The Sea Hawk
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Movie Reviews of The Sea Hawk
Movie Review: Not the best of Flynn
Summary: 3 Stars
"The Sea Hawk" is one of the last swashbuckler roles Errol Flynn took on and one of his last collaborations with director Michael Curtiz. Curtiz and Flynn did a dozen films together including "Captain Blood" (1935), "Charge of the Light Brigade" (1936), "Robin Hood" (1938), and "Dodge City" (1939). In 1940 alone they made 3 films - "Virginia City", "The Sea Hawk", and "Santa fe Trail". While they had an extremely successful on screen relationship, off screen they were bitter enemies, complicated by the fact that Flynn's first wife had earlier been married to Curtiz.
Though Curtiz did a lot of work with Flynn, and was Oscar nominated for their first collaboration "Captain Blood", Curtiz received 2 more nominations for films with Jimmy Cagney ("Angels with Dirty Faces" in 1938 and "Yankee Doddle Dandy" in 1941) and one win for a film with Bogart ("Casablanca" in 1942), one of eight they made together. Curtiz had a sense of humor about himself - he once declared "The next time I want an idiot to do this, I'll do it myself."
In addition to Flynn and Curtiz, "The Sea Hawk" has the usual list of co-stars including big Alan Hale, Donald Crisp, the great Claude Rains, and Slippery Henry Daniell. Brenda Marshall and Flora Robson join the boys for the first time, and if you look real closely, you'll even see a young Jay Silverheels (TV's "Tonto").
Alan Hale Sr. (1892-1950) was a frequent sidekick to Flynn in films such as "Robin Hood" (1938), "Dodge City" (1939), "Virginia City" (1940), "Santa fe Trail" (1940), and "Gentleman Jim" (1942).
Donald Crisp (1882-1974) plays Sir John Burleson, a friend to Flynn. He appeared in more than 150 films from 1908 through 1963. He won Best Supporting Actor for "How Green was My Valley" (1941) and gave memorable performances in films such as "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1935), "Jezebel" (1938), and "National Velvet" (1944), He worked with Flynn on "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1936), "Dawn Patrol" (1938), "Elizabeth and Essex" (1939), and "The Long Gray Line" (1955).
The great Claude Rains (1889-1967) co-stars as the Spanish ambassador. Best remembered for his roles as "The Invisible Man" (1933) and Captain Renault opposite Humphrey Bogart in "Casablanca" (1942), Rains had a brilliant career including supporting roles as Prince John in "The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938), the evil Senator in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (1939), Job Skeffinton in "Mr. Skeffington" (1941) and the politically astute Mr. Dryden in "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962). Along the way he received 4 nominations as Best Supporting Actor.
Henry Daniell (1894-1963) plays a traitor and Flynn's main opponent. He made nearly 100 films between 1929 and 1964, often as a villain. He played Prof. Moriarty, Joseph Goebbels, and countless evil Englishmen.
Flora Robson (1902-1984) appears as Queen Elizabeth, a role she originally played in "Fire Over England" (1937). She appeared in more than 50 films and was nominated for an Oscar for her role in "Saratoga Trunk" (1945). Many people believe that she is the definitive Elizabeth, although my preference would be Bette Davis in "Essex and Elizabeth" (1939).
Robson gives a stirring speech at the end of the film that is directed at the Spanish, but since it was 1940 and the threat was again from the continent, one can easily see how her words brought inspiration to audiences at the time.
The legendary Hal Wallis (1899-1986) produced. Wallis worked with Flynn and Curtiz on "Captain Blood" and "Robin Hood", both of which were nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture. Wallis won the Oscar for "Casablanca" (1943). His other notable films include "I am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang" (1932), "The Maltese Falcon" (1941), and "Yankee Doodle Dandy" (1942).
Erich Korngold's (1897-1957) beautiful compositions are excellent, as always. Korngold was nominated 2 times for an Oscar ("Sea Hawk", "Elizabeth and Essex"), and won once ("Robin Hood"), He composed nearly 20 films, many of them with Flynn as the leading actor.
The film was a critical and commercial success. It was nominated for Oscars for Best Art, Best Special Effects, Best Music, and Best Sound. Time magazine called it a "handsome, shipshape picture." It was the 11th highest grossing film for the year. In addition to this film, Flynn appeared in the #5 (Santa Fe Trail) and #8 (Virginia City) highest grossing films of the year, a distinction rarely equaled (e.g., Cary Grant did it) and never surpassed.
Personally I found the film a little dull. There are excessively long periods in which nothing really happens. The climactic dueling scene between Flynn and Daniell is done by a double, and while it is exciting, the use of a double takes away a lot of the excitement and makes you long for those duels between the real Flynn and the real Basil Rathbone. And, of course, Brenda Marshall is no substitute for Olivia deHavilland, who refused to take the role as she was tired of all the swashbuckling.
There are a host of Tudor/Elizabethian period films that emerged around this time - "Elizabeth and Essex" (1938) with Flynn, "The Prince and the Pauper" (1937) also with Flynn, and "The Private Life of Henry VIII" (1933) with Charles Laughton. "Elizabeth and Essex" is probably the best of the lot. BTW - costumes from E&E were re-used for this film.
Fans of Flynn will enjoy the film, though perhaps not as much as some of his other roles.
Movie Review: entertaining fantasy
Summary: 3 Stars
I watched this movie when i was a teenager years ago, then again now in my thirties. Not very accurate historically, since pirates, buccaneers, corsairs or the so called seahawks would never dare in real life to attack a spanish war galleon, only slightly or unarmed merchant vessels. This movie is however very entertaining with all the swordfights and adventure not to mention the message the directors wanted to send concerning the begginings of World War II.Movie Review: Good...but Great?
Summary: 3 Stars
I've been an avid Flynn fan for years...but I always thought this was weak. Flynn seems too restrained and like what a previous reviewer stated "all the ingredients are there but the cake didnt rise"Movie Review: Sea Hawk-Snore Hawk
Summary: 1 Stars
Very Noisy, Snoringly and Extremely Boring Movie. Very Annoying Loud Swashbuckling Music Type Score keeps thundering, when people are only lumbering about, walking around, making entrances..and doing absolutely nothing
Perhaps this is why people think it's a swashbuckling movie, because of the music, meanwhile nothing is going on.It's only an illusion..
Very little dialogue, with an attempt to hide this fact, by playing loud music, and constantly showing those damn ships, that I am sure Warner's paid plenty for, and wanted to get their money's worth..
Aside from Claude Rains, who can't help but be good, the others appear to be sleepwalking, waiting for the music to start, or stop, while reciting simpleton, sparse lines, like zombies, or as if were hypnotized.
This is not a swashbuckler, but pure trash..Robin Hood, w/ E. Flynn, or Zorro, w/ T. Power, and Both w/ the great Basil Rathbone, were swashbuckling movies..not this noise box..
Don't waste your time w/ this very annoying, and insulting dudd.It was just a Warner war (WWII) support vehicle, that had nothing to do w/ the novel..God bless Warner for that. But the movie is real trash.