Hornblower: The Even Chance (1998) (TV)

Director:

Andrew Grieve

Writers:

C.S. Forester (stories)
Russell Lewis (screenplay)

Release Date:

4 April 1999 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | War

Plot:

Horatio Hornblower begins his naval career, but a deadly feud with a despicable mate is causing complications.

Plot Keywords:

Duel | Horatio Hornblower | Gambling | Military | Historical Fiction

Awards:

Won 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win & 8 nominations

Cast

Ioan Gruffudd	...	Midshipman Horatio Hornblower
Robert Lindsay	...	Capt. Sir Edward Pellew
Dorian Healy	...	Midshipman Jack Simpson
Michael Byrne	...	Capt. Keene
Robert Bathurst	...	Lt. Eccleston
Duncan Bell	...	Midshipman Clayton
Paul Copley	...	Matthews
Sean Gilder	...	Styles
Simon Sherlock	...	Oldroyd
Chris Barnes	...	Finch
Jamie Bamber	...	Midshipman Archie Kennedy
Colin MacLachlan	...	Master Bowles
Roger May	...	Lt. Chadd
Vincent Grass	...	Capt. Forget
Richard Lumsden	...	Midshipman Hether

Also Known As:

Horatio Hornblower: The Duel (USA)

Runtime:

93 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English | French

Colour:

Colour

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Singapore:PG | UK:PG | Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

Yalta, Crimea, Ukraine

Company:

A&E Television Networks

Trivia:

Inside the Grand Turk is a shrine to the Hornblower series with lots of references to the TV show. Also on display on the lower deck are the nameplates for the "Indefatigable", the ship it portrayed in the first four programs.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Indefatigable is portrayed as a 22-gun corvette, with 12-pounder main guns. In reality she was a 44-gun heavy frigate with 24-pounder main guns.

Quotes:

Capt. Keene: Time, gentlemen. Now, let's see how you have fared with the problem set for you by Mister Bowles. Mister Simpson, we must all rejoice! The sources of the Nile have been discovered at last. Your ship, as far as I can make out from your illiterate scrawl, is in Central Africa.

Movie Connections:

Followed by Hornblower: The Frogs and the Lobsters (1999) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Heart of Oak

Absolutely wonderful

First of all, a note about the American titles for this mini-series: what's wrong with you people? Can't you leave a title alone? Or do you think your crowd is so dumb, they wouldn't understand the title that the makers gave it? Why did you have to change "The Even Chance" into "The Duel", for instance (and the other titles as well)? Translating a foreign title is one thing. Altering (and totally ruining) an existing title is something else.

And now to the comment: "Hornblower" is one of the best-made series I have ever seen. It's clever, it's interesting, it's really wonderful in all aspects possible. And Ioan Gruffudd is not only good looking, he's a good actor- a skill that most Hollywood stars unfortunately lack. Right now I have only seen the first two episodes, but I'm definitely not going to miss the other two.