User reviews

Spectacular swordplay in musical style in this superior version of the classic Rafael Sabatini novel . M-G-M presents Sabatini' exciting story of love and adventure . The picture contains overwhelming action , intrigue , romantic adventure , mayhem and a lot of fencing . For the second time is adapted in the greatest Hollywood splendor , the complete romance , the historical characters, the full novel just as Rafael Sabatini write it ; it stars Stewart Granger as the rake young who turns revenger when his best friend is killed and he , subsequently , becomes the role Scaramouche and finally faces off his deadly enemy , featuring a top-notch seven-and-a-half minute sword battle . This delightful adaptation contains an awesome casting and lavish production shot in Metro Goldwyn Studios make for a fairly amusement swashbuckling . This is the classic version of the Sabatini's novel with a handsome Stewart Granger in a brave role as a young and handsome nobleman , a dashing , audacious lover . The film is well set in the days of the French revolution and it starts with the youngster Andre Moreau (Stewart Granger , this is one of Granger's best movies at MGM) , a bastard nobleman searching for his family . Moreau , then , carries out a relentless revenge to avenge the death of a friend . As he joins a theatre troupe , being disguised as Scaramouche , there he meets Aline (Eleanor Parker , very well cast) , and forms an interest in her . Meanwhile , aristocrat marquis Noel (Mel Ferrer) is ordered by the French queen (Nina Foch) to seek the hand of a young ingenue , Aline (Janet Leigh) , in marriage . Later on , Andre becomes a politician at National Assembly to protect the third estate from mean aristocracy and contra-revolutionaries . After that , Andre spends his days learning how to handle a sword , thanks to a master swordsman .

This is a slight and hugely budgeted retelling about the durable Sabatini's novel with all-star-cast . It is packed with comedy , derring-do , intrigue , a triangular love story , action , drama and moving as well as dazzling swordplay between Granger and Ferrer . Entertaining swashbuckling with lavish production by Carey Wilson , glamorous gowns and luxurious sets by Oscar winning Cedric Gibbons and Hans Peters . The climax is one of the most rousing and longest duel scenes ever shot , that ranges throughout the theater, from the balcony boxes , to the lobby, through the main seats, backstage and finally on the stage itself . It bettered the one Stewart Granger was to have with with James Mason in another remake , The prisoner of Zenda . During the filming of the incredible fencing , Granger narrowly missed serious injury to his groin when he landed astride the next row of chairs, and filming had to be halted temporarily . However , in the original novel by Sabatini , the climactic duel occurred outdoors . The main cast is frankly well . Nice acting by Stewart Granger as Andre-Louis Moreau , a nobleman bastard become an actor in a Commedia troupe and vowing to avenge his friend ; being his nemesis , Mel Ferrer , as Noel De Maynes , a marquis in love with two women : the queen , Marie Antoinette , well played by Nina Foch , and the gorgeous aristocrat Janet Leigh . And enjoyable secondary cast , as the marvelous main actors are completed by a stellar cast full of classical and veteran players as Henry Wilcoxon , Nina Foch , Richard Anderson , Robert Coote , Lewis Stone , John Dehner and John Litel .

It displays an evocative and romantic musical score by Victor Young . Lush production design is wonderfully reflected on the luxurious interiors and exteriors filmed at Hollywood . Colorful cinematography in brilliant Technicolor by Charles Rosher . The motion picture was compellingly directed by George Sidney . Sidney was a good Hollywood filmmaker , becoming MGM's most successful director in the 1940's . George was an expert in big budget musicals , but also handled rollicking swashbucklers like The three musketeers (1948) that he formerly made in similar style and this Scaramouche (1952) . Some of his biggest hits were movie versions of successful Broadway plays , like Annie get your gun (1950) and Magnolia (1951) . After leaving MGM in 1955, Sidney went over to Columbia under a seven-year contract and had one more major hit with Pal Joey (1957), made under the banner of his own production company and after directing other successes . Scaramouche rating : Better than average . It is a very good film thanks to fabulous scenarios , luxurious exteriors and interiors , glamorous gowns and being lavishly financed by MGM .

This classy story was subsequently remade on several versions , firstly take on this classic is the following : Scaramouche (1923) by Rex Ingram with Ramon Novarro , Alice Terry , Lloyd Ingraham and Lewis Stone who played the 'heavy' - the Marquis de la Tour d'Azyr - in this old retelling and he came back to play the elderly character of "Georges de Valmorin" in this new version Scaramouche (1952) . And European version titled The mask of Scaramouche (1963) by Antonio Isasi Isasmendi with Gerard Barray , Michelle Girardon , Gian Maria Canale and Alberto De Mendoza . Finally , Adventures and lovers of Scaramouche (1970) by Enzo G Castelli with Michael Sarrazin , Úrsula Andress , Sal Borghese , Aldo Maccione and Michael Forest .

