Happy Flynn-Centennial

One hundred years ago today in Hobart Tasmania, legendary film star, author, adventurer and all-around trouble magnet Errol Flynn was born.

I first took notice of Flynn in 1991 with a late-night showing of Desperate Journey on TBS. There I was channel surfing when who should appear but a young Ronald Reagan, climbing from the wreckage of a downed allied bomber deep in Nazi Germany. With him was a dashing fellow with a pencil-thin mustache, and Chief Executive or no Chief Executive, it quickly became obvious who was the real star of the show.

I managed to stay up to the end of the film despite the constant commercial breaks, and was rewarded with a high-octane adventure in which Flynn, Reagan, Arthur Kennedy and Alan Hale repeatedly outsmarted Nazi general Raymond Massey, destroying roughly half of Germany on their way back to England. (Not content with this contribution to the war effort, they fly off at the end of the film saying, "Now for Australia and a crack at those Japs!" ) As a war film, it was about as realistic as Indiana Jones, or maybe "Daffy The Commando", but there was no denying the fun factor, and suddenly I had a new hero.

Thus began my own "desperate journey" to see Flynn in all his great roles; from noble outlaw Robin Hood to sea-going swashbucklers Peter Blood and Geoffrey Thorpe to Western heroes Wade Hatton and George Custer to the rakish, libidinous and suspiciously autobiographical Don Juan. In each role, Flynn projected all those qualities we fans of heroic fiction so admire; courage, resourcefulness, wit, style, a graceful athleticism and that certain indefinable quality we call leadership. And of course it didn't hurt that he was impossibly good-looking.

Off-screen, Flynn was a lot more complicated; a rogue, a womanizer and something of a con man, his real-life escapades became almost as legendary as his on-screen adventures, if not nearly so noble. But if the real Flynn was decidedly less valorous than his on-screen alter egos, he was no less fascinating and larger-than-life. He was an accomplished boxer who did his own fighting in Gentleman Jim and a real-life sailor who logged countless miles at sea. Under the tutelage of master archer Howard Hill, he mastered the bow and arrow, and he handled a sword with such elan that most people never realized he wasn't really a fencer (one nobable exception being Basil Rathbone, who grudingly had to "lose" to Flynn on screen despite his superior skill in real life). Who can say how many generations of little boys were inspired to stage their own backyard swordfights after witnessing amazing fare such as this from The Sea Hawk:



Personally, I consider 1948's The Adventures of Don Juan the closest we ever came to seeing the real Flynn in a Hollywood production. Like the title character, Flynn at this point in his life is still handsome, still charming, still up to the action, but with a few more lines on the face, a few more pounds on the frame and a few seconds cut off the once lightning-like reflexes. He is a Frankenstein monster of his own creation, enjoying fame and celebrity wherever he goes, but owing that fame (or infamy) to the scandalous reputation he earned as a young man and now finds impossible to move beyond. Women expect romance from him, men a display of swordplay. Weary of it all, but ever willing to please, he obliges gamely. In quieter moments we see he's realized the pointlessness of his lifestyle, but at the same time he's having too much fun to ever really give it up. At one point in the film, caught in the act of seducing a powerful man's wife, Juan is tossed into a jail cell with his faithful companion Leporello (Alan Hale), who notes, "Surely there must be something more important in life than the pursuit of women?" To which Juan replies thoughtfully, "Yes, there must be....But WHAT?"

The film ends with the hero a bit wiser but still unrepentant, still treating life as a party that need never end. Flynn, however, was made of flesh and blood, not celluloid, and thus bound by physical laws; for him the party would only last another ten years. He passed on in 1959, just 50 years old but looking much older thanks to years of booze and drugs and a list of physical ailments longer than his filmography.

Ultimately, though, Flynn lives on, and will as long as there are audiences who appreciate a rousing adventure, a daring hero, a thrilling swordfight and a storybook romance. Just pop in a DVD and he's back among us as Robin Hood, openly defying Prince John in his own palace ("You speak treason!" "Fluently."); as Wade Hatton, bringing law and order to Dodge City; as Peter Blood, leading his fellow slaves to freedom on the high seas, and in a half-dozen alternate lives in as many historical eras meeting and falling in love with the heart-breakingly sweet and beautiful Olivia DeHavilland (still around and gorgeous as ever, God bless her) in one of the greatest screen pairings of all time.

Flynn may not have had a lot of years on this world, but he lived every minute of what he had to the fullest, and as he saw fit. And regardless of what condition he was in for his final bow, we fans will always remember him as The Perfect Specimen he was in his heyday. As his old boss Jack Warner said, "To all the Walter Mittys of the world he was all the heroes in one magnificent, sexy, animal package."

So in honor of Flynn's centennial, go out and seize the day. Scare up an adventure. Kiss your girl. Share a laugh with your buddies. And remember to laugh like a man:

Star Trek: Quick Review

I finally got around to seeing the new Star Trek film this weekend, a month into its theatrical run.

