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It was great seeing Errol Flynn play the role as Ned Sherwood who gets himself involved in a counterfeit ring of gangsters in Havana, Cuba during the Pre-Castro Cuba days. This film is entirely filmed in Cuba and there is plenty of running around the famous Morro Castle and the Cuban Lighhouse. Rosanna Rory, (Fina Ferrer) plays a very sexy blonde gal who is fully stacked and simply loves Ned Sherwood. Gangster's beat up Ned quite often and he is hounded by the Cuban police and also has the attention from another gal who is Rory's sister. Rory's father is a banker in Cuba and is getting upset with all the counterfeiting going on, so his two daughter's manage to get the printing plates hidden in different locations and the gangster's are hot after Ned and Rory. This is a great black and white film and does cover up the features of Errol Flynn's face from all the booze and hard living he had done in his past. Entertaining film.

For a touch of exotic atmosphere only 90 miles from the shores of the USA in a part of the world that shares a common Spanish Colonial heritage with much of the United States, you can view "The Big Boodle". The movie lacks depth but the atmospherics and locales of 1957 Havana are effective, and filmed with fine black and white cinematography.

Errol Flynn stars and looks every inch the movie star, although he appears thin and tired. Nevertheless he summons enough energy to move at a good pace- in fact the overall action moves at a rather fast pace, especially toward the end. Flynn's star quality was still intact although fading rapidly, and he is able to function well enough to carry the film.

Flynn portrays a croupier with a sketchy past who is thrust into some really heavy criminal goings-on. He is believable in the role and his acting (as always) is good. Gia Scala is OK as a young woman involved. Ms.Scala was one of the most remarkably beautiful women ever on film- its regrettable that her startling eyes cannot be shown here in color. Rosanna Rory is a cast member who is relatively obscure but is basically a capable Euro actress of the era. Pedro Armendariz is perfect as the cagey police chief. He was one of the finest screen actors ever and he is superb in this movie. Leading man type Carlos Rivas who you might recognize from the classic 50's monster film "Giant Scorpion" is also well-cast as a reckless and ambitious young Cuban.

Authentic atmospherics of pre-Castro Cuba, some decent acting, and the brisk pace will probably overcome any reservations you may experience from Flynn's obvious weariness and the B-movie nature of this film. I found it to be an entertaining departure into the long lost era of Errol Flynn and of late-50's Cuba.

Errol Flynn - a casino dealer- gets handed fake pesos by a myserious blonde gambler. After he confronts her outside the casino, a trio of thugs jump him. Not only are the police not sympathetic about the mugging, they arrest him for possessing counterfeit money.

And we're on our way. Like Cary Grant in North by Northwest, Flynn is a shmoe stuck in the middle of something. The movie has him trying to unravel that mess.

Everybody is shady on some level. The dames are gorgeous. The location work is top-notch. The photography is beautiful.

Flynn, despite the high mileage, still looks quite dashing. I mean, geezus, if I still looked that good at 48 and had female companionship half as old, I'd be on top of the world.

And, as always, he's convincing in his role. He doesn't get the acclaim Hollywood's famous hambones get - Cagney, Muni, Kirk Douglas, Brando, et al. And compared to limited-range actors like Cooper, Wayne, Gable, Bogart, et al, he's a thespian.

It's really too bad semi-literate Americans had such limited expectations of their movie stars that guys like Flynn were rarely allowed to stretch. And when they did their movies bombed. Historical perspective is a different matter. I enjoy his darker movies and this was no exception.

A reluctant actor from 1953 on, Flynn roused himself for this unremarkable film. After splitting from Warner Brothers in 1953 he chose William Tell as his first solo effort, eager to star and produce. Flynn's finances never fully recovered from the resulting quagmire. This 1957 film arguably got his attention because as well as giving him a much needed pay cheque, it was also filmed on location in Havana. The location work is it's best feature. The Black and White photography adds to the Havana experience. The film is also helped by a good support cast, plus a plausible turn from Errol Flynn. The story, what there is of it, is about a world weary Croupier Ned Sherwood (Flynn) whose life gets almost fatally complicated "one night" when he finds himself with counterfeit Pesos. Pedro Armendariz is a delight as a crafty Colonel who doesn't believe or disbelieve Sherwood's story. Faced with no help from the Police Sherwood follows the funny money trail and uncovers some dislikable characters plus a larger plot. He also meets up with a mysterious blonde (Rossana Rory.)and Gia Scala (From Guns of Navarone). Sherwood struggles to untangle the web and clear his name. Despite the premise, location and likeable cast, the film is only just watchable. Flynn is worth seeing in one of his later roles, with Black and White allowing Flynn's hardening features a creditable rugged handsomeness.

