The Sea Hawk – Blu ray Review (1 Viewer)

[t1g3r5fan]

Few actors are as synonymous with the swashbuckler than Errol Flynn was during the 1930’s and 1940’s. After a smashing breakthrough debut with Captain Blood (1935), The Sea Hawk was to be the follow up, but ended up getting pushed back a few years while Errol went on to even greater heights, especially with The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938); when it finally came out, it further cemented his status as a legend in the genre. Previously released on DVD by Warner Bros., it finally makes it long awaited Blu-ray debut as part of the Warner Archive.



The Sea Hawk (1940)



Released: 31 Aug 1940
Rated: Approved
Runtime: 127 min




Director: Michael Curtiz
Genre: Action, Adventure, History, Romance



Cast: Errol Flynn, Brenda Marshall, Claude Rains, Donald Crisp
Writer(s): Howard Koch (screen play), Seton I. Miller (screen play)...

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[John Hodson]

This is a quite brilliant upgrade from Warners previous DVD, and they have to be congratulated for the work they've put in here. Superb.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

I preordered this the second it was announced but I haven’t found the time to watch it yet. I think I’m gonna have to act a little more urgently on this. Great review, and thanks for reminding me that I need to get to it!

 

[dpippel]

It is GORGEOUS, Josh.

 

[bujaki]

I literally let out a scream of surprised pleasure!

 

[Mark McSherry]

For me, one of the best moments (~49:30 mark), is when Brenda Marshall drops the flowers in the garden---

We see Flynn with a slight smile, then a cut-

To the image of Marshall facing the camera in the middle distance, Flynn with his back nearer the camera-
All framed by an archway with clinging flowers.

And while we hear the subdued but lush Korngold score, the camera slowly advances through the archway as Flynn steps to help Marshall.

Projected on a large screen, it's both gorgeous and sublime.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Yeah, I’m psyched! I had a backlog of titles to write official reviews for and now that I’m nearly at the bottom of that pile, I can give this attention it deserves. I haven’t seen this since WPIX in NY would air it on weekends in the 80s!

 

[Robert Crawford]

Yeah, I’m psyched! I had a backlog of titles to write official reviews for and now that I’m nearly at the bottom of that pile, I can give this attention it deserves. I haven’t seen this since WPIX in NY would air it on weekends in the 80s!

Man, you're in for a real treat then as I think this was one of the best BD releases in the last year.

 

[Noel Aguirre]

Wow I finally receive mine from the last Warner’s sale and watching it now. That score! And this print! Talk about inky blacks.

 

[titch]

Such a shame not enough people purchased it for Warner Archive to release Captain Blood.

 

[commander richardson]

Such a shame not enough people purchased it for Warner Archive to release Captain Blood.

BD of Captain Blood you say is unlikely to be forthcoming and this is really sad . Problem is not many of the young today have ever heard of : Errol Flynn .....which is even sadder .

 

[Robert Crawford]

BD of Captain Blood you say is unlikely to be forthcoming and this is really sad . Problem is not many of the young today have ever heard of : Errol Flynn .....which is even sadder .

I'm not so sure that's even accurate.

 

[Noel Aguirre]

I had never heard of Brenda Marshall in The Sea Hawk - what a beautiful woman. And not bad as an actor either!
Funny I remember her in the I Love Lucy episode Wiki mentions but had no idea who she really was.

 

[Robert Crawford]

I had never heard of Brenda Marshall in The Sea Hawk - what a beautiful woman. And not bad as an actor either!
Funny I remember her in the I Love Lucy episode Wiki mentions but had no idea who she really was.

She was in some movies I liked, but I think she kind of stop acting in movies after marrying William Holden.

 

[Bert Greene]

Brenda Marshall is great in "Strange Impersonation" (1946), a wildly improbable, but very enjoyable B-film.

 

[Will Krupp]

I think Brenda Marshall was incredibly beautiful, with a very fresh, timeless look. Curiously, she's one of those rare actors whose real name, Ardis Ankerson, sounds more like a "movie star" name than the one they gave her. I assume the studio named her "Brenda" because she looked so much like the most famous debutante of all time, Brenda Frazier, who was all the rage in the late 1930's.

 

[lark144]

I particularly like Brenda Marshall in "Captains of the Clouds". She looks fabulous in Technicolor, and seems more spunky and alive, with a smile that has simpatico as well as gutsiness. Also a faster dialogue delivery, her comebacks have more spirit; which may be Cagney's influence.

 

[Andrew Budgell]

BD of Captain Blood you say is unlikely to be forthcoming and this is really sad . Problem is not many of the young today have ever heard of : Errol Flynn .....which is even sadder .

WAC has released a number of Blu-rays of films that didn't seem likely only a year or two ago, so I remain optimistic. I'd love a Blu-ray of Captain Blood.

 

[Will Krupp]

I particularly like Brenda Marshall in "Captains of the Clouds". She looks fabulous in Technicolor, and seems more spunky and alive, with a smile that has simpatico as well as gutsiness. Also a faster dialogue delivery, her comebacks have more spirit; which may be Cagney's influence.

I have girl crushes on Brenda Marshall, Florence Rice, Peggy Moran, and Marjorie Weaver. Though they were never first rung stars, I'd watch anything the four of them ever did and with pleasure.

 

[Harold Chasen]

WAC has released a number of Blu-rays of films that didn't seem likely only a year or two ago, so I remain optimistic.

This is very important to emphasize. Just because they haven't announced Captain Blood, or any other specific title, doesn't mean that they aren't going to release it. Possibly in the next batch of announcements, possibly next year, or who knows when. The past few months have definitively shown that when it comes to WAC, everything is on the table for a possible release at some point. And while some of the titles have clear links to what has gone before (eg, Dr. X coming soon after Mystery of the Wax Museum), many don't. The ways of the Warner Archive are mysterious, and accepting that is the way to avoid making oneself crazy over what gets released and when, and what is still not available.