The Commedia dell'Arte is an old Italian form of stage presentation, dating from the 16th century and featuring a series of stock characters like Arlecchino, Pantolone, Pulchnello, and Capitano. Everyone in the audience knew their comic weaknesses and looked forward to seeing them on display, kind of like a John Ford movie. The characters were called zanni and played practical jokes on each other (called "burle", which gives us "burlesque.") As in this movie the humor was often improvised. When the form was taken to France, Arlecchino became Harlequin, Pantalone became Pantaloon (from which we get our "pants"), Pulchinello morphed into Punch, and Capitano, a character who was a braggart soldier, was changed to Scaramouche and became an admired acrobatic mime, which suited French tastes. Sorry for the tedious introduction but it helps to get the interesting history out of the way fast.

The rest of the movie is a comic book and, like a comic book, filled with colorful people in comic-book costumes, zestful and exuberant. If you want a movie to have zip, one way of doing it is to have lots of people riding horses. But the horses should always be ridden at a gallop, and with slightly accelerated motion. (The gallops were shot partly in Golden Gate Park.) Another way of adding action is to have the lovers fight each other physically, as in "Taming of the Shrew", instead of wistfully melting into each others' arms at every meeting and parting. A third way is to build the main plot around a few well-choreographed action scenes -- and in this respect the movie is superb.

"Scaramouche" reminds one of Errol Flynn at his best, in "The Adventures of Robin Hood." Instead of Saxons and Normans, we have aristocrats and poor people. (Fortunately the Saxons in "Robin Hood" didn't win a revolution and implement a reign of terror.) The aristocrats dress in outrageously ornate costumes. The poor people are in dark clothes, like the figure on the Quaker Oats package.

There's quite a lot of fencing but much of it is brief and in long shot. There are three main encounters between Stewart Granger and his nemesis Mel Ferrer. Granger is manly and well built and forceful in his style. Ferrer is long-limbed and lanky, deceptively clumsy at times, but he has never given a more graceful physical performance.

In the first match between the two, Granger knows nothing about the sword and hacks away at Ferrer, who stands there nonchalantly, smiling, leaning on his weapon as if it were a walking stick between easy parries. In the second, Granger has picked up a few tricks but is still easily outmatched and has to escape through one of those secret doors in a paneled wall. The third match is more than six minutes long and is as well staged as any duel on screen -- better than anything in "Robin Hood" and at least as good as "The Mark of Zorro." Granger swings off the stage on a rope to confront Ferrer who is in the theater balcony. And you should see Stewart's wardrobe in this scene! Unbelievable skin-tight leotards, white boots with furry tops, a white cape -- everything -- mostly white with black accents. Ferrer strips off his jacket and is dressed in black shoes and stockings, black pants, black vest, and a white blouse with ruffles, mostly black, that is. (I warned you this was a comic book.) The ensuing duel wanders all over the theater while the spectators tumble out of the actors' way. Note the scene where the advantage changes from Ferrer to Granger when the fight moves from the bottom of the stairs to the rows of theater seats. Ferrer does an almost impossible balletic leap from one row to the next, twirling around in midair. (Another footnote: original ballet steps borrowed heavily from contemporary fencing movements. Sorry.)

The movie has its sad moments too, and the plot is a bit complicated although never hard to follow. But its overall tonus is comedic, as befits Scaramouche's venue. Granger may not be Errol Flynn but he's pretty good, and a better actor. The two women in his life are adequate, but Janet Leigh was a beginner and it shows. She was to be better in some later movies like "Psycho." She looks like a porcelain doll in some shots. The supporting players are all professionally competent.

It's an entertaining and well-crafted piece of entertainment -- exciting and vibrant with color. A comic book worth checking out.

Scaramouche was and remains one of my all-time favorite films. It may not qualify as a deeply thought-out criticism of the social situation in France at the time preceding the revolution, but it does not intend to. It gives us a perfectly presented adventure with all the trimmings -revenge, disguises, hidden identities- plus the wonderful duel at the end. Stewart Granger and Mel Ferrer are both excellent. The entire cast presents the film while avoiding any slip into comedy and parody. The highly improbable story is presented seriously and here lies the beauty of this film. I have to admit being biased: I have always been a Stewart Granger fan and there is very little of the work of his "good years" that I do not like.

An 18th century nobleman (Stewart Granger) avenging the death of a friend sets in motion the action-filled plot of this Rafael Sabatini tale filmed in gorgeous technicolor and done in rollicking tongue-in-cheek style by an able cast. Eleanor Parker and Janet Leigh both look beautiful as the women in love with Granger's character, who, to hide his true identity must wear the mask of an actor called Scaramouche. It's all done in high style with some beautifully filmed sets and costumes that are breathtaking in color.

