To be perfectly honest, I was not expecting a lot from this one – I was under the impression it would be a remake of the seminal Michael Curtiz/Errol Flynn CAPTAIN BLOOD (1935), but Rafael Sabatini did actually pen a novel bearing its title – since neither the film under review, nor the sequel CAPTAIN PIRATE (1952; whose own viewing would follow presently), have much of a reputation within the genre concerned!; still, their Rafael Sabatini pedigree and the presence of swashbuckling regular Louis Hayward ensured my interest regardless. For better or worse, the fact that both are now available in virtually pristine (if non-anamorphic) editions is due to the massive box-office takings of the recent overblown "Pirates Of The Caribbean" saga!
Anyway, I had already watched Hayward's previous buccaneer venture – namely Edgar G. Ulmer's THE PIRATES OF CAPRI (1949) – and, frankly, was wary of his making a convincing Peter Blood (truth be told, even Flynn's star-making turn had been somewhat overrated!); given that he usually tends to play fops harbouring a revenge agenda, the narrative contrives to put the actor in his element by having the former doctor don a South American disguise for a sizeable part of the duration! Plot-wise, it is – admittedly – no great shakes: a handful of Blood's gang are ambushed when they go ashore and put in chains, so he determines to free them. In the course of the 90-minute duration, he is helped and hindered (often both) by a number of other characters: a bartender, a saloon-girl, a prison warden enamoured of the latter (Alfonso Bedoya), a shifty nobleman, his girlfriend (leading lady Patricia Medina – clumsily named Isabelita!), and the obligatory chief villain (played by the ubiquitous George Macready). Blood's brawny crew, then, typically encompasses all sorts – from Scots to Swedes
and, perhaps mercifully, I only counted two negligible instances of comic relief on their part throughout!
While it may appear half-hearted in black-and-white (especially in comparison with the glowing Technicolor afforded the sequel), director Douglas was practiced enough at this sort of thing (for the record, he had already guided both Hayward and Macready through the monochromatic paces of the R.L. Stevenson adaptation THE BLACK ARROW {1948} and, involving Macready yet again, would follow this with the colourful ROGUES OF SHERWOOD FOREST {1950}) to render the essence of the material via the modest means at his disposal. With this in mind, amid the sheer amount of fun to be had, it was possible to include such striking images as a hanging body casting a sinister shadow over a wall, a guard being set ablaze during the mass prison escape and, in the exciting seafaring climax, a bloodied Macready at the helm of the hero's own vessel "Avenger"(!); interestingly enough, Hayward will be forced to blow up his ship again in the sequel! By the way, I had been led to believe this involved the English King Charles II, but the royal by that name here (appearing in the guise of Curt Bois at the start of the film) actually presides over the French court!
