Captain Blood (1935) (1935)
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100% of critics liked it
(24 reviews) -
87% of users liked it
(7,914 ratings)
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),… More 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
- Directed By
- Michael Curtiz
- Written By
- Casey Robinson
- Genres
- Classics, Action & Adventure
- In Theaters
- Dec 28, 1935 Wide
- Studio
- Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
Critic Reviews
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Don Druker, Chicago Reader
Michael Curtiz, the most polished of Warner's studio technicians, starts Flynn off royally.
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Variety Staff, Variety
It's a spectacle which will establish both Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland.
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Andre Sennwald, New York Times
With a spirited and criminally good-looking Australian named Errol Flynn playing the genteel buccaneer to the hilt, the photoplay recaptures the air of high romantic adventure which is so essential to the tale.
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, Time Out
The movie that launched both Flynn and the '30s cycle of swashbucklers.
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, TV Guide's Movie Guide
Flynn's star-making swashbuckler is right on target.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Errol Flynn
as Peter Blood
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Olivia de Havilland
as Arabella Bishop
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Basil Rathbone
as Capt. Levasseur
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Lionel Atwill
as Col. Bishop
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Ross Alexander
as Jeremy Pitt
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Guy Kibbee
as Hagthorpe
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Henry Stephenson
as Lord Willoughby
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Robert H. Barrat
as Wolverstone
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Hobart Cavanaugh
as Dr. Bronson
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Donald Meek
as Dr. Whacker
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Jessie Ralph
as Mrs. Barlowe
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Forrester Harvey
as Honesty Nuttall
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Frank McGlynn Sr.
as Rev. Ogle
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Holmes Herbert
as Capt. Gardner
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David Torrence
as Andrew Baynes
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J. Carrol Naish
as Cahusac
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George Hassell
as Gen. Steed
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Vernon Steele
as King James
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Reginald Barlow
as Dixon
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Stuart Casey
as Capt. Hobart
- Andre Cheron
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E.E. Clive
as Court Clerk
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Harry Cording
as Kent
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Denis D'Auburn
as Lord Gildoy
- Yola d'Avril
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Pedro de Cordoba
as Don Diego
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Mary Forbes
as Mrs. Steed
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Halliwell Hobbes
as Lord Sunderland
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James Gardner
as Branded Slave
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Colin Kenny
as Lord Chester Dyke
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Murray Kinnell
as Clerk in Gov. Steed's Court
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Maude Leslie
as Mrs. Baynes
- Alphonse Martell
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Chris-Pin Martin
as Sentry
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Leonard Mudie
as Lord Jeffries
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Henry Otho
as Pirate
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Frank Puglia
as French Officer
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Georges Renavent
as French Captain
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Ivan Simpson
as Prosecutor
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David Thursby
as Lookout
- Tom Wilson
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Tina Minard
as Girls in Tavern
- Robert Barrat
- Harry Joe Brown

