The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Alfred Lord Tennyson (poem)
Michael Jacoby (story)
(more)

Release Date:

20 October 1936 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Romance | War

Tagline:

The reckless lancers sweep on and on - so that a woman's heart might not be broken! You're not fighting a single legion - you're fighting the entire British army, Surat Khan!

Plot:

A major countermands orders and attacks to revenge a previous massacre of men, women and children.

Plot Keywords:

Massacre | Attack | India | Lancer | Sepoy

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Errol Flynn	...	Major Geoffrey Vickers
Olivia de Havilland	...	Elsa Campbell (as Olivia De Havilland)
Patric Knowles	...	Captain Perry Vickers
Henry Stephenson	...	Sir Charles Macefield
Nigel Bruce	...	Sir Benjamin Warrenton
Donald Crisp	...	Colonel Campbell
David Niven	...	Captain James Randall
C. Henry Gordon	...	Surat Khan
G.P. Huntley	...	Major Jowett (as G.P. Huntley Jr.)
Robert Barrat	...	Count Igor Volonoff
Spring Byington	...	Lady Octavia Warrenton
E.E. Clive	...	Sir Humphrey Harcourt
J. Carrol Naish	...	Subahdar-Major Puran Singh (as J. Carroll Naish)
Walter Holbrook	...	Cornet Charles Barclay
Princess Baba	...	Prema's Mother (as Princess Baigum)
Charles Sedgwick	...	Cornet Lawrence Pearson
Scotty Beckett	...	Prema Singh
George Regas	...	Wazir
Helen Sanborn	...	Mrs. Jowett
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jimmy Aubrey	...	Orderly (uncredited)
Frank Baker	...	Officer (uncredited)
Dick Botiller	...	Native (uncredited)
David Cavendish	...	Orderly (uncredited)
Phyllis Coghlan	...	Woman at Ball (uncredited)
Charles Croker-King	...	Lord Cardigan (uncredited)
Jack Curtis	...	Sepoy (uncredited)
George David	...	Suristani (uncredited)
Herbert Evans	...	Majordomo (uncredited)
Martin Garralaga	...	Panjari (uncredited)
Lumsden Hare	...	Colonel Woodward (uncredited)
Gordon Hart	...	Colonel Coventry (uncredited)
Ben Hendricks Jr.	...	Officer (uncredited)
Holmes Herbert	...	General O'Neill (uncredited)
Shep Houghton	...	Soldier (uncredited)
Brandon Hurst	...	Lord Raglan (uncredited)
Olaf Hytten	...	Officer (uncredited)
Boyd Irwin	...	General Dunbar (uncredited)
Colin Kenny	...	Major Anderson (uncredited)
Crauford Kent	...	Captain Brown (uncredited)
Jon Kristen	...	Panjari (uncredited)
Frank Lackteen	...	Panjari (uncredited)
Wilfred Lucas	...	Captain (uncredited)
Lal Chand Mehra	...	Sepoy (uncredited)
Carlyle Moore Jr.	...	Junior Officer (uncredited)
Stephen Moritz	...	Sepoy (uncredited)
Georges Renavent	...	General Canrobert (uncredited)
Carlos San Martín	...	Court Interpreter (uncredited)
Harry Semels	...	Sepoy Chief (uncredited)
Reginald Sheffield	...	Bentham (uncredited)
R. Singh	...	Orderly (uncredited)
George Sorel	...	Surwan (uncredited)
Arthur Thalasso	...	Sepoy (uncredited)
David Thursby	...	Orderly (uncredited)
Michael Visaroff	...	Russian General (uncredited)

Directed by
Michael Curtiz

Writing credits
Alfred Lord Tennyson		(poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade")
Michael Jacoby		(story) (as Michel Jacoby)
Michael Jacoby		(screenplay) (as Michel Jacoby) and
Rowland Leigh		(screenplay)

Produced by
Samuel Bischoff	....	associate producer (uncredited)
Hal B. Wallis	....	executive producer (uncredited)
Jack L. Warner	....	executive producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Max Steiner

Cinematography by
Sol Polito		(photography by)

Film Editing by
George Amy

Art Direction by
John Hughes

Costume Design by
Milo Anderson		(gowns)

Makeup Department
Ray Romero	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Robert J. Schiffer	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Production Management
Frank Mattison	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
B. Reeves Eason	....	second unit director (uncredited)
Frank Heath	....	second assistant director (uncredited)
Jack Sullivan	....	assistant director (uncredited)
Fred Tyler	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Harper Goff	....	set designer (uncredited)
John More	....	props (uncredited)
Herbert Plews	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Harold Hanks	....	sound recordist (uncredited)
Nathan Levinson	....	sound (uncredited)
C.A. Riggs	....	sound (uncredited)
Frank Weixel	....	boom operator (uncredited)
Dick H. Williams	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Fred Jackman	....	special photographic effects
Hans F. Koenekamp	....	special effects (uncredited)

