We all know how Anthony Quinn got the opportunity to direct a swashbuckling epic as his debut, with Cecil B. DeMille backing the production, but that's no reason to criticize him. After all, they wouldn't have the phrase of, "It's who you know," if it weren't true. I don't know if he felt overwhelmed tackling such a big picture, or if he just didn't enjoy the experience, but he never directed again. This was also C.B.'s final film, and his illness was the reason he passed his director's hat to his son-in-law.
There are two stories in this movie: one's a pirate adventure and the other's the War of 1812. Eventually they coincide, but to start off, you'll wonder how the pirate-y Yul Brynner and Andrew Jackson (aka Charlton Heston) ever coincide. Yul is off pirating: pillaging ships, selling the loot, crashing parties, and sweeping respectable women off their feet. His latest conquest is the proper Inger Stevens, daughter of Governor E.G. Marshall. Yul's faithful sidekick is Charles Boyer; I always wondered what movie he made instead of Gigi in 1958, since he would have been wonderful as Honoré Lachaille.
Speaking of what movies people made instead of other ones, Henry Hull costars as Charlton Heston's faithful sidekick; he might have taken Charles Bickford's part in The Big Country. Instead, he's a cross between Daniel Boone and an overprotective nanny, always trying to get Chuck to drink his milk, yet popping up in the nick of time with his rifle aimed. In that section of the plot, Andrew Jackson is working his way through the War of 1812.
If you like the cast, you can give it a shot. It's always fun to see Yul Brynner with a wig, and if you liked Charlton Heston playing Andrew Jackson in 1953, you'll like seeing him reprise the role in this movie. But the story lags quite a bit, the actors aren't given anything to do, and somehow, even with C.B. DeMille backing it, the production values make it look like a B-picture. This is the kind of movie you won't press pause on when you want to get more popcorn.
There are two stories in this movie: one's a pirate adventure and the other's the War of 1812. Eventually they coincide, but to start off, you'll wonder how the pirate-y Yul Brynner and Andrew Jackson (aka Charlton Heston) ever coincide. Yul is off pirating: pillaging ships, selling the loot, crashing parties, and sweeping respectable women off their feet. His latest conquest is the proper Inger Stevens, daughter of Governor E.G. Marshall. Yul's faithful sidekick is Charles Boyer; I always wondered what movie he made instead of Gigi in 1958, since he would have been wonderful as Honoré Lachaille.
Speaking of what movies people made instead of other ones, Henry Hull costars as Charlton Heston's faithful sidekick; he might have taken Charles Bickford's part in The Big Country. Instead, he's a cross between Daniel Boone and an overprotective nanny, always trying to get Chuck to drink his milk, yet popping up in the nick of time with his rifle aimed. In that section of the plot, Andrew Jackson is working his way through the War of 1812.
If you like the cast, you can give it a shot. It's always fun to see Yul Brynner with a wig, and if you liked Charlton Heston playing Andrew Jackson in 1953, you'll like seeing him reprise the role in this movie. But the story lags quite a bit, the actors aren't given anything to do, and somehow, even with C.B. DeMille backing it, the production values make it look like a B-picture. This is the kind of movie you won't press pause on when you want to get more popcorn.