Filmed in 1948, this story of famous lover Don Juan is set in Spain where rumors of his heroic qualities and non-heroic qualities, whether true or not, precede him. His weakness for beautiful women lands him in the lap of trouble so much that he’s used to it. Thus his words in a jail cell are, “Woman, thy name is Trouble.” Sure, blame the women.
Handsome Errol Flynn is Don Juan. Alan Hale is the always faithful sidekick Leporello. Raymond Burr, early in his career and sans the wheelchair, is Captain Alvarez. And as “Lady in the carriage”, an uncredited role, Nora Eddington received her only acting credit listed on IMDb.com. She is listed in five other productions playing herself, Mrs. Errol Flynn.
Viveca Lindfors plays the Spanish Queen Margaret in all her beauty and grace. This actress makes the movie memorable. When she’s angry, everyone, including Don Juan, can see the fire in her eyes.
Errol Flynn has a name for being charming on screen as well as off. He looked quite comfortable in his scenes, whether he was tossing a hat in the air in the royal waiting room or trying to outwit the men who caught him with their women. Opposing the evil Duke de Lorca, he is unintimidated.
The movie was enjoyable because Flynn’s Don Juan showed believable heroic qualities. He stood against injustice in the inn. He was smart enough to gain the trust of his fencing students and used them later to help defend the queen. And he was caring enough to risk his life when he saved his friend, the count. Quite an entertaining actor, Flynn’s expressions told what the words didn’t say. To me, he’s a cross between contemporary actors Kevin Kline and Johnny Depp.
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