Stunts
Frank Baker	....	stunts (uncredited)
Yakima Canutt	....	stunt double: Errol Flynn (uncredited)
Iron Eyes Cody	....	stunts (uncredited)
John Epper	....	stunts (uncredited)
Herbert Holcombe	....	stunts (uncredited)
Buddy Mason	....	stunt double: Errol Flynn (uncredited)
Leo J. McMahon	....	stunts (uncredited)
Jack Montgomery	....	stunts (uncredited)
Spike Spackman	....	stunts (uncredited)
Tom Steele	....	stunts (uncredited)
Don Turner	....	stunts (uncredited)
Buster Wiles	....	stunt double (uncredited)
Jack Williams	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Frank Evans	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Frank Flanagan	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Al Green	....	second camera operator (uncredited)
Mac Julian	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Harold Noyes	....	grip (uncredited)
John Polito	....	second camera operator (uncredited)
Cliff Shirpser	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Lloyd Ward	....	assistant camera (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Mary Dery	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Allan Taylor	....	wardrobe (uncredited)
Henry West	....	wardrobe (uncredited)

Music Department
Leo F. Forbstein	....	musical director
R.H. Bassett	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Maurice De Packh	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Hugo Friedhofer	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
George Parrish	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Sam Harris	....	technical advisor: military drills and tactics (as Major Sam Harris Ret. A.L.H.)
Stanley Logan	....	dialogue director
E. Rochfort-John	....	technical advisor (as Captain E. Rochfort-John)
Frank Fox	....	script clerk (uncredited)
Irving Rapper	....	dialogue director (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributors

• Warner Bros. Pictures (1936) (USA) (theatrical)
• Vitaphone Corporation, The (1936) (USA) (theatrical) (as The Vitaphone Corp'n)
• Dominant Pictures Corporation (1957) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release)
• CBS/Fox Home Video (198?) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1991) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (2007) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Western Costume Company  costumes (uncredited)

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #2156) | Australia:G | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Finland:K-16 | Portugal:M/12 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Agoura Hills, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

In the famous charge scene, the man leaping up from the ground and remounting his racing horse is not Errol Flynn, but stuntman Buster Wiles.

Goofs:

Plot holes: A single shot kills Randall. How is it that this was not heard by anyone, or reported to Vickers or the Colonel?

Quotes:

[first lines]
Sir Humphrey Harcourt: How do you fellows manage to look so comfortably, Vickers?
Maj. Geoffrey Vickers: We may look it Sir, but we're not. They say the first 40 years are about the hottest up here on the frontier, after that you get used to it.
Sir Humphrey Harcourt: Really?

Movie Connections:

Featured in It's Showtime (1976)

Soundtrack:

God Save the Tsar

Fictional version of historical charge is highly entertaining...

As usual, Warner Bros. bent historical facts to provide ERROL FLYNN with some noble heroics in epics like this one and THEY DIED WITH THEIR BOOTS ON. And as in BOOTS, it takes quite a bit of fictional footage to get to the climactic charge, but it's well worth waiting for.

Flynn has a role tailor-made to his specifications, the noble hero who looks even more splendid than ever wearing a trim mustache and military uniform. The script, in a twist, has his brother (PATRIC KNOWLES), who looks enough like Flynn to be his real brother, winning over the heart of the heroine (OLIVIA de HAVILLAND) at a military outpost in India. Flynn, as Major Vickers, decides to avenge the massacre of British women and children at the fort, thus forging the orders that lead to the famous charge.

All of it is strictly meant to entertain, offering political background of a confusing sort to give an idea of the events surrounding the charge. While all of it has been falsified for the sake of providing a screenplay that makes Flynn the noblest of heroes, there is no denying the epic sweep of the derring do and romance.

Flynn and screen partner de Havilland make a handsome couple and they are supported by a fine bunch of actors from Hollywood's British film colony, notably Patric Knowles, David Niven and Donald Crisp. Max Steiner has provided one of his best military background scores that gives added dimension to the exciting battle scenes.

For Flynn fans, this is a must see. For anyone expecting to see an historical account of the Charge, better tune in to the History Channel for that sort of stuff. But as entertainment, CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE delivers the goods and should make Flynn and de Havilland fans happy.