The Crimson Pirate

source: The Crimson Pirate

It's impossible to recapture the absolute bliss of seeing this film for the first time, in all its impudence and style; but watching it yet again this afternoon, I found a broad grin back on my face within minutes. Burt Lancaster's cocky Captain Vallo -- golden-haired, silver-tongued, and sporting a fine taste in trademark crimson trousers -- is a Technicolour pirate straight out of the pages of legend, and it's a toss-up as to whether it's more fun watching him dazzle and bamboozle his way through the ranks of the dastardly Spaniards, every sea-rover's traditional foe, or seeing him taken down a richly-deserved peg or two when events don't go quite as anticipated. If Vallo had it all his own way, he'd be insufferable; but fortunately for the film, circumstances -- and the script -- conspire to unseat his schemes, with results both hilarious and touching. Lancaster and Nick Cravat play off their old acrobatic routines against each other, separately and together, in a virtuoso display perfectly integrated into the action of the film. In "The Flame and the Arrow", the acrobatics felt shoe-horned in to show off the star's abilities. Here they develop naturally from the conventions of the genre, and the grace of the big man and pugnacity of the little one make for a gifted double-act. In the role of the loyal mute Ojo (as the leader of their rebel captors observes dryly, 'this one can't talk and the other can't stop talking!') Cravat repeats his eloquent, quickfire mime from the earlier production, providing the last 'word' for the film's ending and comic moments throughout. The character of the first mate 'Humble' Bellows, with his Quakerish speech and rigid adherence to the old ways, is also a triumph. Implacably opposed to his captain's flashy plans for a double- and triple-cross on the grounds that it's more like business practice than honest piracy, and unmoved by Vallo's gift of the gab, his doom-saying has the unpalatable habit of seeming to come true as one complication after another arises. Yet he has a stubborn integrity of his own, and his loyalty is to the ship's company where Vallo's veers like a weathercock. He is a complex character we cannot in a way help but admire. But above all, the essence of "The Crimson Pirate" is that it's *very*, *very* *silly*. Gloriously silly. This isn't about realism -- this is comic-strip stuff, where battle consists of tossing your enemies overboard into the water, laying them out cold with a belaying-pin, or stacking them up one by one on the floor of the captain's cabin; where a man with a sword can duel a man with a swinging block on the end of a piece of rope, and an athletic fugitive can escape down narrow streets by using awnings as trampolines and washing-poles as parallel bars. Like "Galaxy Quest", this film is both an affectionate spoof of its genre and a gripping contribution to that genre in its own right. This is Adventure with a capital 'A', with a colourful unrepentant rogue of a hero, with devious Dons, thickwitted soldiery, heroic rebels, treachery, cruelty and gallantry against the odds - and generally an unexpected laugh around every corner. It's utterly impossible, of course, but -- believe only half of what you see... if that!

Movies were made differently then. The stars, most of whom did not use their own names, were under contract to studios, studios run by the original "mad men" (nothing to do with advertising) and it was all about volume, not quality. The stars were expected to churn out so many "pictures" a year, and if one or more actually turned out to be memorable, that was merely a bonus. Into the mix comes Lancaster, one of the most physical actors ever to work in Tinseltown (former acrobat), a bunch of second-stringers, and voila you have the template which years later Johnny Depp would use so effectively to spoof the genre. Plot? What plot? It's about rip-roaring fun from the first scene to the last, and Lancaster delivers. He really could act, you know, but this film simply requires him to have fun and bring the audience along for the ride. One of the best of its kind. The sad thing was watching Lancaster age in the years to follow. Moreso than others of the era, he hated getting old because his work was so heavily based on his sheer physical presence.

Burt Lancaster is supported by a relatively unknown cast and has comic relief on the part of Nick Cravat, his very loyal companion. Burt certainly used his acrobatic skills that we would see four years later in "Trapeze." The way the ship is taken at the beginning of the film is quite comical. There is more treachery here that is beyond belief with pirates turning on one another, another being in cahoots with the evil baron who then turns around and goes against the pirates. The film takes part in the latter part of the 18th century with some people in rebellion against the English crown. They're fighting supposedly for their freedom. Naturally, there is romance with Lancaster falling for the leader's fiery daughter. What's wrong with the film-weak writing, a governor who literally mouths his words on screen, and battle scenes which become comic in nature. The sequence in the air balloon made me think I was back in the land of Oz.

Big production values, bold, bright colors, great use of music, high energy acting. Add me to the list of people who have watched this fun movie a zillion times. The Crimson Pirate ages not. This 1952 movie taking place in time over 200 years ago will remain appreciated for years to come.

I finally got around to watching "The Crimson Pirate". What a blast! Burt Lancaster is the Pirate. His schemes and brainstorms are unconventional and funny. It's a kinda goofy story, so you have to be in the mood for fun. (For example, the pirate's enemies are silly nitwits, like Keystone Kops or Hogan's Heroes.) Don't expect historical accuracy-- this is total Hollywood pirate caricature. But it's very creative, and everyone on the set, stars and stuntmen, looked like they had a blast filming it. Burt Lancaster outdoes Douglas Fairbanks. He shows off his great acrobatic training and even paired-up his stuntwork with his old acrobat partner, Nick Cravat (btw, Nick happened to be the airplane-assaulting gremlin on the original Twilight Zone "Terror at 20,000 Feet".) I feel like I missed out as a kid by not seeing it. Everyone has their own traditional FamilyTime movies ("Wizard of Oz" being a universal example). I wish I'd seen this one as a kid. My parents would've liked it too-- it's very enjoyable for all ages.

