The Crimson Pirate

Burt Lancaster plays a 18th-century buccaneer called Capt. Vallo with a taste for action and acrobatics and pits his wits and brawn against the might of a villain nobleman ; as Vallo pretending to be a baron to infiltrate into a strongly-armed island and finding romance along the way . It starts when a ship of the king's Navy armed with thirty guns on a mission in the Caribbean late in the Eighteenth Century . There appears a famous pirate (Burt Lancaster who starred various swashbucklers and classic adventures) supported by bearded and short Ojo (Nick Cravat is mute because he had a thick East Coast accent and in actual life his previous circus partner) leading a band who involves himself in the goings on of a Caribbean revolution . As he saves the damsel (Eva Bartok as a hot-tempered woman who swoons over Vallo) in distress and , of course , seduces her ; furthermore he confronts a ruthless baron (Bradley) at an island . As Vallo poses as a Baron in order to penetrate a well-defended enemy stronghold .

Agreeable pirate movie , plenty of action , thrills , bright 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 final confrontation between Burt Lancaster and Leslie Bradley . ¨The Crimson Pirate¨ results to be one of Lancaster's swashbuckling best and has achieved a classic status . This entertaining pirate movie is packed with noisy action , burlesque , poking fun , loads of ship battles , humor with tongue-in-cheek and impressive acrobatics adds interest to the ordinary swashbuckling . Considered by many to be one of the best pirate movies laced with comedy and enthusiastically paced . Interesting and enjoyable screenplay by Roland Kibbee ; however , the script started life as serious, nay solemn, but Robert Siodmak, the director, with all the sure touch of real tension behind him in "The Killers" and "The Spiral Staircase," took stock of the material in forty-eight hours and turned it into a comedy . Hight budgeted film , including expensive battles at sea , as it overruns ballooned the original $1.1 million dollar budget to $1.85 million . Burt Lancaster is a complete show including spectacular acrobatic in which Burt performing his own stunts . Lancaster played this pirate movie in the wake of his man-of-action epoch when he performed three magnificent adventure movies that included ¨His majesty O'Keefe¨ and ¨The Flame and the Arrow¨ . Because of cost overruns on "The Crimson Pirate" and "His Majesty O'Keefe," Warner Brothers insisted that future films from Hecht and Lancaster be limited to $900,000. Lancaster and Hecht's response was to strike a new deal with United Artists . Good support cast such as Torin Thatcher playing an astute pirate called Humble Bellows , James Hayter as Prof. Elihu Prudence and brief appearance of Christopher Lee who has a small character and gets to struggle with the main star .

Colorful cinematography in Technicolor by Otto Heller , being filmed on location in Bay of Naples, Naples, Campania, and Ischia Island, Naples, Campania, Italy . Lively and jolly musical score composed by William Alwyn , well conducted by usual Muir Mathieson . The motion picture was splendidly directed by Robert Siodmak who realizes a skillful filmmaking . Robert had previously directed Burt Lancaster in two classic Noir films titled ¨The Killers¨ and ¨Criss Cross¨. The picture will appeal to Burt Lancaster fans . Burt plays at his best and he provides a lot of fun as his own acrobatic ability , ably assisted by little Nick Cravat . This is a real showcase for Lancaster and Cravat's acrobatic skills . Raing : Above average , 8 , very good good pirate movie , wonderful stuff . Essential and indispensable watching for swashbuckling enthusiasts .

Caribbean Pirates have always been a staple for Hollywood. For that matter, pirates of the open sea are selected because there's always a colorful (if you consider black to be colorful) character within most sea epics. If Hollywood were to make a realistic movie of the exploits of real pirates, the film would be condemned. True depiction of actual pirates would include brutality, torture, robbery, butchery, ravishment, rape and wanton murder and would have investors scrambling for an army of lawyers. But since American audiences are not ready for realistic pirates, they can only provide us with child-proof ones. In the nineteen fifties, Hollywood created the rousing tale of the "Crimson Pirate" which starred handsome, debonair, wide smiling Burt Lancaster, as Captain Vello. A fun film to be sure and one which includes, his old friend, Nick Cravat as Lt. Ojo, Torin Thatcher as Humble Bellows, Leslie Bradley as the villain, Baron Jose Gruda, Noel Purcell as Pablo Murphy and of course, beautiful Eva Bartok as Consuelo. It's an old formula, boy pirate hopping for a big score, falls for lovely girl who's idealistic father is in prison by royal decree. Smitten, the courageous and action oriented outlaw, is reformed and with love as his goal, risks all to redeem himself and his crew. An interesting and fun adventure for Lancaster fans. ****

This is probably one of the best films I have ever seen. It had a perfect mix of adventure and comedy due to the fact that it pokes fun at all the pirate cliches. Also, it really gave the legendary Burt Lancaster a chance to show of his acrobatic talents. Too bad they don't show this on television anymore. This film would probably appeal not only to older fans but to children as well.

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.

Anyone looking for a realistic portrayal of pirates should AVOID this movie like the plague. It is silly, action-packed and far-fetched but underneath it all it is great fun--a wonderful film for all ages provided you're just looking for mindless fun. And, for me, I sometimes want exactly that. I have seen this movie several times and each time I find myself pulled into a magical Hollywood version of pirates! Thank goodness the real-life pirates AREN'T portrayed--as who wants to see rapes, murders and alcoholism! Burt Lancaster plays the lead and his performance is completely bigger than life! His acting ain't subtle, but his charm and acrobatic maneuvers are something to watch. Give it a chance and sit back and be entertained.