Gentleman Jim (1942)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Raoul Walsh

Writers:

Vincent Lawrence (screenplay) and
Horace McCoy (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

25 November 1942 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Comedy | Drama | Romance | Sport

Tagline:

The grandest story of the Naughty "Nineties" becomes the gayest picture of the Fighting "Forties!"

Plot:

As bareknuckled boxing enters the modern era, brash extrovert Jim Corbett uses new rules and dazzlingly innovative footwork to rise to the top of the top of the boxing world.

Plot Keywords:

Boxing | Irish American | Extrovert | Bank | Benefactor

Cast

Errol Flynn	...	James J. Corbett / Gentleman Jim
Alexis Smith	...	Victoria Ware
Jack Carson	...	Walter Lowrie
Alan Hale	...	Pat Corbett
John Loder	...	Carlton De Witt
William Frawley	...	Billy Delaney
Minor Watson	...	Buck Ware
Ward Bond	...	John L. Sullivan
Madeleine Lebeau	...	Anna Held
Rhys Williams	...	Harry Watson
Arthur Shields	...	Father Burke
Dorothy Vaughan	...	Ma Corbett

Runtime:

104 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (No. 8440) | Norway:A (1950) | Germany:12 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Baldwin Estate, Santa Ana, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Former Junior Welterweight champion Mushy Callahan not only trained Flynn for the film's fight sequences, his feet doubled for the actor in the shots that showed off his famous footwork.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: The night the Corbetts are moving out of their old home to go to the one that Jim had bought for them, the shadow of the boom mic is clearly seen moving along the left wall as they come down the outside steps.

Quotes:

James J. Corbett aka Gentleman Jim: Well, Miss Ware, if I get knocked out, I hope you'll throw a little water on me.
Victoria Ware: When you get knocked out, Mr. Corbett, I'll throw some champagne on you.
James J. Corbett aka Gentleman Jim: Yeah, uh, well, make sure it's good champagne.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Summer of '42 (1971)

Soundtrack:

The Fountain in the Park

Top dollar sports biopic.

Loosely based on the James J Corbett biography "The Roar Of The Crowd", Gentleman Jim is a wonderfully breezy picture that perfectly encapsulates not only the rise of the pugilistic prancer that was Corbett, but also the wind of change as regards the sport of boxing circa the 1890s.

The story follows Corbett {a perfectly casted Errol Flynn} from his humble beginnings as a bank teller in San Fransico, thru to a chance fight with an ex boxing champion that eventually leads to him fighting the fearsome heavyweight champion of the world, John L Sullivan {beefcake personified delightfully by Ward Bond}. Not all the fights are in the ring tho, and it's all the spin off vignettes in Corbett's life that makes this a grand entertaining picture. There are class issues to overcome here {perfectly played out as fellow club members pay to have him knocked down a peg or two}, and Corbett has to not only fight to get respect from his so called peers, but he must also overcome his ego as it grows as briskly as his reputation does. Along with the quite wonderful Corbett family, and all their stoic humorous support, Corbett's journey is as enthralling as it is joyous, yet as brash and as bold as he is, he is a very likable character, and it's a character that befits the tagged moniker he got of Gentleman Jim.

The film never sags for one moment, and it's a testament to director Raoul Walsh that although we are eagerly awaiting the final fight, the outer ring goings on are keeping us firmly entertained, not even the love interest sub plot hurts this picture {thank you Alexis Smith}. The fight sequences stand up really well, and they perfectly show just how Corbett became the champ he was, his brand of dancing rings round slugger fighters is now firmly placed in boxing history. As the final reel rolls we all come down to earth as an after fight meeting between Sullivan and Corbett puts all the brutality into context, and it's here where humility and humbleness becomes the outright winner, and as far as this viewer goes..............it will do for me to be sure to be sure, 9/10 for a truly wonderful picture.