In 1936 Errol Flynn appeared in a film called THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE, directed (at Warner Brothers) by Michael Curtiz. It was a box office smash, guaranteeing the greatness of Warners adventure star Flynn in a series of swashbuckling films that would last until 1941, and would remain imprinted on his career until he began to age too much from drink and debauchery. But the history presented about the most infamous blunder in British military annals during the Crimean War was mushed up. Elements of the Sepoy Revolt were tacked on, to build up an understandable motive for the Russian - English confrontation in the Crimea.
Yet for all it's mush, most people in 1936, or even today, enjoy THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE with Flynn. It holds a kind of stately dignity to most people because Flynn represents a type of bizarre honor at all costs type that we admire. The film is, of course, named for Tennyson's poem about the Charge. Yet the Tennyson poem is not totally quoted, and only pops up on screen during the last seven minutes, inter-cut in the background of shots of the charging British cavalrymen. For a poetry lover the effect is not what one could wish.*
(*Lord Tennyson was criticized about twenty years after writing this poem by a member of the larger unit, "the Heavy Brigade" that was also at the battles of the Alva and Balaclava in October 1854, but followed the correct orders, lost few members, and successfully carried out it's assignment. Tennyson took it to heart, and wrote - believe it or not - a poem called THE CHARGE OF THE HEAVY BRIGADE. If you get his complete poems you can find it. It is a competent poem (one can hardly expect an incompetent poem by Tennyson), but it is totally without any merit in comparison to the earlier work. It is not quotable. I have put a copy of this poem down separately on the thread.)
In the meantime, Cecil Woodham - Smith wrote THE REASON WHY, a book (whose title is lifted from Tennyson's line, "Their's not to reason why. Their's but to do or die.") that documented the generally bad leadership of the Light Brigade and the British Army in the 1840s and 1850s, leading to the debacle at Sebastopol. The villains were James Brudenell, Seventh Earl of Cardigan, his hated cousin George Bingham, Earl of Lucan (great grandfather of the missing Earl/murderer from the 1970s), Lord Raglan (the General-in-Chief), Lord Airey (Raglan's second in command), and Captain Louis Nolan. Between these five geniuses the blunder occurred.
Woodham - Smith pointed out that Cardigan was an insufferable perfectionist and snob. He made the Light Brigade a crack fighting and riding group. But he sneered at non-aristocratic officers from India like Louis Nolan. Ironically Errol Flynn's character would have not risen far in the Light Brigade under Cardigan! There were a series of scandals involving this snob, one of which (the "black bottle" affair) is shown in this film. An illegal duel that resulted in Cardigan's trial for attempted murder before the House of Lords in 1841 (he won acquittal on an aggravating quibble regarding the name of his dueling opponent) is not in this film.
Cardigan might still have performed reasonably well if Lucan had not insisted on being put over him as head of Cavalry (Lucan, who lived to be 91, would eventually be a Field Marshall). The two kept on sniping at each other. The Duke of Wellington had died in 1852, and Raglan, his gopher, inherited his post as commander in chief. Raglan constantly wondered how the Iron Duke would have handled every situation, thus blinding his own powers of thought. Airey was even more of a non-entity. As for the angry, hot-headed Nolan, he was desperate to prove himself in battle to show up Cardigan and his snobs.
It was a recipe for disaster. The spark was the stupid, vaguely worded order that Nolan delivered to Lucan who sent it (without comment) to Cardigan, to take the Brigade to "the guns". It is believed Raglan meant the British guns . Nolan got into a fit of temper with Cardigan and Lucan, and pointed in a way towards both the British and Russian guns. Cardigan, shrugging his shoulder, started after the Russian position. Two thirds of the 600+ men were lost, but to Cardigan's credit they did seize the Russian guns. Cardigan himself survived (he would later have to explain this - did he leave his men to die in the battle when they reached the guns?). Nolan was killed trying to stop the insane charge when he saw the error he caused.
Trevor Howard is wonderful as the snobbish, ego-maniacal Cardigan - also quite a womanizer, and jealous of preserving the appearance of a fine figure (watch Peter Bowles trying to hastily push Howard into his girdle before battle). Guilgud is wonderful as the vague, out-of-it Raglan, who barely notices his men are being killed too easily. Hemmings plays Nolan well too, as we sympathize with a fairly intelligent officer being wasted, who makes just one rash mistake too many. Harry Andrews is only in the last half hour of the film, but his bull in the china shop character bodes nothing good for the situation.
