Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

One of Walsh's best films. It's directed with tremendous zest and gusto, yet with painstaking attention to detail. No doubles are used in the boxing scenes which all come across with edge-of-the-seat excitement. The witty script presents an array of flesh-and-blood characters instead of the usual Hollywood stereotypes. And it's not afraid to present even Corbett himself in an unflattering light. All the characters in fact are fully rounded. No attempt is made to gloss over their faults, although nearly everyone is pretty likable. The players do a sterling job in bringing these characters to life. Flynn delivers one of his best performances as the bumptious and boorishly over-confident but quick-thinking Corbett. Flynn makes us like Corbett by the sheer force of his personality (although, of course, Corbett doesn't do anything to antagonize us – if we accept his constant needling of John L. Sullivan). Production values are extraordinarily lavish with breath-taking sets, crowds of extras, gorgeous costumes – plus high camera angles to show them all off!

Good boxing movie, the story of "Gentleman Jim" Corbett, one of the earliest world heavyweight champions under the Marquis of Queensbury rules.Shows very well how Corbett revolutionised the sport. Before it was pretty much a brawl or slugfest. He used his speed to dodge and wear down opponents, and made it more tactical.Reasonably accurate, historically. Some of the sub-plots are thrown in for entertainment value and can be a bit silly at times.Great performance by Errol Flynn in the lead role. Good support from Alexis Smith.

*Spoiler/plot- Gentleman Jim, 1942. An over confident but talented amateur boxer with innovative new footwork keeps winning fight in the bare-knuckle world of early boxing.*Special Stars- Errol Flynn, Alexis Smith, Jack Carson, Alan Hale, William Frawley, Ward Bond.*Theme- Footwork is sometimes the best defense.*Trivia/location/goofs- B & W. American Warner Brothers Studios. The sailing ship used during the dock-side fight was the same one used during filming of The Sea Hawk (1940). According to "Variety," the real Corbett was "self-effacing" and had a "quiet personality.," which is at odds with the brash extrovert that is pictured in the film. Sullivan reportedly did not like Corbett, and although the film shows Sullivan presenting his championship belt to him, in real life the belt had been hocked by the champion years before. Errol Flynn did all of his own boxing stunts in the film, and although production was shut down for a time after Flynn suffered a mild heart attack, he came back and finished the picture without ever using a double. What for several real heavy-weight wrestlers playing boxers in the film because this was their film starts like Mike Mazurki and two others. Goofs: The night the Corbetts are moving out of their old home to go to the one that Jim had bought for them, the shadow of the boom microphone is clearly seen moving along the left wall as they come down the outside steps.*Emotion- A classic hero film from the best years of the Warner Brothers studio era. trouble is the writers played the history of the roles and time very loosely and at some times the facts were at odds with the film's plot. They never let that ruin a nice patriotic film with larger than life American heroes during the War Effort.*Based on- Loosely based on biography of Jame Corbet, early fighter.

I never thought this film would have been as entertaining as it turned out to be. You can chalk that up to the effective screenplay, talented Warner Brothers cast, and the competent direction of Raoul Walsh. As with most biopics, this one makes liberal concessions to historical accuracy, yet the broad parameters of 'Gentleman' Jim Corbett's career are used to outline the story and it even manages to get some of the minor details correct along the way as well.The real Jim Corbett did come from a working class San Francisco family; his father ran a livery stable and undertaking business and if the picture had included his entire family, there would have been a total of ten Corbett children 'at it again' whenever they got into their normal roustabouts. Jim was the fourth in line, and it appears the picture wisely kept the number of siblings here at a manageable level. Interestingly, Errol Flynn himself was thirty three when he made this picture, twice the age of Corbett when he became the Olympic Athletic Club champion at age seventeen in 1883, four years actually before the date stated at the beginning of the picture.The rise of Corbett through the boxing world and the record of wins he established is fairly accurate here. Corbett was the first serious practitioner of the Marquess of Queensbury Rules, relying on skillful boxing with gloves and timed rounds with a rest period in between. John L. Sullivan, enthusiastically portrayed here by Ward Bond in a great characterization, was the archetype practitioner of the 'old' London Prize Ring Rules. That term was somewhat of a misnomer, as there really weren't any rules prior to about 1892. Sullivan reigned at a time when bare knuckle fighting would have included the kind of punching, kicking, and gouging that one might associate with 'pro' wrestling today. In other words, it was no-holds barred all the way.The story does take a minor liberty with the way the eventual match between Corbett and Sullivan came about. In the picture, Corbett antagonizes the champion into making a challenge, but in reality it was somewhat reversed. Sullivan actually placed a newspaper ad that insulted and challenged three famous boxers of the day to a fight - Charlie Mitchell, Frank Slavin and Corbett. Corbett was the first to come up with the ten thousand dollar side-stake raised from friends within his social circle. When he met Sullivan for the title on September 7, 1892, he weighed 178 pounds against 212 for his heavyweight opponent.I guess I'd have to question the way the film made Sullivan look so foolish in defeat, using a straight on bullying style against Corbett's agility. Of course, no one alive today was at that fight, so who can really say. One thing for sure, Sullivan was eight years older than his challenger and somewhat out of condition. Under the old rules Sullivan probably could have tossed him right out of the ring, but here in the twenty-first round, the champ ran out of steam and was put away by his more scientific rival.Aside from Flynn, what makes this picture fun are actors Alan Hale as Corbett's father, William Frawley as his manager, Jack Carson as long time pal Walter Lowrie, and 'brothers' Pat Flaherty and James Flavin in uncredited roles. The characters they portray lend a humorous element to the story line and are a welcome addition to the boxing sequences. The hint of a feuding romance between Corbett and socialite Victoria Ware (Alexis Smith) probably wasn't all that necessary, but did add another dimension to his character. The real life Corbett walked off his bank job at eighteen to impulsively marry a woman named Olive Lake. The marriage lasted eight years until he met Vera Taylor who became his second wife the year he won the title. That marriage lasted thirty eight years.