El capitán O'Flynn

Douglas Fairbanks Junior plays the title role in this Napoleonic era swashbuckler .He is newly returned from the wars against that cantankerous and objectionable Corsican midget ,Buonaparte,and looks forward to revisiting his old haunts in Ireland but is caught up in a plot by the villainous Viceregent ,Lord Sedgemouth (Richard Greene -for once cast as a baddie ,and doing a decent job of it too) .That is not the whole extent of Sedgemouth's depravity however for not only does he wish to facilitate a French invasion of Ireland where the French armies would be joined by Irish rebels but he has set his cap at the fair Lady Bernadetta (the winsome ,is slightly wan Helana Carter) O'Flynn's childhood sweetheart. Much derring do ensues-swords clash and there are secret trysts and much lively if a tad broad,comedy etc.is stirred into the mix Fairbanks seems to be gently and affectionately guying the genre and actors like his father and Errol Flynn are gently satirised -it is worth noting that he also had a hand in the screenplay ,along with Robert Thoeren .

Colour would have been a help as would livelier direction by Arthu Pierson .Notwithstanding,this is a nice fun little movie and most people who catch it would probably enjoy the experience

Until he was well established with his own reputation Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. eschewed playing roles like The Fighting O'Flynn that would draw comparison with his father. In fact his first costume epic was the British Elizabeth Bergner production of Catherine The Great and his was not exactly a swashbuckling role. Later on before World War II with his reputation well established, Jayar as his dad called him did great work in The Prisoner Of Zenda and The Corsican Brothers.

But after the war Fairbanks claimed the Fairbanks swashbuckling legacy with Sinbad The Sailor, The Exile, and The Fighting O'Flynn. Fairbanks also produced The Fighting O'Flynn and did a wonderful job of creating the character of The O'Flynn whose first name like Lieutenant Columbo we are never destined to learn.

As was also well known at the time the younger Fairbanks was the most known Anglophile in America and it would not due to have Fairbanks show the British as the villains, the occupiers of Ireland which they actually were. His rationale for being on the British side was to win the love of Helena Carter, daughter of the British viceroy who at the time though not named here was Lord Charles Cornwallis the guy who surrendered to Washington at Yorktown. But also Fairbanks does not fancy folks like the French and Dutch occupying Ireland either. Remember it was Dutchman William Of Orange who won the Battle of The Boyne and the Dutch were not well loved in Ireland either. And it's a Dutch agent Ludwig Donath who is the main intriguer in the plot.

Donath's fellow conspirator is British Lord Richard Greene who is engaged to marry Carter, but has Patricia Medina on the side. So this guy is a double dealer all around. Fairbanks takes a while to see through him, but of course saves Ireland from the French occupation which other Irishmen in real life like James Wolfe Tone were trying to make happen. The loss of the Irish Parliament was one of the consequences in real life that actually happened.

Fairbanks for me is one of those guys who is so filled with charm and style that I could have watched him on screen as The Fighting O'Flynn for double the running time of this film and begged for more. This man is handy with the ladies, a sword, or even a shillelagh when the situation calls and he has nothing else.

Though the film is full of Irish blarney as they come, The Fighting O'Flynn shows what Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. was all about on screen and its delightful entertainment.

Not a lot of people are familiar with The Fighting O'Flynn and for good reason. It's one of those Universal-owned productions of the 1940s that is, for the most part, frustratingly inaccessible today. I've only seen it because of a video recording made of the film when it was once broadcast on AMC.

And that's a shame, for this light hearted costume adventure, produced by Universal-International and star Douglas Fairbanks Jr.'s own company is a surprisingly entertaining affair, chock-full of outrageous heroics and good natured humour.

Fairbanks plays a charming Irish soldier-of-fortune returned to his native land from world travels at the picture's beginning in order to claim his inheritance from an uncle, Castle O'Flynn. On his way he encounters a beauty in a carriage who is besieged by what appear to be bandits.

O'Flynn single handedly saves her from these scoundrels, setting up the thin story line of the film involving spies and traitors and a plot by Napoleon to set up a base in Ireland preceding an invasion of England. And just how does poor Napoleon think that he's going to succeed if he has to take on an Irish rogue like O'Flynn?

It's a fairly handsome production, lensed in black-and-white, with nice sets and matte paintings of castles in the background. The cast is engaging and likable. Fairbanks, of course, is the dashing lead, and he gives a buoyant, enthusiastic performance, with a hint of an Irish accent that comes and goes.

