The Sea Hawk (1940)

Popularity:

Down 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Michael Curtiz

Writers:

Howard Koch (screen play) and
Seton I. Miller (screen play)

Release Date:

1 April 1948 (Germany)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Romance

Tagline:

Dashing . . . romantic . . . Errol Flynn at his thrilling best!

Plot:

Geoffrey Thorpe, a buccaneer, is hired by Queen Elizabeth I to nag the Spanish Armada. The Armada is waiting for the attack on England and Thorpe surprises them with attacks on their galleons where he shows his skills on the sword.

Plot Keywords:

Spanish | Queen | Ship | Queen Elizabeth I | Spanish Armada

Awards:

Nominated for 4 Oscars.

Cast

Errol Flynn	...	Geoffrey Thorpe
Brenda Marshall	...	Doña Maria
Claude Rains	...	Don José Alvarez de Cordoba
Donald Crisp	...	Sir John Burleson
Flora Robson	...	Queen Elizabeth
Alan Hale	...	Carl Pitt
Henry Daniell	...	Lord Wolfingham
Una O'Connor	...	Miss Latham
James Stephenson	...	Abbott
Gilbert Roland	...	Capt. Lopez
William Lundigan	...	Danny Logan
Julien Mitchell	...	Oliver Scott
Montagu Love	...	King Phillip II
J.M. Kerrigan	...	Eli Matson
David Bruce	...	Martin Burke
Clifford Brooke	...	William Tuttle
Clyde Cook	...	Walter Boggs
Fritz Leiber	...	Inquisitor
Ellis Irving	...	Monty Preston
Francis McDonald	...	Kroner
Pedro de Cordoba	...	Capt. Mendoza
Ian Keith	...	Peralta
Jack La Rue	...	Lt. Ortega (as Jack LaRue)
Halliwell Hobbes	...	Astronomer
Alec Craig	...	Chartmaker
Victor Varconi	...	Gen. Aguirre
Robert Warwick	...	Frobisher
Harry Cording	...	Slavemaster
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Herbert Anderson	...	Eph Winters (uncredited)
Mary Anderson	...	Maid of Honor (uncredited)
Whit Bissell	...	Gate Guard at Palace Entrance (uncredited)
Edgar Buchanan	...	Ben Rollins (uncredited)
J.W. Cody	...	Whipper (uncredited)
Maurice Costello	...	Man Carrying Spear (uncredited)
Michael Harvey	...	Sea Hawk (uncredited)
Leyland Hodgson	...	Officer (uncredited)
Stuart Holmes	...	(uncredited)
Charles Irwin	...	Arnold Cross (uncredited)
Dave Kashner	...	Whipper (uncredited)
Colin Kenny	...	Officer (uncredited)
Crauford Kent	...	Lieutenant (uncredited)
Frank Lackteen	...	Capt. Ortiz (uncredited)
Lester Matthews	...	Guard Officer (uncredited)
Art Miles	...	Drum Beater (uncredited)
Gerald Mohr	...	Spanish Messenger (uncredited)
Leonard Mudie	...	Castle Sentry (uncredited)
Nestor Paiva	...	First Slavemaster (uncredited)
Jack Richardson	...	(uncredited)
Elizabeth Sifton	...	Maid of Honor (uncredited)
Jay Silverheels	...	Native Lookout (uncredited)
John Sutton	...	Captain of the Guard (uncredited)
David Thursby	...	Driver (uncredited)
Anthony Warde	...	Whipper (uncredited)
Leo White	...	(uncredited)
Frank Wilcox	...	Martin Barrett (uncredited)
Frederick Worlock	...	Darnell (uncredited)
Harry Worth	...	Spanish Officer (uncredited)

Directed by
Michael Curtiz

Writing credits
Howard Koch		(screen play) and
Seton I. Miller		(screen play)

Produced by
Henry Blanke	....	associate producer
Hal B. Wallis	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Erich Wolfgang Korngold

Cinematography by
Sol Polito		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
George Amy		(film editor)

Art Direction by
Anton Grot

Costume Design by
Orry-Kelly		(costumes by)

Makeup Department
Perc Westmore	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Jack L. Warner	....	in charge of production
Frank Mattison	....	unit manager (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jack Sullivan	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Leo K. Kuter	....	assistant art director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Francis J. Scheid	....	sound
Nathan Levinson	....	sound director (uncredited)
Nathan Levinson	....	sound editor (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Byron Haskin	....	special effects
Hans F. Koenekamp	....	special effects (as H.F. Koenekamp)

Stunts
Ned Davenport	....	fencing double (uncredited)
Ralph Faulkner	....	fencing double (uncredited)
Harry Froboess	....	stunts (uncredited)
Don Turner	....	stunts (uncredited)
Buster Wiles	....	stunts (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Eugene Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department
Leo F. Forbstein	....	musical director
Hugo Friedhofer	....	orchestrations
Ray Heindorf	....	orchestrations
Milan Roder	....	orchestrations
Simon Bucharoff	....	orchestrator (uncredited)

