This biography of the suave swordsman Errol Flynn spans his life as a charming scoundrel. It doesn’t shy away from the realities of his numerous love affairs and it paints a picture of a man who moved through life pursuing his own desires at the expense of everything else. Sometimes callous, Bret paints Flynn as a tortured man who thought he was strong enough to withstand addiction to drugs and alcohol, and in some ways he did because he made it to 50 years of age when, given everything he put his body through, he should probably have been dead long before that.
It was a life lived without regret and he seemed to make the most of every moment. Definitely a poster boy for hedonism, this book is one of the better ones I’ve read as although a lot of it is devoted to Flynn’s sex life it doesn’t come across as salacious or tawdry. The writing style is readable and Flynn’s life is a real page-turner. I’m surprised there hasn’t been a film biography made of him yet, but if you’re interested in classic cinema then this is definitely a book that should be on your reading list.
