| |
Virginia
City (1940) (v) Flynn plays Kerry Bradford, a fictional western
adventurer who saves Northern gold from Southern raiders in this Civil War
drama. Although Flynn was well-cast as a hero, Miriam Hopkins was as unlikely
a choice as a dance hall Southern sympathizer as Humphrey Bogart was as a
half-breed outlaw. photos |
| The
Sea Hawk (1940) (v) Very likely the greatest sea adventure film
of all time, and arguably the best of all of Flynn's movies. He plays Captain
Geoffrey Thorpe, battling Spaniards in the name of Queen Elizabeth I (Flora
Robson), and winning the love of a Spanish noblewoman (Brenda Marshall.)
photos |
| Santa
Fe Trail (1940) (v) Flynn portrays Cavalry Captain Jeb Stuart
in this pre-Civil War epic centering around the exploits of anti-slaver
John Brown (Raymond Massey). Olivia de Havilland and Ronald Reagan also
co-star. photo |
| Dive
Bomber (1941) (v) One of many war-time films to glorify the armed
services, this film was given the big-budget Technicolor treatment. Flynn
plays a flight surgeon dedicated to improving pilot safety. Alexis Smith,
Fred MacMurray and Ralph Bellamy co-star. |
| Footsteps
in the Dark (1941) (v) Uneven combination of comedy and mystery,
this film has Flynn leading a double life as 'respectable' investment counselor
who moonlights as a mystery novelist, causing no end of trouble with his
understandably confused wife (Brenda Marshall.) photo |
| They
Died with Their Boots On (1941) (v) One of Flynn's most memorable
performances was as General George Armstrong Custer in this epic western
adventure. Hollywood fictionalized a good deal of the colorful Custer's
story, but it remains stirring entertainment. photos |
| Gentleman
Jim (1942) (v) Flynn perfectly cast as boxer James J. Corbett,
the 'dandy' who was heavyweight champion of the world in the early 1900s.
Flynn was rarely, if ever, doubled in the meticulously re-created fight
scenes; he had an excellent sparring partner out of the ring as well in
co-star Alexis Smith. photos |
|
Desperate Journey (1942) (v) Flynn is the commanding officer
of a downed RAF plane - he and his intrepid crew are relentlessly pursued
by evil Nazi Raymond Massey. Ronald Reagan also co-stars. photo |
|
Edge of Darkness (1943) (v) Intriguing and well-done drama
of Norwegian villagers fighting Nazi occupation. Flynn's co-stars include
Ann Sheridan and Walter Huston. photos |
| Thank
Your Lucky Stars (1943) A "cavalcade of stars to benefit Allied
charities", with Flynn one of many Warner Bros stars making cameo appearances.
His Cockney rendition of a song in a pub, "That's What You Jolly Well
Get" is a parody that is quite entertaining. |
| Northern
Pursuit (1943) (v) Flynn is a Canadian Mountie who must feign
defection in order to stop a group of Nazi saboteurs from infiltrating Hudson
Bay. |
| Uncertain
Glory (1944) (v) The story of a convicted murderer (Flynn) who
escapes execution during a WWII air raid, but is caught by a detective (Paul
Lukas) and persuaded to redeem himself by giving his life for his country. |
| San
Antonio (1945) (v) Flynn is a cattleman in 1977 Texas who brings
down a syndicate of cattle thieves while romancing the lovely Alexis Smith.
|
| Objective,
Burma! (1945) (v) Flynn gives one of his most understated and
yet best performances as leader of a paratroop unit on a dangerous mission
to destroy a Japanese radar station in the jungles of Burma. One of the
few movies about World War II that holds up today as more than just propaganda.
Unable to serve because of heart and other physical problems, Flynn played
down heroics to portray a more realistic military hero in the film, which
he considered one of his favorites. photo |
| Never
Say Goodbye (1946) (v) Light comedy with Flynn as womanizing
artist trying to win back his estranged wife (Eleanor Parker), with the
help of their precocious young daughter (Patti Brady.) |
| Escape
Me Never (1947) (v) Underrated, offbeat film with Flynn playing
likeable but irresponsible musician Sebastian Dubrok, who takes in a waif
(Ida Lupino) and her baby to save them from starvation. But when Sebastian
falls for his brother Caryl's (Gig Young) beautiful fianceé (Eleanor
Parker), he must do some serious reforming before finally settling down
with the woman who truly loves him. photos |
| Cry
Wolf (1947) (v) Barbara Stanwyck co-stars in this melodramatic
mystery about hidden family secrets - complete with creepy manison, sinister
master (Flynn), suspicious servants, and things that go bump in the night.
|
| Silver
River (1948) (v) Flynn plays unscrupulous gambler, cashiered
from the Union Army, who lets nothing stand in his way of becoming the undisputed
silver mining mogul of the West. Ann Sheridan co-stars. photo |
| Adventures
of Don Juan (1949) (v) If not quite in the same league as Flynn's
films of a decade earlier, this final big-budget swashbuckler of his career
is one of his most enjoyable. He plays the legendary lover with an effortless
charm and engagingly wry humor; his Don Juan de Maraña is still lithe
and dashing, but has become a bit world-weary. The Technicolor film gently
spoofs Flynn's own reputation as a ladies' man, as well as presenting magnificent
sets, a lush score by Max Steiner, and spectacular sword duels.
photos |
| That
Forsyte Woman (1949) (v) Based on the John Galsworthy trilogy,
The Forsyte Saga. Flynn gives a strong (and uncharacteristic) performance
as the stuffy, upper-middle-class Victorian who refuses to give up his rebellious
wife (Greer Garson) to either Robert Young or Walter Pidgeon. photos |
| It's
a Great Feeling (1949) Behind-the-scenes Hollywood musical in
which many top Warner Bros. stars had cameo appearances. Doris Day
plays a waitress picked by Dennis Morgan and Jack Carson for a starring
role in their next movie; later, Doris is disenchanted with Hollywood
and returns home to Wisconsin to marry her boyfriend - who turns
out to be none other than Errol Flynn. Yikes! |