The Big Boodle (1957)

Errol Flynn is most known for his swashbuckling pizazz in the 1930s, of course, but as his career dwindled he became embroiled in all kinds of controversies, including sleeping with underage girls, sympathizing with the Nazis, and becoming drinking buddies with Fidel Castro.

The last of these matters here, for "The Big Boodle" might be the first film made entirely in Cuba by a US film company, and Flynn is clearly at home. Two years later he would make a now famous odd film, "Cuban Rebel Girls," where he befriends the rebels in their uprising. So this is an important precursor, and it's truly interesting in many ways. It's a crime film with shades of a late film noir infecting most of it. Flynn plays an American who gets in trouble, and has to go it alone with a couple of dangerous women around him. Classic noir stuff. But of course it's late in the cycle, just before "Touch of Evil" which is the symbolic end to the classic noir era.

So there are lots of scenes outside in Havana (great architecture and American cars), some cuban music (nothing totally memorable), and a general mood of that amazing pre-Castro era where Americans and Cubans mixed like oil, water, and rum. For that alone it's worth seeing. But it's worth saying the Flynn is actually terrific in his role as a tired but determined American out to clear his name and save his life.

The other key player in this whole enterprise (a low budget movie with big budget looks) is the cinematographer Lee Garmes, a true veteran and the man who shot "Detective Story" and "Caught" which are both cinematically brilliant. Garmes and Flynn make an unlikely collaboration (and I have no idea whether they were friends) but they make this movie actually rather workable. Is it

"When you want something done right, you do it yourself." IN a way that's what these filmmakers did. The story is the biggest hurdle--there isn't much to worry about or get involved in as it goes. Even the final climax at a famous old fort above town is more about the photography and movement of characters than any sense of who might shoot who.

A curiosity and not a waste of time, but nothing remarkable.

For fans of Errol Flynn, this is a rather tough film to watch. That's because after a lifetime of wild living and booze, the once handsome actor looks pretty lousy for a 48 year-old. He's puffy, flat and lacks the spark and charm that made him a matinée favorite in previous decades. Here, he's just "phoning it in" in a low-budget and rather dull film and it's only of much interest to fans with morbid curiosity or who want to see every film this star made.

The story has Flynn playing a lowly blackjack dealer in a Cuban casino--quite a comedown compared to other characters he'd played in the past. While it is interesting to see street scenes of pre-Castro Cuba, the rest of the film is a dull affair concerning Errol being tossed, quite innocently, into a bunch of murderous counterfeiters. Because he was no longer the glamorous hero, he spends most of the film being beaten up and hassled. The best fight for him is at the end when he barely manages to beat up a doughboy-like villain. Not exactly CAPTAIN BLOOD or ROBIN HOOD--it's really a shame Flynn's final films are generally of this low quality.

But actually acting ... several rungs higher than the last Roger Moore 007s. Get setting... high end Barista Havana.

The women are not high end Hollywood, the character actors are unfamiliar but good... and the plot suitably twisted.

The prospect of tropical nights in Havana and some income that he wouldn't have to pay entirely to all Uncle Sam in back taxes must have persuaded Errol Flynn to do The Big Boodle. Shot entirely in Havana, I'm sure Errol enjoyed the night life if nothing else.

Flynn plays a croupier in a Havana casino, another of those American expatriates. One night a woman passes some counterfeit pesos to him at the blackjack table. He confronts her, but she blows him off. Then after leaving work, he gets assaulted by two thugs and when the police find the phony money on him.

The police aren't any help, the police inspector Pedro Armendariz treats Flynn like a criminal and to be fair he does have the phony currency on him. Still he's left to his own devices to pursue the investigation and it leads to a pair of high living sisters in Gia Scala and Rosanna Rory and a number of their acquaintances.

The best thing about The Big Boodle is the location photography. Of course color would have been nice, but it is in fact a noir type film, Errol's only venture into that genre. The final scene is a running gun battle in Havana's famous Morro Castle with Flynn and villain Jacques Aubuchon.

Errol looks at least 15 to 20 years older than his actual age of 48 when The Big Boodle was made. He wanders rather listlessly through the role, maybe he'd have liked to have done some noir features back in his prime. He's clearly too old to be believably buckling any swashes.

Beyond the final scene, The Big Boodle moves at a snail's pace, a really sad project for Errol Flynn to be involved with.

