La esclava del pirata

Caught this movie one late night. I watched it just for fun. It stars Eva Gabor as a spoiled girl who has to pretend to be a slave, Anthony Dexter as Captain Kidd and Alan Hale Jr as the Captain's best friend. Gabor becomes a slave to Dexter and the two fight, with pampered Gabor made to do duties which are beneath her but expected for a slave girl. The two lock horns and a sort of Taming of the Shrew kind of treatment to the story occurs, with Gabor fighting the Captain's every demand, who tries to tame the spirited 'slave' girl. They talk, and talk and talk. And, of course, they fall in love.

The whole film is OK and sorta fun in a quaint "they don't make movies like this anymore" way but nothing about it really stands out aside from the fact that Dexter is often shirtless and showing off his physique. There's also a pretty good cat-fight between Gabor and Sonia Sorrell, a female pirate (who looked really cool and sorta out of place in such an studio film). What's painfully obvious about CAPTAIN KIDD are the studio bound sets, which really looked like they're in a studio (we see shadows of actors appearing against the background 'sky'). There are some scenes shot outside but most of this seafaring adventure is filmed indoors. In fact the movie reminds me of a TV movie. A typically forgotten/overlooked United Artist movie.

Having been betrayed by "The Earl of Bellomont" (James Seay) for acts of piracy, he did not commit, "Captain William Kidd" (Anthony Baxter) has been tried, found guilty in London, and sentenced to hang the next day. Although more than happy to see Captain Kidd condemned to death, the Earl of Bellomont knows that Captain Kidd possesses knowledge of a fortune he acquired during a battle with a pirate named "Captain Avery" (Richard Karlan). Eager to get his hands on it, he drugs Captain Kidd and allows him to escape on a ship waiting for him in a port. Once that's accomplished, he follows behind in his own ship, hoping that Captain Kidd will lead him to the treasure. To that effect, not only has he provided a loyal crew aboard Captain Kidd's ship, but he has also assigned a stunning spy named "Judith Duvall" (Eva Gabor) to signal the ship's location at night, ensuring it doesn't elude him. What no one realizes, however, is that Captain Kidd is aware of everything and has plans of his own. Rather than reveal any more, I will just say that although it wasn't necessarily a good film, it had a couple of redeeming qualities, with the main one being the presence of Eva Gabor, who brightened every scene with her beauty and charm. Similarly, Anthony Baxter performed quite well in the main role. Even so, the plot seemed a bit too shallow and predictable, and I have rated this movie accordingly. Slightly below average.

Done on a budget as thin as dental floss Captain Kidd And The Slave Girl will never go down as a great pirate adventure. It certainly is nowhere near the story of Captain William Kidd.

Kidd as played by Anthony Dexteris scheduled to be hanged.. But the greedy Earl of Bellomont played by James Seay wants to get his hands on Kidd's hidden treasure. So clever as well as greedy Seay arranges for the jangman to be cheated. Dexter sails incognito with only Alan Hale, Jr. with him whom he can really trust.

Things move kind of fast here and we can barely follow the story with all the double dealing and double crossing going on. Eva Gabor is along for th ride and she looked more at home in Hooterville.

The cheapness of production and thinness of story will never make this one rank with the great pirate flickd. Christopher Atkin's film was better.

Okay, let's not pretend, this is not a classic by any means, but actually turns out to be an enjoyable and undemanding little movie, with a lively and engaging lead performance by the much-underrated Anthony Dexter, as Captain William Kidd. In the co-starring roles, Alan Hale Jnr and Eva Gabor provide sterling support, and there's a pretty wild cameo from Sonia Sorrell as a female pirate, of all things!! The storyline is basic and straightforward, but rattles along at a fairly brisk pace. In fact, as the previous reviewer has pointed out, the film is only really let down by the stagy backdrops. If there had been more outdoor shots, the film would have benefited greatly via the authenticity of the so-called the exterior scenes. As long as any potential viewer doesn't expect too much, this is a more than satisfactory, neat little movie.

This 'movie' has so many unintentionally hilarious and off-putting things in it that the whole thing is weirdly mesmerizing.

The opening credits that say "Color by American" something or other only to have the entire film be in black and white...Captain Kidd's devil-like facial hair, his ridiculous, smutty shirtless scenes...Eva Gabor's accent and acting, the scene of her in the mushroom shaped bathtub with the dead tiger carpet staring up at her, the storyline of her being sent to seduce Kidd...the 'cook' with a hook he is obviously holding onto underneath his suspiciously bulged sleeve...the 'lord' with the distracting star-shaped mole on his face...the humuncular executioner who isn't placing the noose properly...the lame, fake, contrived fight scenes...the stilted Shakespearean dialogue...the pious Puritan pirate...It's almost too much for the brain to handle.

Believe it or not, it's almost all played seriously.