The Sea Hawk (1924 film)
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| The Sea Hawk (1924) | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Frank Lloyd |
| Produced by | Frank Lloyd |
| Written by | Novel: Rafael Sabatini Titles: Walter Anthony J.G. Hawks |
| Starring | Milton Sills Enid Bennett Lloyd Hughes Wallace MacDonald Marc MacDermott Wallace Beery |
| Music by | Modest Altschuler Cecil Copping John LeRoy Johnston |
| Cinematography | Norbert F. Brodin |
| Editing by | Edward M. Roskam |
| Distributed by | Associated First National Pictures |
| Release date(s) | June 14, 1924 |
| Running time | 123 min |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | Silent film English intertitles |
| IMDb profile | |
The Sea Hawk is a 1924 silent movie about an English noble sold into slavery who escapes and turns himself into a pirate king.
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[edit] Synopsis
At the instigation of his half brother Lionel, Oliver Tressilian, a wealthy baronet, is shanghaied and blamed for the death of Peter Godolphin, brother of Oliver's fiancée, whom Lionel actually has slain. At sea Oliver is captured by Spaniards and made a galley slave, but when he escapes to the Moors he becomes Sakr-el-Bahr, the scourge of Christendom. Learning of Rosamund's impending marriage to his half brother, he kidnaps both of them, but to avoid the risk of giving her to the Basha of Algiers (and the machinations of the Basha's wife) he surrenders to a British ship. Rosamund intercedes to save his life, and following the death of Lionel they are married.
[edit] Background
The movie is based on the novel by Rafael Sabatini, The Sea Hawk.
It premiered on June 2, 1924, in New York City, about twelve days before it's theatrical debut.
When the film came out on the screen, a New York Times critic called it, "far and away the best sea story that's yet been done up to that point". It held that unofficial status for years.
The ocean scenes were filmed off the coast of Catalina Island, a popular vacation spot for Hollywood's elite, which was frequently used as a stand-in for exotic locales. According to production manager Harry E. Weil, 150 tents were erected in order to house and support the 1,000 extras, 21 technicians, 14 actors and 64 sailors on the island.
Moviegoers of 1924 were sophisticated enough to recognize miniature models, so producer/director Lloyd insisted that full-sized ships be fabricated at a cost of $200,000. This enabled Lloyd to line the deck with cutlass-waving actors and to convincingly depict the oaring of a slave-powered galleon. The ships were in fact existing crafts outfitted with new wooden exteriors by designer Fred Gabourie, who is most famous for constructing the elaborate and often enormous props used in Buster Keaton's slapstick comedies.
Referenced in The Lost World, when the explorers return to London, there is a shot of the London Pavilion with a flashing sign advertising a showing of The Sea Hawk.
A remake of this movie was done in 1940, starring Errol Flynn. In the remake, the studio used some key scenes from battles in the 1924 film. They spliced the scenes into the 1940 film, thinking they could have not been done better.
[edit] References
Artlicle on The Sea Hawk at the TCM database