Other crew
Jo Graham	....	dialogue director
Ali Hubert	....	technical advisor
William Kiel	....	technical advisor
Thomas Manners	....	technical advisor
Fred Cavens	....	fencing master (uncredited)
Ralph Faulkner	....	fight choreographer (uncredited)
Robert Foulk	....	dialogue director (uncredited)
Georg Rothkegel	....	german version dubbing director/german dialogue 1949 (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros. (presents) (as Warner Bros. Pictures Inc.) (A Warner Bros.-First National Picture)

Distributors

• Warner Bros. (1940) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1941) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Motion Picture Export Association (MPEA) (1947) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1947) (France) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1947) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1947) (USA) (theatrical) (re-release) (edited)
• Warner Bros. (1948) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Dominant Pictures Corporation (1956) (USA) (theatrical) (edited) (re-release)
• Union-Film (1962) (Austria) (theatrical) (re-release)
• CBS/Fox (1984) (USA) (video) (LaserDisc)
• Key Video (1987) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1990) (USA) (video) (LaserDisc)
• MGM/UA Home Video (1990) (USA) (VHS) (colorized version)
• ClassicLine (2005) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Warner Bros. Entertainment Finland Oy (2005) (Finland) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (Canada) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Swashbuckler Films (2006) (France) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Sociedade Importadora de Filmes (SIF) (????) (Portugal) (theatrical)
• Epoca (????) (Argentina) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Filmstudio Tempelhof, West Berlin, Germany  German dubbing 1949 (uncredited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

127 min | 109 min (re-release)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (Sepiatone) (South America sequences)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Finland:S | Finland:K-11 (DVD rating) | France:Tous publics | Germany:12 (nf) | Netherlands:6 | Netherlands:14 (original rating) (1947) (one cut) | New Zealand:PG | Portugal:M/6 | Sweden:15 | Sweden:11 (cut) (1963) | Sweden:Btl (heavily cut) (1944) | UK:A | UK:U (video rating 1986) | USA:TV-G | USA:Approved (Certificate No. 6090) | USA:Not Rated (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Laguna Beach, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros.

Trivia:

The scenes of Doña Maria's carriage traveling through the countryside were taken from David Copperfield (1935). The film had to be darkened to disguise the fact that the carriage depicted was clearly too modern for this film's Elizabethan setting.

Goofs:

Factual errors: During the initial battle between the Albatross and the Spanish ambassador's ship, the Spanish captain orders the cannon to be double-shotted. That means to load two balls (shots) into each cannon. While such a tactic was used during battles, typically it was reserved for close-in battles when distance was not a concern - the object was to maximize damage. No wonder the Spanish broadside fell short. Also only one splash per gun can be seen - double-shots would have generated two splashes per gun and while they may have been close together, they would have been distinct.

Quotes:

[first lines]
King Philip II:The riches of the New World are limitless, and the New World is ours - with our ships carrying the Spanish flag on seven seas, our armies sweeping over Africa, the Near East, and the Far West; invincible everywhere... but on our own doorstep. Only northern Europe holds out against us; why? Tell me, why?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Last of Robin Hood (2013)

Soundtrack:

Old Spanish Song

Great Entertainment From Flynn & Co.

In "The Sea Hawk", hero Errol Flynn, director Michael Curtiz, and composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold provide great entertainment very similar to that in their earlier classic that starred Flynn as Robin Hood. Supporting actors Alan Hale, Claude Rains, and Una O'Connor also are back, joined by Brenda Marshall, Flora Robson, and Henry Daniell. The movie provides rousing action, a good story, and some memorable characters.

Flynn's character is Geoffrey Thorpe, who is a "sea hawk", a privateering ship captain in the late 1500's indulged by Queen Elizabeth (Robson) and allowed to raise havoc with Spanish shipping in a time when Spain's dominance was at its peak. The story in "The Sea Hawk", like the action in "The Adventures of Robin Hood", is loosely based on historical circumstances, although this time the tone is often more serious. This film is in black-and-white instead of Technicolor, giving it a different feel. (There is a very nice touch when the scenes in the New World are tinted in golden-brown, an effective way of emphasizing the different setting.) There are also extensive scenes of the suffering and humiliation experienced by the English galley slaves imprisoned by the Spanish fleet, instead of the very brief scenes of Saxon suffering in "Robin Hood". But the main emphasis is still on the swash-buckling action that made Flynn so popular.

There are ship-to-ship fights, chases, escapes, and of course sword fights. Flynn's charisma and infectious good nature are usually enough to carry even far-fetched action, and here the story itself is more than good enough to be worthwhile in its own right. "The Sea Hawk" is good, classic entertainment.