Fire Over England (1937)

In 1588, relations between England and Spain are strained. As Spain prepares for an attack against England by building a fleet of warships known as the Spanish Armada, Queen Elizabeth I (Flora Robson) sends an undercover spy (Laurence Olivier) to Spain to ferret out their plans for an attack on England. With war clouds hovering over Europe in the mid 1930s, FIRE OVER ENGLAND comes across as a pre-WWII propaganda film with the Spanish standing in for the looming Nazi threat. It's too darn serious to be called a swashbuckler though the film attempts to dress up its message with romance, swordplay and battles amid the patriotic pleas. Olivier seems a bit uncomfortable in a part that Errol Flynn could play with ease but then again until WUTHERING HEIGHTS, his screen performances tended to be on the stiff side. The young Vivien Leigh (looking drop dead gorgeous) doesn't have much to do other than pout but Robson makes for a feisty Elizabeth, a role she would play three years later in THE SEA HAWK, a film with a similar narrative. Directed by William K. Howard. With Raymond Massey as King Philip II of Spain, James Mason, Robert Newton, Leslie Banks, Tamara Desni and Norma Varden who has the film's best line ("A Spanish lady may retire, but she never goes to bed!")