All in all, it was an enjoyable film; fast-paced, well-acted and with some cool visuals. I'm just old enough to be put off by modern special effects, with the shaky "camera work" and dizzying pans and zooms, so I didn't get as much out of that element as some folks may have. Besides just being disorienting (and thus counter-productive), it also invites comparison to the new "Battlestar Galactica", which I'm sure Abrams and company would desperately deny being an influence. It probably didn't help that the two previews that ran before the picture were for "Transformers" and "GI Joe," another two rocky rides in the video cuisinart.



The key to the film's success is in the casting. I had my misgivings about Chris Pine as Kirk, not least because of my lifelong affection for Bill Shatner in the role, but also because there wasn't anything in Pine's resume to suggest he was capable of playing the charismatic action hero. That he did, however, and with real style.

Curiously, I had exactly the opposite feelings about Zachary Quinto as Spock. His casting early on predisposed me to like this film, but now that I've actually seen him in the part he's left me underwhelmed. Maybe it's his voice, which lacks the bassy authority of Nimoy, or as Trek legend Herb Solow has said it could be that he just doesn't have that look of "the wisdom of a thousand years" in his eyes. It doesn't help that the script puts Spock through his emotional paces, dealing with great anger, grief and passion in his first outing, and creating a much more outwardly emotional Spock than we're used to seeing. A key to Nimoy's success in the role was his ability to hold back, to suggest at powerful feelings beneath the surface, but keep them in check. Here Spock wears his emotions on his sleeve, and the result is a far less interesting characterization, in my opinion.

The rest of the cast is a bit uneven. Karl Urban nearly walks away with the movie as Leonard "Bones" McCoy, easily the standout in this lineup. It's amazing when you consider what a brilliant scene-stealer DeForest Kelley was that Urban could come along and catch lightning in a bottle yet again. Simon Pegg as Scotty is a mixed bag; I got over his looks faster than I expected, and some of his dialog is fun, but overall it felt like they turned him into comic relief, and our Chief Engineer deserves better than that. John Cho bore no resemblance in looks or character to vintage Sulu, and although it's cool to see the navigator get some real action in at last, in a way it just reinforces another stereotype to make the Asian guy a kick-butt martial artist. Zoe Saldana is gorgeous as Uhura, but otherwise shares no traits with Nichelle Nichols as far as I could tell. Anton Yelchin is fun as a super-young Checkov, but his presence creates one of my problems with the logic of the film, namely what are all these kids doing running the Enterprise?




Maybe I missed a line of exposition somewhere, but I could never figure out why a major space emergency has to be answered by the senior class at Starfleet Academy. Aside from Captain Christopher Pike and a handful of faculty, there seems to be no full-time Starfleet personnel on duty in this film. When the planet Vulcan is attacked, the students are pulled from their studies and shipped out on active duty, not just on the Enterprise but a whole fleet of ships. Is this day one of Starfleet, or what?

Arriving at Vulcan to find it under attack, Pike asks if anyone has advanced combat training. Sulu raises his hand, and Pike says, "You too, Kirk. You're not even supposed to be here, anyway." Meaning what, exactly? As a "stowaway," he deserves to be sent on a suicide mission? Does HE have "advanced combat training" and Pike knows it from reading his file? Or does he just want him dead? Either way, Pike devises a Navy SEALS-like battle plan that depends on Sulu (about whose training Pike has just learned), Kirk (who isn't even on active duty) and one security officer. Are we to assume there are no other personnel on the entire ship capable of this assignment? Has Pike shipped out with no security team whatsoever?

Adding to the fun, Pike makes Spock captain and Kirk his first officer. Again, why? Kirk is not only a cadet, he's a cadet currently on academic suspension. And he's being sent off-ship on what may be a suicide mission, anyway. What's up with that?

But then, this Starfleet is a fairly laid-back outfit. For his meritorious service, Kirk is not only forgiven for cheating on an important exam, but is actually handed command of the Enterprise along with his diploma. That's right, congratulations Cadet Kirk, here's the best ship in the fleet, good luck. You'd think even James T Kirk should have to move his way up the ranks like everyone else. Also, it doesn't help that it's actually Spock who saves the Earth and not Kirk...so where's his ship?

Not to worry; as the Enterprise prepares to leave orbit, Spock shows up and he's all, "I'll be your first officer, if that's cool" and Kirk is like, "Righteous, bro" and so it's all worked out, simple as that. We don't stand on ceremony here in Starfleet.

Even the "real" Spock gets into the act, as Leonard Nimoy's aging Vulcan sends Kirk to take command of the Enterprise away from his younger self. Of course, Earth is in immediate danger of being destroyed and time is of the essence, but Old Spock opts not to talk to Young Spock himself -- even though that would speed things along greatly -- because it's more important that Young Spock learns what a great team he and Kirk make. Yes, that's right, the Great Bromance is more important than the Earth itself.



