Royal Flash

Released by: Twilight Time Releasing
Released on: December 10th, 2013.
Director: Richard Lester
Cast: Malcolm McDowell, Alan Bates, Florinda Balkan, Oliver Reed
Year: 1975
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The Movie:

Set in Victorian England, Royal Flash introduces us to Harry Flashman (Malcolm McDowell), a snappy young man recently recognized for a war hero thanks to his uncanny ability to bumble his way out of seemingly any situation. This doesn't stop Harry from talking the talk, however, and he's keen on enjoying his newfound popularity. He's even got a shot with the lovely Lola Montez (Florinda Balkan), who just so happens to be the mistress of the rather cantankerous Otto von Bismarck (Oliver Reed). Unfortunately for Harry, his antics land him on the wrong side of von Bismarck who, not so surprisingly, holds a grudge. A few years later, when the time is right, he kidnaps him.

Why? Because he and his right hand man, Rudi Von Sternberg (Alan Bates), would like him to impersonate Carl Magnus (McDowell again), a Prussian prince for whom he is a dead ringer. The plan is to get Flashman, as Magnus, to marry German Duchess Irma (Britt Ekland) while the real Magnus is fighting off a nasty case of syphilis, which will in turn help von Bismarck keep control over things in Germany. Of course, none of this is really as it seems and as von Bismarck's plan starts to play out, it becomes obvious that he has a far more serious end in mind for both Flashman and Magnus.

Based on the second book in the Flashman series written by George MacDonald Fraser, Royal Flash starts off with a great scene (obviously parodying Patton) in which Flashman stands in front of a giant Union Jack after which we learn the 'truth' about his time spent aboard in the service of his country. This sets up the character well, and from there we move forward fairly quickly into the main storyline involving von Bismarck and company. Given that Fraser wrote the script for the film, it's safe to assume that all of this is in keeping with the source material and it's easy to see why producer David Picker figured this would be a hit at the box office. Lester, fresh off of The Three Musketeers and its follow up, has the right style to control a film like this, infusing the picture with the same sort of breezy adventure and humor that made his take on Alexandre Dumas' creations as enjoyable as they were. Much of that same style translates rather well to this picture as well.

McDowell is perfectly cast in the lead. He's got that smarmy cockiness about him that keeps the character both rascally and interesting as he fumbles around town somehow keeping up the illusion that he is far more dashing and talented than he actually is. He makes an interesting foil for Reed, also perfectly cast as the boisterous von Bismarck. Excellent supporting roles from Balkan, Bates, Ekland and even a young Bob Hoskins are fun to watch, while the great Alastair Sims shows up here briefly as well. There are some pacing problems here and there and some of the jokes and situations work better than others, but the film shows great attention to period detail and all in all, it's quite an enjoyable movie that sadly didn't do well enough to spawn any of the planned sequels.

Video/Audio/Extras:

Royal Flash debuts on Blu-ray framed at 1.66.1 widescreen in AVC encoded 1080p high definition in a transfer that looks excellent. Colors look dead on and skin tones look lifelike and natural. There are no issues with noise reduction to note, nor are there any obvious issues with compression artifacts. Edge enhancement is never a problem and the source material appears to have been in excellent condition as outside of a couple of specks here and there, the picture is more or less pristine. Detail and texture are both excellent, though a few scenes seem to have been shot with an intentionally soft look. All in all, however, this is a great transfer.

The only audio option for the feature itself is an English language DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio track, with optional subtitles provided in English SDH. The levels are properly balanced here, dialogue stays clean and clear and there are no issues with any hiss or distortion. The score sounds quite nice here as well, demonstrating good depth and clarity.

Extras start off with a commentary track from leading man Malcolm McDowell and moderator Nick Redman that is, in short, excellent. Redman obviously knows this film quite well and as such, he's able to get McDowell to open up a lot about this movie and about this specific period in his career. There's a good sense of humor behind all of this and it avoids getting overly scholarly but instead finds that right balance that makes a good commentary a good commentary. There's a lot of information here about what McDowell went through on set, his thoughts on the cast and crew and how he feels about the picture in general. It's a well-paced and really enjoyable listen.

We also get a fifteen minute featurette entitled Meet Harry Flashman in which Flashman's creator, author George MacDonald Fraser, leads us on an examination of the history of the character and some critical analysis of what works best in this film version of one of his adventures. A second featurette, Inside Royal Flash, runs eight minutes and once again features Fraser, this time accompanied by producer David B. Picker, in a discussion regarding the merits of director Richard Lester's work on this picture and why, when the movie failed to set the box office on fire, the plans for a Harry Flashman series of films were cancelled.

Outside of that, the disc also includes the film's original theatrical trailer, an isolated score track in DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio, menus and chapter selection. Inside the Blu-ray case is a nice full color booklet of liner notes from Julie Kirgo. The essay provides some welcome background on the character at the center of this story and makes some interesting observations about his transition from the printed page to the silver screen.

The Final Word:

Royal Flash probably should have done better at the box office of 1975 than it did, because it's quite a fun and entertaining film made by a talented director and a really enjoyable cast. It's quirky, fast paced and often times very funny and it serves as a great showcase for the charisma that McDowell had during his prime. The Blu-ray from Twilight Time features a really impressive transfer and a pretty solid selection of extra features as well, making this a strong release over all.

Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!