Not for a moment can the improbable plot bear close scrutiny--nor is it intended to judging from the over-the-top performance of Stewart Granger in the kind of role that brought stardom to actors like Errol Flynn and Tyrone Power. Stewart Granger and Mel Ferrer are dueling opponents throughout, including the final seven minute duel that takes place in a crowded theater where the astonished audience is treated to one of the most skillful duels ever filmed.

The finale would have been even more impressive if the film hadn't already offered a number of extensive dueling scenes. Director George Sidney seems to relish the swashbuckling elements of the screenplay and gives too much time to the various duels without giving the characters too much dimension. Eleanor Parker is strikingly beautiful as the tempestuous actress constantly bickering with the athletic Granger, obviously relishing her colorful role. By contrast, Janet Leigh seems very demure indeed in a more conventional role.

Victor Young's colorful score is a decided asset, punctuating the proceedings with the required dash and eloquence. If swashbuckling romantic adventures are the kind of action films you admire, you'll have a grand time with this one. Grade A production values all the way and directed at a fast clip despite its two hour running time.

A breathtaking display of sword-fighting at its best, excellent acting from all the main characters, brilliant direction, superb over-the-top script and dialogue, first-class photography.

The final duel between Stewart Granger and Mel Ferrer is the longest in screen history. But more than that: its staging is first class. The protagonists fight up and down the theatre steps (of course), but also along the edge of balconies, in the foyer and even in the props warehouse. This is not just a sword fight, though: it's a display both of acrobatics and of the characters' personalities, with Granger's character exhibiting courage and magnanimity; Ferrer's is less generous but equally brave.

The drama is punctuated by scenes of low humour (at the clowns' theatre) and high irony (in the National Assembly).

Both of the female leads - Janet Leigh and Eleanor Parker - are stunningly beautiful. You feel sorry one of them has to lose Granger to the other; but at least the loser gets together in the end with a famous historical personage ...

Granger is Granger: suave, handsome, commanding. He is supposed to have done most of his own stunts: riding, duelling and climbing.

Highly recommended!

I came across this movie it in Blockbuster Movies Online while searching for movies to rent. I had never heard of this film before but the line up of stars, Stewart Granger, Eleanor Parker, Mel Ferrer and Janet Leigh, and the description intrigued me. The story of Scaramouche is set in the turbulent times prior to the French Revoultion. The film makes no political statement and is purely entertaining featuring some the greatest sword play ever filmed. The period costumes and sets are fantastic and the color superb throughout. Stewart Granger is at his dashing best and Janet Leigh is a beauty to behold! This is an unknown gem of a movie and deserves to be included the list of all time classics!

A fine swashbuckling adventure movie, rich in color, nice settings and costumes, some spectacular duels, some funny and witty scenes too. No doubt, a fine old school adventure movie that let you travel back in time. There is also a lot of chemistry between Steward Granger and Janet Leigh. Highly recommended to everyone who likes all those old fashioned cloak and dagger and swashbuckling business a la The Three Musketeers, The Sea Hawk, The Black Swan and the like.

This was one of the last adventures films with actors Errol Flynn and Tyrone Power near the end of their careers, there really wasn't any more actors who could play this kind of role, so they just died out. The hero of this movie is Stewart Granger and it has a great cast that includes Janet Leigh, Eleanor Parker and Mel Ferrer. Granger is best friends with a man who has written a pamphlet that is attacking the government and the queen wants him dead. Mel Ferrer is a master swordsman and one of the queens top men and he finds him and then kills him. Granger tries to help him but he is almost killed himself and escapes. Eleanor Parker is his sort-of fiancée and Janet Leigh plays a woman who is in love with Granger but they might be related and she doesn't know that. It's a good adventure film but they should of kept on making them, instead of all the action movies they make today.

In Scaramouche Stewart Granger hides among a troupe of strolling players while vowing vengeance upon Mel Ferrer who killed Granger's foster brother Richard Anderson. Vengeance however is not a simple matter.

Mel Ferrer plays a foppish privileged aristocrat, favorite of the French Queen Marie Antoinette who's got a deadly blade and killed many a rival, political and personal. Who he has in his sights now is Anderson who is another aristocrat, but a minor one who has taken to hanging out with revolutionaries and publishing incendiary pamphlets.

Ferrer is like a hired gun in the old west, the kind who would goad some poor schnook into a draw and then kill him in 'self defense'. He's unpopular, but damned effective. For Granger to take him on, he's going to have to learn the art of fencing and learn it quickly.

Granger has two women who love him as well, Eleanor Parker from the troupe of players and Janet Leigh another aristocrat who in this case has been promised to wed Ferrer. That gives the Granger-Ferrer rivalry an added incentive for both men to kill the other.

