The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936 film)

Not to be confused with The Charge of the Light Brigade (1912 film) or The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968 film).
The Charge of the Light Brigade
Theatrical release poster.
Directed byMichael Curtiz
Written byMichel Jacoby
Screenplay by
Based onThe Charge of the Light Brigade
1854 poem
by Alfred, Lord Tennyson[1]
Produced byJack L. Warner
Hal B. Wallis[1]
Starring
CinematographySol Polito A.S.C.
Edited byGeorge Amy
Music byMax Steiner
Production
company
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
Release date
  • October 20, 1936 (1936-10-20) (USA)
Running time
115 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1,330,000[2] or $1,076,000[3]
Box office$3,382,000[3]

The Charge of the Light Brigade is a 1936 American historical adventure film from Warner Bros., starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland.[4][5] It was directed by Michael Curtiz and produced by Samuel Bischoff, with Hal B. Wallis as the executive producer. The film's screenplay is by Michael Jacoby and Rowland Leigh, from a story by Michael Jacoby, and based on the 1854 poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. The music score was composed by Max Steiner, his first for Warner Bros., and the cinematography was by Sol Polito. Scenes were shot at the following California locations: Lone Pine, Sherwood Lake, Lasky Mesa, Chatsworth, and Sonora. The Sierra Nevada mountains were used for the Khyber Pass scenes.[6]

The filming of the charge sequence led to the death of 25 horses, which led to legislative action by the U.S. Congress and action by the ASPCA to prevent further cruelty by film directors and producers.

The film's screenplay is very loosely based on the famous Charge of the Light Brigade that occurred during the Crimean War (1853–56). Additionally, the storyline includes an event similar to the Siege of Cawnpore during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.

This was the second of eight films in which Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland costar.

The supporting cast features Flynn look-alike Patric Knowles as Flynn's character's brother, David Niven, Nigel Bruce, Henry Stephenson, Donald Crisp, Robert Barrat, Spring Byington, J. Carrol Naish and E. E. Clive.

  1. ^ a b "AFI|Catalog".
  2. ^ "(PDF) Hollywood's Foreign Earnings during the 1930s". Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  3. ^ a b Warner Bros financial information in The William Schaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 16 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
  4. ^ Variety film review; November 4, 1936, page 18.
  5. ^ Harrison's Reports film review; November 7, 1936, page 178.
  6. ^ The Charge of the Light Brigade tcm.com [dead link]