It's doubtful whether any pirate ever looked like Lancaster, rigged out in a succession of exaggeratedly modish outfits and bleached-blond hair... He is the 18th-century pirate swashbuckler to end all swashbucklers! With his mute, but athletic side-kick friend Nick Cravat, Lancaster leads an island's people in rebellion against the tyrant Baron Gruda... His damsel is Eva Bartok, the freewheeling European beauty... I don't know how many times I have seen this buccaneer saga, and still I love it... The film provides lots of thrills and laughs, lots of adventures and excitement ... Great fun all the time... Lancaster's sense of comedy was evident enough for critic Alton Cook to call him "one of our most amiable and strenuous comedians." For me, Lancaster will be always remembered as the actor who has given the modern cinema more "pure enjoyment" than almost any other major star...

"The Crimson Pirate" is pure happiness, for kids and adults. Everything contributes to the mirth of the audience: the bright colors of the beautiful, careful photography, the frenetic, pyrotechnic action, the outstanding acrobatic performances by Burt Lancaster and Nick Cravat, the humour of the dialogues and also (why not?) the loveliness and charm of Eva Bartok and of the other supporting actresses. A common question asked by parents seeing this movie with their children: What character did you like best? The unanimous answer by the kids will be: Ojo! In fact, Ojo (Nick Cravat) can deservedly compete for the title of the nicest character in movie history. And the great actor-legend Burt Lancaster (captain Vallo) is just perfect in his smiling auto-irony. By the way, when I happen to see again the video of "The Crimson Pirate" (my daughters know it nearly by heart), I am always stunned by how beautifully this movie is made. Certainly it is a major work, somewhat hidden behind its extreme fun. A final remark: the director of this masterpiece of comic and adventure is Robert Siodmak, a former great specialist of dark thrillers and noirs ("The Spiral Staircase" "The Killers"). This gives an idea of how deeply talented the old Hollywood masters were.

I generally don't comment on movies I don't like, but I HATED this film enough to speak up. This is yet another example of the jaw-dropping INANITY that has come to represent the pirate film, in Hollywood. And, like Cutthroat Island, it's another reason why we don't see more pirate films. I'm not saying that every pirate film has to be 100% realistic -- this is the movies, we're talking about, not a history lesson. But, can we please TRY, people? I mean, come on...SELF-PROPELLED TANKS AND SUBMARINES? SEMAPHORE? FLAMETHROWERS? NITROGLYCERINE? I guess this is supposed to be humorous or cute, in an anachronistic, Wild Wild West kind of way? It isn't -- it's LAME. Twice, in this film, a man at ground zero of an enormous explosion is left charred and smoking, like Wiley Coyote, with a stupid expression on his face. At what point does this cease to be the wildly entertaining pirate yarn that people seem to want it to be (it's even championed by Leonard Maltin), and become the RIDICULOUS CLOWN ROUTINE that it actually IS? I mean, Lancaster actually gives us a DISCLAIMER at the beginning of the film. Saying that we should only believe half of what we see (too bad he didn't tell us WHICH half was the believable one). This is the mark of a truly BAD film. I mean, how often do you go to the movies, only to have the star come out before it starts to tell you that you're about to watch a bunch of NONSENSE? It looks more like a retroactive decision by the studio, in a pathetic attempt to keep audiences from walking out of what turned out to be a STUPID movie. The movie's fans can keep this one; I'll take The Sea Hawk.

In the late 18th century Caribbean a group of pirates led by Capt.Vallo become embroiled in the revolutionary activities of some islanders against the King. That's about all the plot that you need to know, for this film doesn't concern itself with historical accuracy or the like. What it does is to place it's tongue firmly in it's cheek and take the audience on a thrilling romp in the best swashbuckling style. Burt Lancaster plays Vallo with real gusto and exuberance, ideally suited to the all action role. He did all his own stunts, being paired on screen with his one time trapeze partner Nick Cravat as his mute sidekick. In these days of CGI overkill it's refreshing to see smartly choreographed action set pieces with real people performing breathtaking feats of agility. The support cast is filled with familiar faces from the period all giving good value in their respective roles. The whole enterprise is lavishly mounted and shot in glorious vivid Technicolor. This was possibly one of the last of this type before Cinemascope and widescreen in general became the norm. As mentioned previously, accuracy isn't an issue here. In the finale we encounter prototypes of Gatlin guns, tanks and flamethrowers among other things! I hadn't seen this since childhood, so I took the opportunity of catching it on the BBC at the weekend. With 'Pirates Of The Caribbean' still relatively fresh in my mind, it seemed appropriate to revisit this old classic. I'm happy to say that it's lost none of its appeal, quite the opposite in fact. Rollicking good fun - recommended.