I recorded "The Big Boodle" when it played on TCM and expected to see a "train wreck" of a movie based on articles and books I have read. I was most pleasantly surprised to see a very entertaining film. I thought that Errol Flynn and the supporting cast were uniformly good. Errol again showed what a great star and actor he really was. The plot was plausible and the pace of the movie moved right along. I am surprised by the negative reviews. "The Big Boodle" is a more substantial film than many more critically acclaimed films... and,by that,I mean mainstream movies that are supposedly "A" quality. Errol brings a worldly weariness appropriate to his role. I was surprised to see how fit he appeared and how involved he was in his portrayal. I believe that he would have been magnificent as Rhett Butler in "Gone With The Wind" which he lost reportedly, due to Betty Davis' refusal to make that movie with him in the leading role. "The Big Boodle" shows what a serious and outstanding actor he was in even a modestly budgeted film

"The Big Boodle" (1957)

I love movies about Cuba; "Godfather II", "Havana", "Our Man in Havana", and "Cuba". That must have been quite a big party place for North Americans to vacation to. Of course, if you were a resident, it must have been a totally different kind of place, and you could understand how Castro could get it's citizens to revolt from the powers-that-be.

"The Big Boodle" takes place in Havana, Cuba before Castro came to power. It's a suspenseful mystery movie that showcases the tropical beauty of Cuba.

Italian actress Rosanna Rory plays Fina Ferrer who passes some counterfeit (Boodle) money at the blackjack table to Ned Sherwood, played by Errol Flynn. Ned is a down-on-his-luck croupier, working at a Cuban casino. Normally a croupier is SOL if he gets bogus bills, and, as Ned says, they can only press it into their scrap book. Ned tries to give the money back to Fina without success.

That night Ned gets mugged by a bunch of thugs outside of his apartment, and when the cops question him, they find the Boodle in his pocket. The police Colonel Mastegui, played by Pedro Armendáriz ("From Russia With Love" and "The Three Godfathers") thinks that he's the counterfeiter, or at least he can help them find the counterfeiters.

Surprisingly, Ned is bailed out of jail by an anonymous benefactor. Now he finds that he's the target of the police, the counterfeiters (who think that he's got the printing plates) and other assorted characters. He feels that he needs to solve the mystery before he gets killed himself.

At 48 years old, Errol Flynn looks kind of burnt out. You can obviously tell when they bring in the stunt double to do his fight scenes, but other than that, he still seems in good enough physical shape to do this movie. He is playing a down-trodden character in a film noir movie, so he's playing it like we see it.

Of course one of the biggest stars of this movie is Havana itself. The beautiful palms, buildings and scenery are wonderfully photographed. The sound wasn't the best on the movie that I watched on Turner Classic Movies, but the music was great. Errol Flynn's character does a little bar-hopping, and you get to hear some of the old Cuban Jazz, Mambo, Conga, ChaChaCha; the salsa/reggaeton of the 50s. That was great!

Over all, it's a nice little film. It wasn't a real fast-paced actioner, but a nice little noir movie that showcases a paradise that we might be able to see again some day. It's well worth you taping, or if it ever comes out on DVD, owning.

Probably the most obscure film of Errol Flynn's twilight years, directed by the unpredictable Richard Wilson, 'The Big Boodle' marks the first of two films Flynn made in Cuba and makes a interesting comparison with 'Cuban Rebel Girls'.

Although generally dismissed as a drab little programmer it's competent enough and seen today the Havana locations offer a valuable record of pre-Castro Cub when all those fifties cars were new,

Unlike 'Cuban Rebel Girls' Flynn is enjoying the largesse of the Batista regime instead of Castro's rebels. He looks a little older and sadder but that fits the role and he certainly doesn't look as drunk as Dean Martin in his later years.

In his prime, Errol Flynn was one of the most charismatic men to ever grace the silver screen.

This movie was not made in his prime. If you watch this film, having never seen The Adventures of Robin Hood, Captain Blood, or any of his other films pre-1950, you might find something to like here. The shots of pre-Castro Cuba are interesting if for no other reason, historical value.

If, however, you've seen what Flynn was capable of. Watching him bumble through this role is sad to watch. Even in 1957 Flynn was a fit man, a scene with his shirt off shows that, but his face tells another story. His face has the look of a man waiting to die or already with one foot in the grave. He looks ghastly.

The plot of the film is nothing great or even good. Just a simple, cheap film about some money counterfeiters. The plot is immaterial.

Watch this film if you absolutely have to see every Errol Flynn movie, but don't act like I didn't warn you. Viewers interested in Cuba might find something to enjoy. At least it was filmed on location.

BOODLE...n 1. Money or valuables, esp when stolen, counterfeit, or used as a bribe 2. Chiefly US another word for caboodle... vb...to give or receive money corruptly or illegally

Errol Flynn a Dashing Dynamo was a Dare-Devil On Screen, as Handsome as They Come, and His Fan-Base was Equally Men and Women.

