Captain Blood

UPC: 012569591424

Studio: Warner Home Video

MPAA Rating: NR   Contains:[Suitable for Children]

Summary: When British actor Robert Donat dropped out of Warner Bros. Captain Blood, the studio took a chance on its new contractee, Tasmania-born Errol Flynn. Adapted from the novel by Rafael Sabatini, the film is set during the oppressive reign of King James II. Irish physician Peter Blood (Errol Flynn), arrested for treating a wounded anti-crown rebel, is condemned to slavery in Jamaica. Here he earns several privileges after treating the governor (George Hassell) for gout; this does not rest well with Lionel Atwill, the wicked owner of the plantation on which Blood is forced to work. Nor is Atwill pleased with the growing relationship between his niece Arabella (Olivia DeHavilland) and the imprisoned doctor. An attack on Jamaica by Spanish pirates gives Blood and his fellow slaves the opportunity to become buccaneers themselves. After several months of fighting and plunder, Blood's men capture a merchant ship bearing Arabella. Blood fights a duel with a French pirate (Basil Rathbone) over the girl; having "won" her, Blood intends to have his way with her, but his more decent instincts prevail. When King James is overthrown by William of Orange, Blood is given a commission and lauded as a hero as a reward for his bravery against the Spanish galleons. He is appointed governor of Jamaica, wins the hand of the lovely Arabella, and genially forces Atwill to eat crow. This seemingly outsized swashbuckler was actually a very economical production, using stock footage from several silent films. Captain Blood transformed the 26-year-old Errol Flynn into a star; he's a little clumsy in the dialogue department at times, but cuts a dashing figure in the action scenes. The film also represented the cinematic debut of composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold, who wasn't completely happy with his hastily written score and asked that his on-screen credit be diminished to "musical director". Long available only in its 99 minute re-issue version, Captain Blood has been restored to its full, glorious 119 minute length. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Category: Adventure

Awards: Best Picture – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Sound – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences

Features: ccLeonard Maltin hosts Warner Night at the movies 1935 with:
Newsreel
Musical short Johnny Green and His Orchestra
Comedy short All-American Drawback
Cartoon billboard frolics
Theatrical trailers
New featurette Captain Blood: A Swashbuckler Is Born
Audio-only bonus: Radio production with the film's stars
English and French languages
English, French, and Spanish subtitles

Captain Blood

Format: Digital Video Disc (DVD)

Release Date: 04/19/2005

Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 Pre-1954 Standard

Audio: DD1 Dolby Digital Mono

Runtime: 119 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1 --
1. Credits [1:42]
2. Arrested [4:50]
3. Guilty of Treason [6:00]
4. Living Death [2:54]
5. Her Very Humble Slave [5:16]
6. The FT Brand [2:20]
7. Governor's Physician [3:37]
8. For All It's Worth [5:50]
9. Makings of a Crew [2:39]
10. Chosen Company [4:06]
11. Talking Too Much [3:25]
12. Feeling Hopeless [3:08]
13. Timely Interruption [2:41]
14. Escape Through Port Royal [2:57]
15. Ship and Town Taken [3:03]
16. Taste of Their Own Iron [2:59]
17. Over the Side, Up Anchor [5:06]
18. The Name of Blood [:57]
19. Iron Man Needed [2:50]
20. Sail on, Little Ship [2:00]
21. The Greatest Captains [2:51]
22. Levasseur's Captives [4:35]
23. Blood's Purchase [4:51]
24. Partnership Ended [3:38]
25. His Possession Now [3:15]
26. Chivalry or Idiocy? [2:29]
27. Destination Jamaica [3:51]
28. My Life's My Own [2:36]
29. New King, New Mission [3:36]
30. One Ship Down [4:03]
31. Boarding the Enemy [4:46]
32. New Governor [5:55]

Richard Gilliam

Captain Blood is typical of the better-grade Warner Bros. efforts of the mid-1930s, combining first-rate production values with heavy-duty star power. Directed by Michael Curtiz with his usual economical style and talent for staging complex sequences, the film is among the best of the adventure films of its era, if at times too talkative for a film with only formulaic things to say. The United States was still suffering from the Great Depression in 1935, and films like Captain Blood provided audiences with inexpensive relief from the struggles of the era: the hero is handsome, the beautiful maiden is appealing, good triumphs over evil, and there's a happy ending, all to the stirring music of Erich Wolfgang Korngold. ~ Richard Gilliam, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Stuart Casey  Actor 
Reginald Barlow  Actor 
Yola D'Avril  Actor 
Gardner James  Actor 
Andre Cheron  Actor 
Maude Leslie  Actor 
Frank Puglia  Actor 
Ivan Simpson  Actor 
Harry Cording  Actor 
Chris-Pin Martin  Actor 
E.E. Clive  Actor 
Alphonse Martell  Actor 
Tom Wilson  Actor 
Denis D'Auburn  Actor 
Halliwell Hobbes  Actor 
Georges Renavent  Actor 
Tina Minard  Actor 
Pedro de Cordoba  Actor 
Colin Kenny  Actor 
Leonard Mudie  Actor 
Mary Forbes  Actor 
Murray Kinnell  Actor 
Henry Otho  Actor 
David Thursby  Actor 
Harry Joe Brown  Producer 
Michael Curtiz  Director 
Ahsi N. Eslid  Producer 
Hugo W. Friedhofer  Composer (Music Score) 
Ray Heindorf  Composer (Music Score) 
Erich Wolfgang Korngold  Composer (Music Score) 
Casey Robinson  Screenwriter 
Errol Flynn  Actor 
Olivia de Havilland  Actor 
Basil Rathbone  Actor 
Lionel Atwill  Actor 
Ross Alexander  Actor 
Guy Kibbee  Actor 
Henry Stephenson  Actor 
Robert H. Barrat  Actor 
Hobart Cavanaugh  Actor 
Donald Meek  Actor 
Jessie Ralph  Actor 
Forrester Harvey  Actor 
Frank McGlynn, Sr.  Actor 
Holmes Herbert  Actor 
David Torrence  Actor 
J. Carrol Naish  Actor 
George Hassell  Actor 
Vernon Steele  Actor 

Country: USA