But, what the heck, at least its all upbeat, harmless fun, unlike last year's unrelentingly bleak "Dark Knight" or even the nihilistic "Galactica" that probably motivated Paramount to green light this film in the first place. If nothing else, "Star Trek" manages to recreate a sense of fun, adventure and -- importantly for me -- danger we haven't really seen since the original TV series. As Bones says, space is a scary place, full of danger and death, and we should feel that. It was evident in the old shows, made in the days when the real space program was in its dangerous youth, and TV science fiction dominated by scary fare like "The Twilight Zone" and "The Outer Limits." But somewhere along the way it got lost, until the various Trek spin-offs made space seem comfy and homey, with Picard running his Enterprise by committee vote from a love seat in what looked like a hotel lounge, and the biggest worry being a broken replicator or a nano-virus or some other such techno-babble. Space exploration should be scary and dangerous, and this film gets it.

Overall, a fun summer film, even if there's not much to stick to your ribs. I'm willing and even eager to see more from this crew, which I guess is the acid test right there. The beauty of this "alternate reality" gimmick is that now anything can happen, creating not only the potential for real suspense (and tragedy) but also second chances for tragic characters like Captain Pike, who deserves it. Maybe we can even dare hope that when this Jim Kirk meets his maker (hopefully waaay down the road), he'll do better than having a dumb bridge fall on top of him.

RIP Patrick McGoohan

Today I came across the sad news that actor Patrick McGoohan has passed away at age 80.

Though he's best known for "The Prisoner" -- a series I'm only now finishing up for the first time -- I likely first encountered Mr McGoohan as "the Scarecrow of Romney Marsh," coincidentally now on DVD after a long, long wait for collectors. I dimly remember seeing "Scarecrow" in the theater as a child (one of those "revivals" we used to enjoy before the days of home video) and being scared out of my wits. After that, I knew him from "Columbo" and "Silver Streak," where he played intense and convincing villains, so finally encountering his heroic turns in "Danger Man" and "the Prisoner" was a revelation.

Hero or villain, though, he always comes off as a guy you do not want to go up against, which by all accounts is how he was in real life, too. Legend has it he was a very imposing presence on the set of "The Prisoner," to put it kindly. It's rumored he turned down the roles of Simon Templar and James Bond on moral grounds and refused to do love scenes with his female co-stars, citing his strong Catholic faith.

Probably the last film I saw him in was "The Phantom," wherein he played the recently slain father of Billy Zane's title character. The premise of the Phantom strip (and film) is that a succession of male heroes pass down the "Phantom" costume and job duties to their sons when they die, to create the impression of one immortal hero. In the course of the film, Zane's Phantom encounters his father's killer, who in turn is deeply unnerved at the notion of battling a man he thinks he's already killed. Mercifully we're spared the sight of a 70-ish McGoohan in form-fitting purple spandex, but the fact that anyone could mistake him for a 20-something, ripped Billy Zane in the same suit is, I suppose, a testament to McGoohan's awesome force of personality. Umm...yeah.

Any way you slice it, though, he was an extremely gifted performer with a mesmerizing screen presence, and he'll be missed. Godspeed, Pat. Be seeing you.

Better, Stronger, Faster

As reflected in one of my first posts here, the Six Million Dollar Man was a huge part of my childhood, as I imagine it was for most guys my age. We're still waiting on DVDs of the show here in Region 1, but in the meantime I've put together this "greatest hits" clip of bionic feats from Season One. Hope you like it.

Bonds, James Bonds

Home-edited Bond tributes are a dime a dozen on YouTube, but this one really worked for me. Very good sense of timing and humor, and solid editing. Dig it:

Batman: Brave and the Bold Cartoon

Cartoon Network has a new Batman series in the works called "Brave And the Bold." Like the old comic book of the same name, it will team the caped crusader with a succession of superhero co-stars for adventures in and out of Gotham City.

So far the "boldest" part of this venture comes with the decision to dump the grim-n-gritty, dark stylings of recent screen Batman and return the hero to a bright, retro look right out of 50s and 60s comics. As an avowed fan of old-school Batman, I wholeheartedly approve. Hopefully this will be a fun new show I can share with the kids.

Roger Moore as James Bond: Unbelievable?

I'll make no apologies for it; I love Roger Moore as James Bond. I know it isn't considered "cool" to do so...conventional wisdom says Sean Connery was the best, or maybe the new guy Daniel Craig. Certainly it'd be easier to go along with the crowd instead of having to defend my fondness for Roger every time it comes up. But for me, the whole Bond thing turns on an inherent silliness, the willing suspension of disbelief, the ability to accept that evil plots can unfold on a global scale and that one man, impossibly talented and improbably equipped with just the right gadget for every situation, can save us all.

For me, Roger's Bond embodies all of that. He's heroic, supremely confident and yes, a bit whimsical. For me, the only way to deal with the insanity of Bond's world is to acknowledge it and move on, not to live in denial, try to downplay the craziness or, worst of all, tack on a lot of misplaced angst and self-reflection to a character who should be all about wish fulfilment.

A while ago I put together a video tribute to Roger Moore's 007, and so far I still haven't figured a way to embed it in a post. So if you'd like to see it, activate this link and the Flash video will pop up in a new window.