Die schwarze Maske

Can you be disappointed if you had no expectations in the first place? In this case: yes. This less than a classic western has an above average idea it fails to deliver. The triangle romance between the zorro- like masked villain, the posing- as- a- good- guy villain and the European dancer- and- mistress- to- the- emperor- of- Austria- turned- saloon singer is actually quite original.

The film, however, is not. The standard western imagery and unimaginative cinematography/direction condemns this film into the "forgettable"- category. Still it must be noted that there is no hero in this western: just two outlaws and a corrupt dame. Although they get their due in the "grand" finale, themes like that are not frequent in the westerns of the classic era but associated usually to westerns in the late 60's and 70's.

Gorgeous Miss De Carlo often portrayed historic figures:from Sephora to Calamity Jane and from La Castiglione to Lola Montès (spelled "Montez" ,unlike in Europa).Many users probably know Max Ophuls' last opus (1954) which showed a Lola short of the readies,(Martine Carol)who had to work in a circus -under a cynical MC 's Thumb played by Peter Ustinov) Lola was king of Bavaria LudwiG Der Erste 's lover (not to be mistaken for gay Ludwig Der Zweite)and in the movie,you can hear Lola talk about the jewels he bestows on her;"you look at my jewels the way the king used to look at me" ) The story is a bit tongue in cheek and the tale of this masked brigand is not particularly exciting but Lola adds some spice to it.

This Universal B picture is yet another example of Hollywood taking a famous character of the old west and fashioning their own story about him without a bit of reality to it. All that I can say is that Black Bart did go by the real name of Charles Bolles and they did do his crime thing in California in the 19th century. Other than that this film has nothing to do with Black Bart's real story.

Among other things Black Bart was always a gentleman and left a bit of poetic verse at the scene of each robbery. Not a line of poetry comes from Dan Duryea's lips. As Black Bart died in 1888 and Lola Montez died in 1861 it's highly unlikely they ever even met.

Yvonne DeCarlo plays the exotic dancer who had King Ludwig of Bavaria panting for more. But that's all done with, Lola's in America on a tour and she's now in San Francisco. On the way there she meets up with Black Bart when he holds up the stagecoach. Also along are a pair of Duryea's associates from his past, Jeffrey Lynn and Percy Kilbride. They know Duryea even behind the mask and want in on the set up. Lynn also wants in on Lola Montez.

Black Bart despite its gross historical inaccuracies is an interesting and unique film. No happy endings for anyone here as Duryea and Lynn go out like Butch and Sundance. Yvonne DeCarlo is properly fetching as Lola though I think the one who should have played Lola in a better film of her life should have been Greta Garbo.

Black Bart is an interesting movie and well above the norm for the standard studio product of its day.Not only is it splendidly photographed,with a lustrous use of colour that sets it apart from the herd,it has a wonderfully dry and laconic wit that adds a touch of verbal eloquence to proceedings.Indeed I was reminded at times of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"in the banter between characters some of which would have sat well in the mouths of characters in a Philip Barry movie or other practitioners of the drawing room comedy.The script is also insouciantly epigrammatical with a pleasing sense of amorality--its leading characters are outlaws and perfectly at home with themselves and their profession.Naturally.this being a 1948 movie they are not allowed to get away with it but the morality is quite unique for the period

We first meet Charles Bowers,later to become the title character,when he and his compadre "Lance"are about to be hung,a fact they greet with stoicism and flippant banter,when they are rescued by ex banker turned outlaw the grizzled veteran Jersey--well played by Percy Kilbride(old Pa Kettle Himself)They split up and Charles ,with the connivance of an old friend,sets himself up as Black Bart a black garbed highwayman making away with Wells Fargo bounty in a series of stagecoach robberies.Lance and Jersey re-appear,recognise him and try to cut in on the deal.Matters get complicated when Bart falls in love with Lola Montez the celebrated singer and dancer who reciprocates the feeling but insists Bart lay aside his illegal trade and turn to more legitimate pursuits

It is a well acted movie with Duryea and Kilbride especially fine and De Carlo enters into the spirit of things with a brash and outgoing performance

Minor but interesting and I enjoyed it .Give a go -you won't regret it

Three tricky outlaws part ways, only to meet up later on opposite sides.

Pretty good Western— somewhere between an A-production and a B. It's an unusually distinguished supporting cast from Lovejoy to McIntyre to Kilbride, along with some good scenic outdoor set-ups that keep the eye entertained even when the action slows down. Reviewer lorenellroy is right—the amorality of Lynn and Duryea is unusual for the period, 1948. It's hard at times to know where their loyalties lie, making the script somewhat—and refreshingly-- difficult to predict. Add a luscious De Carlo who looks ravishing in Technicolor, while turning in a surprisingly artful performance.

So, with these positives, why doesn't the movie impact more strongly than I believe it does. Now I'm as big a Duryea fan as anyone. In fact that's why I tuned in. But for some reason he looks less motivated than usual, draining Bart of needed character color. There's not the usual relish of his better performances. Add to that the other lead, Jeffrey Lynn, who's just naturally colorless, and there's not the needed drive at the movie's center. At the same time, director Sherman has to work in the romantic angle without sagging the tempo, which he does pretty well. But the staging of the final ambush scene is clumsily done—how could the ambushers miss their shots at such close range as Bart and Lance race for the cabin.

Anyway, there's real offbeat potential in the various ambiguities that the script doesn't develop adequately until the end. Nonetheless, the compensations are enough to make this a generally entertaining 80-minutes of cowboy intrigue.