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Enjoyable Pirate movie dealing with Brian Hawke of the Royal Navy versus the pirates of Madagascar . In 1700 A.D. , the Pirate Republic of Libertaria on the Island of Madagascar was a constant menace to the rich trade routes to India . Several days sail from his pirate fortress in the British merchant ship Monsoon . There appears Brian Hawke (Errol Flynn) , an English navy officer slashing his way through the fleet and pretending to be a deserter to infiltrate into pirate island . Once inside the port, Flynn meets the pirate captains called Stevens (Maureen O'Hara) and Roc Brasiliano (Anthony Quinn). Brian/Flynn is after Stevens , who has a valuable map . Hawke is after a map of the harbor fortifications so that it can be successfully taken by the English navy . Brian Hawke and Brasiliano capture and burn a ship carrying Princess Patma (Alice Kelley), daughter of the Great Mogul, and her governess, Molvina MacGregor (Mildred Natwick). After numerous adventures Hawke is able to aid his lover and help save his British empire , finding romance along the way . As Hawke ravished the pirate port of Madagascar to steal the love of its Corsair Queen .

Amusing pirate movie , plenty of action , thrills , colorful cinematography and luxurious costumes . Although the story has been told before , tight filmmaking and nice acting win out . The picture is fast-moving , exciting and thrilling right up to the almost balletic climatic confrontation between Errol Flynn and Anthony Quinn . Average-budgeted film by Universal Pictures , using appropriate ship shots and miniature sets when possible . Good acting by Errol Flynn as a deserter in order to penetrate a well-defended pirate stronghold on Madagascar . Though Errol Flynn did most of his own stunts, he balked at the one involving sliding down through a sail on a rapier blade, which was originated by Douglas Fairbanks in The Black Pirate , the stunt was performed by a double . Flynn suffered a broken ankle during filming, and while he was recovering, Universal took advantage of the unused sets by scripting and shooting a hastily assembled B picture, Yankee Buccaneer with Jeff Chandler. Flynn starred various swashbucklers and classic adventures such as ¨Captain Blood¨, ¨The Sea Hawk¨, ¨The Prince and the pauper¨, ¨Adventures of Don Juan¨ , ¨Adventures of Captain Fabian¨ and ¨The Master of Ballantrae¨. ¨Against all flags¨ results to be one of Flynn's swashbuckling best though hasn't achieved the same classic status . There appears the gorgeous Maureen O'Hara as a hot-tempered pirate moll who swoons over Flynn ; furthermore , Alice Kelley is a tarty eyeful as a likable princess in distress who Flynn saves from the burning ship and she falls for him , too . This is a good-natured Technicolor romp with splendid cinematography by Russell Metty and evocative musical score by Hans J. Salter . The motion picture was well directed by George Sherman , a craftsman and action specialist who had already filmed other adventures . Rating : 6'5 good pirate movie , wonderful stuff . It will appeal to Errol Flynn and Maureen O'Hara fans .

A featherweight plot and dubious characterizations don't make any difference when a movie is as fun to watch as this one is. Lively action and spectacular stunts - for their day - give this movie some real zip. And there's some actual comedy from the ripping chemistry between the two leads. Quinn makes a good villain also, although his role is completely overshadowed.

But don't be fooled by Maureen O'Hara's tough broad role, this is as sexist as any Hollywood movie of this era. You might be able to forgive that because of the time in which it was made, but it's still hard to get past. For all the heroism and gruesomely adult off-screen situations, this is still little more than an adolescent good time.

Excellent pirate entertainment! It has all the good ingredients to keep one's attention -- an absorbing tale of intrigue, a fiery lady pirate named Spitfire Stevens (Maureen O'Hara) who's attracted to the irresistible Mr. Hawke (Errol Flynn) who is out on a secret mission of his own. They make a fine romantic pair onscreen -- sigh!

Anthony Quinn is the mean, bad pirate weaving his villainous web of divide and conquer. I noticed the very familiar face of Mildred Natwick playing a supporting role as Mrs. MacGregor, the protector of young Princess Patma (Alice Kelley).

