The Crimson Pirate (1952)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

Robert Siodmak

Writer:

Roland Kibbee (written by)

Release Date:

27 September 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy

Tagline:

MAN OF NINE LIVES AND 1000 SURPRISES! (original print ad - all caps)

Plot:

Burt Lancaster plays a pirate with a taste for intrigue and acrobatics who involves himself in the goings...

Plot Keywords:

Caribbean | Pirate | Scientist | Gun Violence | Marine

Cast

Burt Lancaster	...	Capt. Vallo (The Crimson Pirate)
Nick Cravat	...	Ojo
Eva Bartok	...	Consuelo
Torin Thatcher	...	Humble Bellows
James Hayter	...	Prof. Prudence
Leslie Bradley	...	Baron Jose Gruda
Margot Grahame	...	Bianca
Noel Purcell	...	Pablo Murphy
Frederick Leister	...	Sebastian
Eliot Makeham	...	Governor
Frank Pettingell	...	Colonel
Dana Wynter	...	La Signorita (as Dagmar Wynter)
Christopher Lee	...	Joseph (attache)
Ewan Roberts	...	Claw Paw
John Chandos	...	Stub Ear

Also Known As:

Der rote Korsar (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
Le corsaire rouge (Belgium: French title) (TV title) (France) [fr]
De rode zeeschuimer (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
Den knaldrøde pirat (Denmark) [da]
El pirata hidalgo (Chile) [es]
El temible burlón (Spain) [es]
Ha-Pirat Ha-Adom (Israel: Hebrew title) [iw]
Il corsaro dell'isola verde (Italy) [it]
Karmiininpunainen merirosvo (Finland) [fi]
Le pirate rouge (France) [fr]
O Pirata Sangrento (Brazil) [pt]
O Pirata Vermelho (Portugal) [pt]
O kokkinos koursaros (Greece) [el]
Röde piraten (Sweden) [sv]

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #15427) | West Germany:12 (nf) | Finland:K-16 | Norway:12 | Sweden:Btl | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Bay of Naples, Naples, Campania, Italy

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Ojo (Nick Cravat) is mute because Cravat had a thick East Coast accent.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: In the background of the shot showing the old crew tied up in the net is a luxury sealiner.

Quotes:

Humble Bellows: Meantime, we got regular pirate business to settle. We got the plank, the culprit and the verdict. All we need's a trial, an execution and a sentence.
Slimy: He's guilty!
Humble Bellows: So much for the trial. Now for execution.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Heavy Traffic (1973)

Include "Crimson Pirate" in your kids' memories of Home

I finally got around to watching "The Crimson Pirate". What a blast! Burt Lancaster is the Pirate. His schemes and brainstorms are unconventional and funny.

It's a kinda goofy story, so you have to be in the mood for fun. (For example, the pirate's enemies are silly nitwits, like Keystone Kops or Hogan's Heroes.) Don't expect historical accuracy-- this is total Hollywood pirate caricature. But it's very creative, and everyone on the set, stars and stuntmen, looked like they had a blast filming it.

Burt Lancaster outdoes Douglas Fairbanks. He shows off his great acrobatic training and even paired-up his stuntwork with his old acrobat partner, Nick Cravat (btw, Nick happened to be the airplane-assaulting gremlin on the original Twilight Zone "Terror at 20,000 Feet".)

I feel like I missed out as a kid by not seeing it. Everyone has their own traditional FamilyTime movies ("Wizard of Oz" being a universal example). I wish I'd seen this one as a kid. My parents would've liked it too-- it's very enjoyable for all ages.