Beautiful Film

-

My dad's favorite film as a boy was Captain Blood starring Errol Flynn. I had the opportunity to see it for the first time this week, and I was pretty impressed. The storytelling was lively, and the cinematic qualities were strong. Here's the first shot that really caught my eye, a view of the sailors pulling on an oar or rod together but shot from behind and center.

The second shot below, taken from the big battle scene, reminds me of the "Raft of the Medusa" with its strong triangle composition.

This third shot is taken from the point of view of the top of the mast, looking down at the deck just as the French flag is cut down and falls to the men fighting below.

The fourth through seventh shots show the nice mix of shots throughout the battle scene, closeups, mid-shots, long shots, a single drummer, and the French ship sinking in front of Blood's pirate ship, the two of them together almost reminiscent of a Frank Gehry builidng.

 

A close-up of Errol Flynn in the eighth shot. I kept trying to think of who he reminded me of, and I came up with a cross between Christian Bale and Ryan Reynolds.

I also liked the title graphics and the way some of the early scenes looked influenced by German expressionism. Note that director Michael Curtiz also directed Casablanca, another black-and-white beauty.

-