There is beautifully filmed scenery of shorelines, ships, and the bay. Lots of action too of sword fighting clashes, ship battles, daring leaps of Errol Flynn (Robin Hood on board ship!). From the flaming redhead herself I once heard in an interview of Maureen O'Hara that she boasted great command of the bullwhip and could also outdo Flynn in sword fighting in those days but there'd be no need to put it to the test here.

Very enjoyable movie.

"Against All Flags" is every bit the classic swashbuckler. It has all the elements the adventure fan could hope for and more for in this one, the damsel in distress is, well, not really in distress. As Spitfire Stevens, Maureen O'Hara is at her athletic best, running her foes through in defiance of the social norms of the period. Anthony Quinn rounds out the top three billed actors as the ruthless Captain Roc Brasiliano and proves to be a wily and capable nemesis for Brian Hawke (Flynn). For the classic adventure fan, "Against All Flags" is a must-see. While it may not be in quite the same league as some of Errol Flynn's earlier work (Captain Blood and The Sea Hawk, for instance), it is still a greatly entertaining romp.

AGAINST ALL FLAGS, Universal's 'take' on the WB swashbucklers of the previous decade, utilized the services of the quintessential Warner buccaneer, himself, Errol Flynn, in the lead. While he was no longer the devil-may-care young matinee idol he'd once been, the actor, finishing up his WB contract, negotiated a 'percentage of the gross' deal to make the film, and with a potential big payday as incentive, Flynn would show more energy and enthusiasm than in THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE (which would be released a year later, and would be his last WB swashbuckler).

As Brian Hawke, a British naval officer 'undercover' to destroy the batteries of a pirate island stronghold, Flynn looks far older and more jaded than in his halcyon days (when his commander refers to him as 'young', you can almost see both actors wince), but his rakish smile is still present, and his dialog is ripe with the sexual innuendo audiences had come to expect from a Flynn film (to female pirate Maureen O'Hara, he says, with tongue in cheek, "I'd looked forward to serving under you, ma'am"...). Posing as disgraced and discharged, his obvious refinement draws the suspicion of ruthless pirate captain Anthony Quinn, but stirs the long-suppressed sexual yearnings in O'Hara, whose father had built the artillery emplacements. Discovering that the plans are located in O'Hara's bedchamber, Flynn goes to work on her, combining his mission with his infamous off-screen reputation for seduction, in a funny scene that both actors play to the hilt.

Placed under Quinn's command, Flynn participates in the capture of a galleon, then discovers that the 'cargo' is a virginal Indian princess (Alice Kelley), who'd never been close to a man before, other than her father. Having Errol Flynn as a 'first' provides another point of humor, as, after he gives her a platonic kiss, she nearly swoons, and begins incessantly begging, "AGAIN!" (A chant O'Hara would take up, as the film's final line).

There is the 'mandatory' discovery of Flynn's true identity, O'Hara's betrayal to rescue him, and O'Hara and Kelly both held as hostage aboard Quinn's ship, leading up, of course, to a 'by-the-numbers' final swordfight between Flynn and Quinn. Unfortunately, in filming the final duel, Flynn fell, breaking his leg, and the production was halted until the aging actor could heal (Universal, ever conscious of budget, filmed YANKEE BUCCANEER, with Jeff Chandler, on the Flynn sets, as he recuperated).

The shooting was, overall, a pleasant experience for Flynn, at a time when the WB had relegated him to 'B' pictures, and he advertised AGAINST ALL FLAGS in theatrical trailers as one of his favorite films. While it wasn't the hit he had hoped for, it did do well enough that the WB would 'green light' THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE, to be made in England. (Universal would remake AGAINST ALL FLAGS, 15 years later, as THE KING'S PIRATE, with Doug McClure in Flynn's role.)

Financial difficulties would soon force Errol Flynn to leave the United States, and the pirate yarn would be his last film shot in America for five years.

A new stage of his rollercoaster career was about to begin...