IN LIKE FLYNN – A Review by Cynthia Flores
This film In Like Flynn was a result of the travels of Corey Large and Luke Flynn who were going through Australia in the footsteps of his iconic grandfather Errol. It’s based on the autobiography written by Errol Flynn himself called Beam Ends. In it, he talked about his early days as an adventurer, opium smuggler, gambler, streetfighter, womanizer, and gold prospector all before he ever stepped one foot in Hollywood. In America, we knew him for his films that made him a superstar, such as Robin Hood, Don Juan, and the famous swashbuckler Peter in the movie Captain Blood. But Errol (Thomas Cocquerel) was a thrill seeker in real life.
The movie opens with him leading two Hollywood filmmakers, Joel Schwartz (Dan Folger) and Ronald (Lochlyn Munro), deep into the jungles to get b-roll footage for a film. They barely make it out of there alive as the natives attack them for being on their land. Errol uses his money and newly acquired info of the gold coast to convince his friends Rex (Corey William Large) and Dook (William Mosely) to steal a ship from the deadly opium smuggler Achun (Grace Huang). Once on the ship, they hide out up the coast to clean it up and figure out how to sail to Papua, New Guinea where they will search for gold together. They are almost ready to leave when Charlie (Clive Standen) attacks them to reclaim his ship. The silver-tongued Errol convinces Charlie to let them live and to join them in their search for gold.
The rest of the film is mostly their misadventures on the open sea and their struggle to survive a small town on the coast run by an evil man named Christian (David Wenham) who runs the place and has big plans to use Errol in a fighting promotion he has scheduled. Will Errol and his friends make it out alive? You’ll just have to watch this movie to find out.
Considering that in real life, which is what this film is based on, Errol Flynn did things like working as a war correspondent reporting on the Spanish Civil War alongside Ernest Hemingway even after he was a Hollywood movie star. It’s fun seeing how his adventures as a young man informed his performances on screen. Errol Flynn is recognized as one to the first action movie heroes in Hollywood. The title for this film is actually an expression that started at the height of his popularity and still used to this day. Because of Errol’s charm and good looks along with his reputation as a hard-drinking ladies’ man, people would say that you’re “In Like Flynn.”
In Like Flynn is what I call a fun popcorn film with lots of action, fighting, deadly dames and a hero who is a bad boy at heart. Not taking away any of the impact of the fight scenes (and there are a lot of them), it was shot and directed more like a Hollywood classic movie instead of a modern faced paced gritty film, and I think that’s what makes it so much fun to watch. I give it a solid B+ rating, so grab some popcorn and a beer and enjoy this film.
Directed By: Russell Mulcahy
Written By: Steve M. Albert, Errol Flynn, Marc Furmie, Corey Large
Rated R
Selig Rating B+
Running Time: 1hr 46 min
Action / Biopic
Limited Release: January 25th The AMC Grapevine Mills 30, The AMC Mesquite 30
Starring: Thomas Cocquerel, Clive Standen, William Mosely, Corey William Large, Grace Huang
The Selig Rating Scale:
A – Excellent movie, well worth the price.
B – Good movie
C – OK movie
D – No need to rush. Save it for a rainy day.
F – Good that I saw it on the big screen but wish I hadn’t paid for it.