After All, He was Known as a Definitive "Robin Hood", Captain Blood, and George Armstrong Custer.

Never Shy, Gregarious and Full of Fun, so Aloof About His "Party-Animal" Night Life, He put it all Down in His Braggadocio Best Seller..."My Wicked Wicked Ways" (1959).

But by 1957, No Longer the Epitome of Energy with Macho Bravado, Semi-Suffering No Doubt at the Fate of All Men...

The Declining Years, but Traveled to Pre-Castro Cuba to Light the Candle at the Other End a Few More Times before it was Time for "The Big Sleep".

That Would Come a Few Years Later, Making this His Last Good-Look for all His Fans. He was 48 and would Die at 50.

Obviously Low-Budget, but the Locations Help and a Frisky Cast of 2 Very Hot Females (Flynn's personal choices, Errol a "Wolf" to the End),

Rossana Rory and Gia Scala who Both Play a Big Part in "The Big Boodle"...With Pedro Amendariz as a Loud-Mouthed Tough-Guy Police Chief.

From a Pulp-Fiction Novel of the Same Name by Robert Sylvester, the Screen-Play was written by Jo Eisinger, writer of two of the most complex Film-Noirs, "Gilda" (1946) and" Night and the City" (1950).

Be Prepared for an Ageing Actor Given it a Go, One More Time and Accept Errol Flynn's Human Side, a Dose of Reality, and Remember,

"The Glory Days", with that Killer-Smile and "Devil May Care Demeanor" and Say Good-Bye with a Lump in the Throat and Fond Farewell, because This Guy was "Something Else".

I'm a huge Errol Flynn fan even buying and reading his out of print autobiography "My Wicked, Wicked Ways". I can definitely say that this movie is one of his worse. I think it has to do with it being the end of his career, not much money put toward his projects, and the lack of patience movie companies would have with him. Sorry to say but all that shines thru in this movie, which is a shame. He went from Robin Hood and Captain Blood to a B-rated movie like this. He still has his moments on screen but they are too far and few between. W/ his diminishing good looks and his "off screen" antics, Errol Flynn no longer got his pick of screen plays to read. He had to keep working just to pay the bills w/ his ever growing amount of debt he was in. I think some of his last movies were more for the paycheck than his love of acting.

Mr. Flynn is sour looking throughout most of the film. He also looks to be suffering from a daily hangover. Finally, he seems angry as well. Aside from all that, he is entertaining enough where a fan can at least get through watching this nothing special movie. One interesting note is that the viewer can see a pre-Castro Cuba.

It is maybe not the actual last movie where Errol Flynn played but certainly the last where he shined. His last stand, and not in a swashbuckler nor adventure movie but somewhat a film noir set in Havana. I won't add more than the other viewers have already said, but I was very pleased to see this movie, where Flynn's characters' name is Sherwood....Doesn't that name talk to you, especially concerning former so famous Robin Hood, bandit of Sherwood forest? That's the first thing that hit me when I read the cast, and no one seems to have noticed that. of course that's not the main thing to remember from this delightful film, but I just wanted to point it out.

The Big Sleep, The Big Steal, The Big Heat, The Big Store, The Big Chill. Hollywood always seemed to be impressing upon us that if it was BIG, it was by definition, important, imposing, momentous and monumental. Are we to believe that this 'boodle' was in some intrinsic way more sizeable and significant than the average run of the mill 'boodle'? Unfortunately, the title fails to generate any sense of importance, any real WOW! Factor, serving merely as a preamble to a tired latter day film noir, starring a tired latter day Errol Flynn, pretty much at the fag end of his career. Though still in his forties, looking careworn, heavy jowled, heavy set and clearly ravaged by a life of excess.

Flynn makes a spirited effort with this woolly headed yarn of counterfeit money and missing plates, set in Havana. The innocent casino dealer, who unwittingly winds up in possession of some fake cash, shot and beaten to a pulp for his pains, only to discover that he is under arrest, largely due to a dodgy past. He receives little change from sweaty, cynical police chief, Pedro Armendariz.

Out on bail, Flynn's life is under threat, but the perspiring police chief still insists on doing EVERYTHING by the book.....until, from his sweaty palm, proffering a gun, he issues a dismissive, backhanded go away and sort it out yerself sonny! Rebuff.

Bogus money, missing plates; now throw in a substantial cash switch which occurs annually on the sixth day of the eighth month. (Why not just say 6th August, like everyone else?) This routine rigmarole is just about salvaged courtesy of eye candy in the form of Rossana Rory and Gia Scala. Whilst a fairly exciting finish adds a vestige of credibility to what remains a mainly mediocre melange.