Howard would repeat the character of Cardigan, under a different name, in the comedy THE MISSIONARY with Michael Palin and Maggie Smith, where he was a reactionary old general who was the richest man in England (and who liked the sound of the word "flog" - so would Cardigan for that matter). Also note the use of 1850 political cartoons from PUNCH that are animated in the film at several points.
"No,though the soldiers knew someone had blundered!"
Yet for all it's mush, most people in 1936, or even today, enjoy THE CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE with Flynn. It holds a kind of stately dignity to most people because Flynn represents a type of bizarre honor at all costs type that we admire. The film is, of course, named for Tennyson's poem about the Charge. Yet the Tennyson poem is not totally quoted, and only pops up on screen during the last seven minutes, inter-cut in the background of shots of the charging British cavalrymen. For a poetry lover the effect is not what one could wish.*
(*Lord Tennyson was criticized about twenty years after writing this poem by a member of the larger unit, "the Heavy Brigade" that was also at the battles of the Alva and Balaclava in October 1854, but followed the correct orders, lost few members, and successfully carried out it's assignment. Tennyson took it to heart, and wrote - believe it or not - a poem called THE CHARGE OF THE HEAVY BRIGADE. If you get his complete poems you can find it. It is a competent poem (one can hardly expect an incompetent poem by Tennyson), but it is totally without any merit in comparison to the earlier work. It is not quotable. I have put a copy of this poem down separately on the thread.)
In the meantime, Cecil Woodham - Smith wrote THE REASON WHY, a book (whose title is lifted from Tennyson's line, "Their's not to reason why. Their's but to do or die.") that documented the generally bad leadership of the Light Brigade and the British Army in the 1840s and 1850s, leading to the debacle at Sebastopol. The villains were James Brudenell, Seventh Earl of Cardigan, his hated cousin George Bingham, Earl of Lucan (great grandfather of the missing Earl/murderer from the 1970s), Lord Raglan (the General-in-Chief), Lord Airey (Raglan's second in command), and Captain Louis Nolan. Between these five geniuses the blunder occurred.
Woodham - Smith pointed out that Cardigan was an insufferable perfectionist and snob. He made the Light Brigade a crack fighting and riding group. But he sneered at non-aristocratic officers from India like Louis Nolan. Ironically Errol Flynn's character would have not risen far in the Light Brigade under Cardigan! There were a series of scandals involving this snob, one of which (the "black bottle" affair) is shown in this film. An illegal duel that resulted in Cardigan's trial for attempted murder before the House of Lords in 1841 (he won acquittal on an aggravating quibble regarding the name of his dueling opponent) is not in this film.
Cardigan might still have performed reasonably well if Lucan had not insisted on being put over him as head of Cavalry (Lucan, who lived to be 91, would eventually be a Field Marshall). The two kept on sniping at each other. The Duke of Wellington had died in 1852, and Raglan, his gopher, inherited his post as commander in chief. Raglan constantly wondered how the Iron Duke would have handled every situation, thus blinding his own powers of thought. Airey was even more of a non-entity. As for the angry, hot-headed Nolan, he was desperate to prove himself in battle to show up Cardigan and his snobs.
It was a recipe for disaster. The spark was the stupid, vaguely worded order that Nolan delivered to Lucan who sent it (without comment) to Cardigan, to take the Brigade to "the guns". It is believed Raglan meant the British guns . Nolan got into a fit of temper with Cardigan and Lucan, and pointed in a way towards both the British and Russian guns. Cardigan, shrugging his shoulder, started after the Russian position. Two thirds of the 600+ men were lost, but to Cardigan's credit they did seize the Russian guns. Cardigan himself survived (he would later have to explain this - did he leave his men to die in the battle when they reached the guns?). Nolan was killed trying to stop the insane charge when he saw the error he caused.
Trevor Howard is wonderful as the snobbish, ego-maniacal Cardigan - also quite a womanizer, and jealous of preserving the appearance of a fine figure (watch Peter Bowles trying to hastily push Howard into his girdle before battle). Guilgud is wonderful as the vague, out-of-it Raglan, who barely notices his men are being killed too easily. Hemmings plays Nolan well too, as we sympathize with a fairly intelligent officer being wasted, who makes just one rash mistake too many. Harry Andrews is only in the last half hour of the film, but his bull in the china shop character bodes nothing good for the situation.
Howard would repeat the character of Cardigan, under a different name, in the comedy THE MISSIONARY with Michael Palin and Maggie Smith, where he was a reactionary old general who was the richest man in England (and who liked the sound of the word "flog" - so would Cardigan for that matter). Also note the use of 1850 political cartoons from PUNCH that are animated in the film at several points.
"No,though the soldiers knew someone had blundered!"