Errol Flynn was born to play the real life boxer James J. Corbett. He brings a good deal of enthusiasm and energy to the role and is well cast. The release of "Gentleman Jim" was rushed after "Warner Bros" got a bit worried over the headlines regarding the trouble Errol Flynn was in at the time. As it happens, the film did very well at the box office. The story follows Corbett ascending the career ladder as a prize fighter after starting out in bare knuckle brawls. The studio really achieve capturing the setting of "Gentleman Jim." The gas lamps, the way the characters look and dress, the way of life, it is all here. The filming had to be halted for a while after Flynn suffered a heart attack whilst filming the boxing scene with Ward Bond. The latter is great as John L. Sullivan and Alan Hale gives his usual solid support. Alexis Smith does well as the lady who doesn't particularly care for Flynn's rather brash and cocky attitude. All the boxing scenes are well done.

There's something about Gentleman Jim which makes the film uplifting, it has a real aura of celebration to it. There's nothing better than hearing Auld Lang Sang during the opening credits of a piece of classic Hollywood filmmaking. Compare this to the many bleak biopics which portray historical figures going through unprecedented amounts of suffering, Gentleman Jim really stands out with its combination of comedy and drama which never takes itself too seriously to create something unique; historical accuracy be dammed!Errol Flynn and Jack Carson make for a fun duo as a pair of part time con-men. Flynn's reaction at the film's beginning to the pickpocket currently in the act of robbing him, just a quick "get outta there" and a slap on the wrist as he continues himself to con other people, it's so brief you would almost miss it and if it doesn't show what a great actor he is then I don't know what will; such sly confidence.Gentleman Jim is a movie full of blink-and-you-miss-them moments of subtle comedy. One of my favourite of these is the moment in which a child asks his mother during a fight "why doesn't daddy look that like in his underwear" and her response of "shh, he did once". I love the child's reaction with his eye's rolling up as if he's saying"oh, I totally get it". The movie does also have its more overt moments of humour in the form of Corbett's entertaining family of screwballs led by a scenery chewing Alan Hale. Yet even Hale's chewing of the scenery is outdone by Ward Bond as the over the top, manly force of nature that is John L. Sullivan.Gentleman Jim differs from most boxing film partially due to its time period setting. The film acts as a piece of 1890's nostalgia when there would still have been people alive in 1942 to remember this period. It is easily apparent the filmmakers put great strides into recreating the time period with its lush sets and great attention to detail. However the other aspect which makes the movie stand out amongst boxing pictures is its presentation of boxing as a real gentleman's sport, making the movie really live up to its title. This isn't a story with Rocky Balboas nor does it take place in sweaty, gritty inner city gyms. I guess somewhere along the way the sport of boxing became less sophisticated and more middle to lower class.Classic Hollywood films are generally not known for their realistic boxing scenes with their use of sped up footage and not very convincing punches. Gentleman Jim does a better job than other boxing films of the era. Flynn learned to box for the role and no body doubles where used while the fights for the most part do come off as convincing. The meeting between Corbett and Sullivan after their fight is the film's real tearjerker moment: what true gentlemen. An acceptance that your time has come to an end and that it will happen to all of us eventually.

I loved this movie and thought Flynn was outstanding. He obviously worked hard to get in shape for this film. I've noticed that he put on a few pounds after The Prince and the Pauper, and seemed to have kept them on until 1941. He looks heavy to me in several films of the '30's, with man boobs and chubby thighs. Which look embarrassing in those thigh-high boots.So I was so pleased to see how lean he is in this movie. The planes of his face arrested me. I have to ask, though: would it have killed him to have lifted a few weights? He might have had a wicked left hook, but without any muscles in his arms, could he have hurt anybody?

This film takes you to San Francisco at the end of the 19th century, where boxing matches were done illegally in the streets. There were few rules and many rounds. There is a great fight where the boats and barges are used for the people to watch, and you feel you are seeing San Francico exactly the way it was at those times. James Corbett, in an excellent performance by Errol Flynn is the right man at the right place, when boxing was changing, with new rules, where the technique was becoming more important and the fact he called himself "gentleman" very significant in relation to the changes. The "fighting Irish" , including the always present priest, makes you think of the John Ford films, specially "The Quiet Man" which was made much later in 1952. There are two important relationships of Corbett in the film, one with Victoria Ware (great Alexis Smith), who represents the social status he longs for, and the famous John L. Sulllivan (Ward Bond), who comes from the days of bare-knuckled fighting. I greatly enjoyed seeing this movie, directed by Raoul Walsh.