Fairbanks' acting is fairly broad at times, not entirely unlike his earlier effort as Sinbad the Sailor, undoubtedly with his father's silent acting technique kept in mind, to a degree (though he was, in fact, a far more diversified actor than his father, having performed throughout the years in various films genres, aside from adventure).

It's interesting to compare Fairbanks' theatrical ever-smiling characterization to Errol Flynn's portrait of Don Juan, done about the same time. Flynn is cynical and quite subtle (a great performance in my opinion, even if he was physically past his prime), while Fairbanks is upbeat, optimistic and full of broad physical gestures.

There's a fun sequence set in a tavern in which the bragging Fairbanks is challenged to a duel by the film's chief villain, a smooth, elegant traitor, played by Richard Greene. Greene, however, is fairly drunk at this moment so Fairbanks, to even the score, proceeds to consume a large amount of liquor before starting the fight.

He overdoes it, however. In fact, he now sees two Richard Greenes standing before him. So Greene, to show that he, too, is a good sport about this duelling business, has some more beer, before the two start to have a fairly wild swinging saber fight. Perhaps this is a keen illustration of a duel that is not very good intentionally since both its protagonists are thoroughly looped. It also helps to cover up the fact that neither actor was particularly proficient with a sword in the first place. Only in this duel, that's okay.

The Fighting O'Flynn works its way up to an over-the-top climax on a castle battlement with swords clashing, rockets firing into a night sky, and Fairbanks triumphing single-handedly over five or six opponents. All very silly, of course, but also a lot of fun. And that's what a film like this is all about. This was Fairbanks' last costume adventure, and he went out with a good one.

There's a scene near the film's beginning in which Fairbanks, who often seems to be carrying a shillelagh in his hand, first sights his inherited castle. There's a low camera angle peering up at the actor as he beams a wide smile, extends both arms wide open to each side and enthusiastically proclaims, "Castle O'Flynn!!!" I smiled very broadly at this. There's no doubt that son was paying homage to his father then. It could have been right out of The Black Pirate. It's a moment that is pure Doug Fairbanks Senior.

For some reason, this film is not available for purchase anywhere. Strange, since so many worthless products are easy to locate. It is sad that this movie is so disregarded, in that this movie is Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.'s best performance. You could argue that Gunga Din is a better movie, and that is true. Still, Fairbanks' performance as O'Flynn far outshines his work in Gunga Din. He holds together a slim plot line, and has some of the wittiest dialog you will ever find in a movie. O'Flynn's character is a charmer, loved by men and women, and somewhat of a con man. The dialog has many nice touches. For example, O'Flynn knocks unconscious one of the French soldiers (Henry Brandon), who later gets the drop on O'Flynn. In an off-hand remark, O'Flynn says to the Frenchman, "You must have a terrible thick skull." A great touch. Perhaps because Fairbanks was the producer and wrote some of the screenplay, we are getting more than the run of the mill swashbuckler. His pursuit of the almost painfully prim Lady Benedetta (Helena Carter) is full of poetry, romance, and charm, and she even remarks that his words are "…very nimble and very Irish." The supporting cast are all veterans, and good performers. Aside from Helena Carter, Richard Greene portrays excellently the weak and corrupt Lord Sedgemonth. Arthur Shields and J.M. Kerrigan provide great repartee in the lighter moments. Patricia Medina is great as Lord Sedgemonth's paramour, Fancy Free, who "only likes the good life," and says the Lord Sedgemonth must do the right thing by her, "…give me money." Add to this a remarkably good musical score, and you have a great and entertaining movie. It is obvious that this film suffered from a small budget, since it was shot in black and white, and if nothing else, this film screams for color. Perhaps it could be looked upon as a lesson on how to do more with less. Fairbanks, in this film, is every bit of the "presumptuous popinjay" he is accused of being by Richard Greene. You could hardly spend a better 94 minutes.

In this lively adventure, a daring Irish leader tires to keep Napoleon from invading Ireland. There is some worry that The Little Corporal will attempt to take over Erin. Fairbanks, equally adroit with a saber, a rapier, a shillelagh, or a kiss, does a splendid job in what is almost, but not quite, a satire of Errol Flynn and even Fairbanks himself in THE CORSICAN BROTHERS. Fairbanks is traveling to a castle he has inherited when he rescues Carter, daughter of Viceroy Hare, as her coach is being waylaid. Fairbanks leaps from horse to horse, roof to roof, heart to heart, and saves Ireland from the duplicity of Greene, who is Hare's assistant and in Napoleon's employ. Very enjoyable nonsense with lots of derring-do from Fairbanks in the kind of role his dad used to play.