| Adventures of Don Juan | |
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Original film poster |
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| Directed by | Vincent Sherman |
| Produced by | Jerry Wald |
| Written by | Herbert Dalmas George Oppenheimer |
| Starring | Errol Flynn Viveca Lindfors |
| Music by | Max Steiner |
| Cinematography | Elwood Bredell |
| Editing by | Alan Crosland |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | December 1, 1948 |
| Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English Spanish |
| Budget | $3.5 million[1] |
| Box office | $5 million[2] |
Adventures of Don Juan, known in the United Kingdom as The New Adventures of Don Juan, is a 1948 adventure Technicolor romance film made by Warner Bros. It was directed by Vincent Sherman and produced by Jerry Wald from a screenplay by George Oppenheimer and Harry Kurnitz based on a story by Herbert Dalmas, with uncredited contributions by William Faulkner and Robert Florey.
The film stars Errol Flynn and Viveca Lindfors with Robert Douglas, Alan Hale, Ann Rutherford and Robert Warwick. Also in the cast are Barbara Bates, Raymond Burr and Mary Stuart.
The film was originally to be scored by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, however, production of the film was postponed until 1947, by which time Korngold had retired from scoring motion pictures. He was therefore replaced by Max Steiner.
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Late in the reign of Elizabeth I of England, Spanish noble Don Juan de Maraña (Errol Flynn) is repatriated from London to Madrid after a serious diplomatic scandal caused by his affair with the British fiancée of a Spanish duke. The Spanish ambassador in London, Count de Polan (Robert Warwick), sends a letter of recommendation to his friend Queen Margaret (Viveca Lindfors), asking her to provide an opportunity at the court to rehabilitate Don Juan after the gossiping and rumors about his multiple illicit love affairs. He is thus hired as a fencing instructor at the Spanish Academy.
He secretly falls in love with Queen Margaret but remains a loyal subject to her and her irresponsible and weak husband, King Phillip III (Romney Brent). Don Juan discovers the treacherous plan of the Machiavellian Duke de Lorca (Robert Douglas), who is plotting to depose the monarch, usurp power in Spain and declare war on England. With the support of his friends, Don Juan defends the Queen, the King and the loyal Count de Polan against Duke de Lorca and his henchmen.[3]
Errol Flynn was physically well past his prime, suffering allegedly from a mild heart condition and recurrent bouts of hepatitis. According to film historian Tony Thomas, he drank heavily during the making of the movie. Filming was frequently halted due to Flynn's physical condition and by frequent changes and replacements in production personnel. In the famous leap from the head of a long staircase, Flynn was doubled by stunt expert Jock Mahoney.[4]
At the end of the film, the young woman in the coach asking Don Juan for directions is Errol Flynn's wife, Nora Eddington.
It is the last of 13 films in which Alan Hale appeared with his close friend Errol Flynn. Hale died on 22 January 1950, just over a year following this film's release.
Parts of the film's score were used by composer Ian Fraser for the George Hamilton vehicle Zorro, the Gay Blade.[5] A portion was also used in two scenes in the film The Goonies, although in the first scene, it accompanied a TV broadcast of the earlier film The Sea Hawk.
The film won the Academy Awards for Best Costume Design, Color (Leah Rhodes, Travilla and Marjorie Best) and was nominated for Best Art Direction (Edward Carrere, Lyle Reifsnider).[6]