If you have read the Hornblower books, you will be disappointed by the movies. If you haven't read the books, then the movies will be entertaining. Don't read the books expecting to see the movies themes and stories or vice versa.
The theme, character traits and story developments of the C.S. Forester are not present in the movies I have watched. It is the typical case of using the reputation and basic elements of a book to write your own story for a movie. Always an unfortunate decision, but here the character of Horatio is lost. The large themes of Hornblower's decisive calculations, self- loathing, self-imposed isolation, moods and leadership have all been but aside for our more modern themes of bad guy vs. good guy and the hero model. The movies do use incidents from the books, but do not present them within the historic settings well. Neither do they string them together in relationships similar to the books.
Watch it and then read the books. They use the same names (sometimes) but treat them as separate works.
The theme, character traits and story developments of the C.S. Forester are not present in the movies I have watched. It is the typical case of using the reputation and basic elements of a book to write your own story for a movie. Always an unfortunate decision, but here the character of Horatio is lost. The large themes of Hornblower's decisive calculations, self- loathing, self-imposed isolation, moods and leadership have all been but aside for our more modern themes of bad guy vs. good guy and the hero model. The movies do use incidents from the books, but do not present them within the historic settings well. Neither do they string them together in relationships similar to the books.
Watch it and then read the books. They use the same names (sometimes) but treat them as separate works.