Hood film, Aesop (who knows something about film) left a comment:
If Errol Flynn is in a movie with an Erich Korngold score, I'll be sitting twelfth row center, waiting for the overture to begin.
Yup. And so to today's selection. Captain Blood was the very first film to star Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. It essentially founded the genre of swashbuckling adventures. It began a long collaboration between Errol Flynn and Basil Rathbone (later famous as Sherlock Holmes) who appeared together not only in Robin Hood but also in The Dawn Patrol.
And this film established the reputation of Erich Korngold, not as a great composer (he had already established his chops) but as a great film composer. Shockingly he was not nominated for the Academy Award for this film; he got more write-in votes than almost any of the actual nominees.
He almost didn't take the gig, feeling that pirate adventures wasn't very interesting. But the producers invited him to watch some of the filming. Impressed, he signed on. The problem was that the entire score had to be finished in three weeks. To get the entire score complete he had to include a number of symphonic poems from Franz Lizst (remember, he was the first Rock Star).
Both Flynn and Rathbone were accomplished fencers, and justly famous for the well choreographed fight scenes. Certainly Rathbone's fencing was more convincing than his french accent:
And the music is quite dramatic:
Next week we will close out our exploration of swashbuckling film music.
Bootnote on the actors:
Basil Rathbone was decorated for heroism on the Western Front in The Great War. He was also the British Army's fencing champion (twice) and taught Errol Flynn much of what he knew.
Olympia de Havilland was cousin to Geoffrey de Havilland of aircraft manufacturing fame. She only dies two years ago at the age of 104, the oldest winner of an Academy Award. She is probably most famous for her role as Melanie in Gone With The Wind.
Errol Flynn got in a fist fight with his director during filming of Charge Of The Light Brigade. A horse lover, he was infuriated by the intentional crippling of dozens of horses during filming. He was a notorious womanizer and it is said that the expression "in like Flynn" originally referred to a successful seduction.
4 comments:
My second-favorite Errol Flynn movie. If only they had filmed in color...
The very interesting view of slavery, one quite forgotten in these modern times, was well played.
The sailing and fighting scenes are very well done, only equaled or slightly surpassed by Pirates of the Caribbean or Master and Commander.
And once again Olivia is smoking hot wearing more clothes than most modern babes.
Interesting note, it was not uncommon for Basil and Errol to get into swordfights for fun during dinner parties, during carrousing, during holidays on Catalina... They basically developed 'modern' movie sword fighting.
Thanks.
FWIW, "in like Flynn" was a phrase coined specifically after Flynn was put on trial for statutory rape in early 1943, but ultimately acquitted after the morals and character of absolutely under-aged girls Betty Hansen and Peggy Satterle, the alleged victims, were successfully destroyed in the courtroom by the defense.
It stemmed from his verdict, which permanently tarnished his reputation with moviegoers from a gentler time despite the legal victory, and effectively foreclosed his subsequent film career, but still avoided the absolute kill-shot a conviction and subsequent prison sentence would have been.
Hey BP, who is Olympia de Havilland?
Olivia's lesser-known but more ample-busted sister, no doubt.
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