The Charge of the Light Brigade

Director Michael Curtiz went all out in this 1936 version of "The Charge of the Light Brigade", and considering the era, he made a darn good job of it - sure, he threw history out of the window, and created a very fictitious story, but when it came to the actual Charge, it was a masterpiece of staging and direction. He was aided by that great pair - Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland (lovely as usual!) who kept the interest all the way through. The supporting cast was really star-studded, with Donald Crisp, Henry Stephenson, Nigel Bruce and Spring Byington, and in a very early role in his career, David Niven. If you had to pinpoint a weak link, it was Patric Knowles as Flynn's brother. But all that aside, it is a couple of hours of excitement and sheer entertainment while waiting for the Charge and what is going to happen to the nasty Surat Khan!! The remakes since, while having the benefits of far greater technical tools, falls way short of this epic.

In the mid 1930s and well into the 40s, Warner Brothers made many fine films starring Errol Flynn that were very high on production values and fun but also of dubious historical value. While historically speaking this is not the worst of the lot (that honor goes to SANTA FE TRAIL), this film doesn't seem to have a lot to do with the Tennyson poem or the Crimean War and in fact, much of the movie is set around the same region of the world as GUNGA DIN--around Pakistan or Afghanistan. So, assuming you aren't looking for a history lesson, the film is packed full of excellent acting, sets and fast-paced fun. Part of the reason I particularly liked it was because it teamed Errol Flynn with Olivia de Havilland--a wonderful combination that began with CAPTAIN BLOOD and lasted for seven films. So, if you like this film, check out all their other films together--especially CAPTAIN BLOOD and THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD. Their chemistry was always excellent and it is further enhanced by such wonderful supporting actors as Henry Stephenson, Nigel Bruce, Donald Crisp and David Niven.

The movie starts of as your average period drama with a love triangle and formulaic, typical '30's dramatic moments. However about halve way through the movie its story takes a turn and turns into a delicious action filled epic, with the charge of the light brigade at the ending as the icing on the cake.

I watched this film without really knowing what to expect of it. I knew Errol Flynn was in it, so I expected an adventurous movie with lots of memorable action sequence. The movie started of just like Michael Bay's "Pearl Harbor", with a love triangle story between the Errol Flynn character, his brother played by Patric Knowles and Olivia de Havilland. Flynn and de Havilland surely are one of the best screen couples of all time, so those moments are still better and more enjoyable than your average '30's love filled drama. But just like "Pearl Harbor" the best moments of the movie are in the second part, in the action sequences. The movie takes epic proportions in its action sequences, which are big and spectacularly brought to the screen. It makes the first part of the movie feel kind of obsolete and yes, it is definitely true that you can basically skip the whole first part of the movie, with the exceptions of a few sequences maybe, which are important for the development of the story and certain characters.

The story itself is quite fascinating, with the exception of the whole love triangle thing of course. It's based on true events, although the movie takes lots of liberties with the story but this really does the movie no harm. It doesn't make the actions of the light brigade seem any less noble or heroic, so the movie does the true story justice in my opinion. The several plot lines of the story are well developed in the story. I especially like the sequences with the political game between Surat Khan and the Russians with the British. There are some subtle sequences with some very well written and clever dialog. The drama in the movie is also surprisingly heavy. When you watch an Errol Flynn action flick you expect to see some lighthearted fun action sequences but in this movie the action is heavy, powerful and dramatic.

The cast is great! Errol Flynn is in his element as the popular and noble gentleman Maj. Geoffrey Vickers. Olivia de Havilland is also fine as always and it also was great to see David Niven in one of his first roles before he received real fame as an actor. It's amazing to see that he basically already looked the same in this movie as he did in movies that were made 40 years later. His role is quite small and not really significant but his presence is notable. Also really great was C. Henry Gordon as the cold-hearted villain Surat Khan, which starts of like a much warmer character. As the movie progresses he becomes more and more ruthless and he turns into almost a James Bond like villain, which works actually very well for such an adventurous action filled epic like this movie.

Based purely on all those things I just mentioned I would had rated this movie an 7 out of 10. But then came the ending...

Quite honestly, I was blown away by the ending. I simply did not expected to see such a large scale, complex action sequence in a 1936 movie. The charge in which literally hundreds of cavalry men, attack a Russian stronghold which is supported with numerous cannons is impressive to say the very least. Seeing all those hundreds of cavalry men, with Errol Flynn of course in front, riding up through the valley of death to an almost certain doom is extremely powerful. These are not CGI horses like for most part was the cast in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, this is the real thing! Horses and men flying around by the firing cannons and Errol's friends dying around him, as they come more and more closer to the Russians and Surat Khan. It such a arousing and spectacular filmed sequence that it still holds up by todays standards. Unfortunately also hundreds of horses and one stunt person got killed during the filming of the end charge. But to be honest, 1 person seems so few when you look at that sequences. I mean, men are flying and dropping from their horses like puppets, while horses ride around them within close range!

A classic epic. See this movie, if already alone for the unforgettable, arousing end charge of the light brigade.

8/10

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This is Hollywood History at its best. It has nothing to do with the real Crimean War, the Battle of Balaclava, or the Charge of the Light Brigade. It has everything to do with Errol Flynn, Olivia deHavilland, Michael Curtiz, and Max Steiner. Basically, this is a quintessential Warner Bros. adventure film of 1936, one of the best of the breed.

The story starts in Southern California -- or rather, Northern India -- on the outskirts of the British Empire. This setting had been picked up and dusted off after 1935's "Lives of a Bengal Lancer", and would be recreated for "Gunga Din" a few years later, with the same locations and similar plots. Flynn leads a company of British lancers in skirmishes with the local rajah, the villainous Surat Khan -- you can tell he's the villain because of his evil goatee -- and a betrayal and a massacre leads to a mission of vengeance, which reaches its climax in Tennyson's Valley of Death in the Crimea.

Opposite Flynn is, naturally, Olivia deHavilland, without whom Flynn would be lost. Patric Knowles, who played Will Scarlett in Flynn's "Adventures of Robin Hood", is Flynn's brother; David Niven is his sidekick; and Henry Stephenson, Donald Crisp, and Nigel Bruce are the top brass. Director Michael Curtiz brings out another energetic performance from Flynn, although his character here lacks the depths of the heroes of "Captain Blood" or "The Dawn Patrol". Max Steiner's score complements the action perfectly.

"The Charge of the Light Brigade" is quite an epic production, and notorious for the number of horses killed in the battle scenes. That knowledge puts a bit of a damper on the excitement, but it also led to the safety restrictions in place today, banning trip-wires and ensuring the well-being of animals in movies; so, ultimately a good thing. No such measures were ever taken to protect history from the ravages of Hollywood screenwriters: Surat Khan and the country of Suristan never existed, nor did Flynn's 27th Lancers, and although there was indeed a charge at Balaklava, it didn't happen for the reasons depicted in this film. But Flynn and Curtiz didn't care, and neither should the audience.

Well, if you want to learn about crimean war or the famous attack, put into immortal words by Tennyson's poem, this one is definitely not for you. Turn to the 1968 GB movie of the same title for this. If you want thrilling entertainment and great battle scenes, this one is right for you. Errol Flynn at his usual best except loosing his usual love interest (O.d. Havilland) to his younger brother and his life to his revenge. The war scenes are staged perfectly alike Custer's fight in They died with their boots ... and the acting is good, also for younger side kicks like David Niven. Taking for the entertainment it is, not for anything serious and you will love it.