The sets on Scaramouche were quite lavish, why they weren't considered for an Oscar nomination is a mystery. The cast settles nicely into familiar roles and performs well. Elizabeth Risdon and Lewis Stone play Anderson's parents and Granger's guardian. They get a stipend from Granger's unknown father to conceal his origins. The last three films for Lewis Stone, this one, The Prisoner of Zenda and All The Brothers Were Valiant were all done with Stewart Granger.

Scaramouche is a nice tale of adventure and romance in those final days before the French Revolution. It's interesting to speculate just how all these characters might have survived the coming Reign Of Terror in a few years. Things got so insane in France then, it's anybody's guess. One could write all kinds of speculation.

Still I would speculate and still enjoy Scaramouche.

I just love this movie, the best of its kind, excellent in every aspect. 50 years after it was made, thirty more years after I first saw it, not only I still love it, I appreciate more each time watching it again. Appreciate mostly, the Stars, there are just no more stars nowadays with such "star quality" like Granger and Parker, so exquisitely handsome, beautiful and elegant , not a bit common, never ordinary. With such star quality, the movie can elaborate as much as possible of their showmanship and the audience will never feel it is excessive, but only enjoyment. The good old Hollywood magic works at its best here.

I was transfixed whenever the swashbuckling Mel Ferrer or the radiant Janet Leigh was on the screen, but my mind wandered during the silly comedic elements with the title character, and the tired lady's man antics from Stewart Granger. That last swordfight in the theater (which lasts 6+ minutes) is brilliant, but it comes too late, and can't save a weak script. This is the case of a film trying to do too many things - period piece, drama, comedy, and romance, when it should have been more focused. I hated the ending too. Enjoy it for the duels.

It's almost bad manners to criticize a much loved old film. Like seeing something for what it really is rather than view it with a keen eye. It might cynically remove the pleasure. Well, so be it: Scaramouche is ridiculous and oh so obvious movie.

Below are some of the major flaws:

Flat lighting where everything is lit in equal scale. Bad sets where plaster dues not look like stone. Cavalry chases in open countryside that looked like far ways on golf courses. Eucalyptus trees in the outdoor scenes. Costumes and a color map look borrowed from an operetta: Der Rosenkavalier seems to have been a reference. Incorrect uniforms for the time. Incorrect French throughout – use of pronouns and articles, names appropriate for geographical region and grammar. An infinitive cannot be 'split' in French. Timeline of the French Revolution and Convention is nonsensical.

While the list may seem pedantic it also says much about how Hollywood treated history and its audience. It is sloppy, sentimental, like a La Vegas show on ice, with wigs and big dresses and syrupy music. And well, the story and the plot that makes it work, is hackneyed and predictable.

The theatrical scenes are, however, good and there the color and costumes work as does the ever reliable Eleanor Parker whose character has a touch of humor but the irrepressible and optimistic Scaramouche is like Candide, just over stays his time.

I recently saw this movie again on cable - it is a wonderful mixture of period romantic adventure with examples of great comedia del'arte and... especially... the best fencing scenes ever put on film. Both Stewart Granger and Mel Ferrer were excellent swordsmen and their final confrontation is a brilliant tour de force. Watch it just for this sequence - remember it was made in 1953 and is still highly enjoyable.

What a wonderful swashbuckling adventure movie!! It stacks up well with the best of them--Captain Blood, The Mark of Zorro, Adventures of Robinhood and The Sea Hawk. Like 3 of the previously mentioned films (all but Zorro), this movie is loosely based on a Raphael Sabatini novel by the same name. And, like the others, the plot diverges from the book in many key points. I actually recommend that if you really like the films, you should also try to track down the novels as well (if you can find them--they have been out of print for MANY years).

Granger's character, Andre Moreau, sees his friend murdered in a sword fight with the incredibly detestable Marquis, played to the hilt by Mel Ferrer. Although Granger would LOVE to kill Ferrer, he is in no way his equal with the sword, so he hides in a traveling acting company and dons the mask of the character "Scaramouche" to hide his real identity (and save his tush).

Time passes, during with Granger has a lot of time for romance and to hone his skills with the sword. Eventually, he and Ferrer meet again and their showdown in the theater is reportedly the longest sword fighting sequence in Hollywood history! It's an incredible sight to behold!

FYI--the end (the REAL identity of Granger's character) is VERY different in the original book. Also, there was an excellent silent version of this film which starred Ramon Novarro--though it doesn't come close to this 1952 version, which is so perfect in every way.

This is surely one of Hollywood's greatest achievements. Nothing jars in this film, and there are scenes in it that can still take the breath away. The climax is not alone in doing that, and watch out for the final figure in the final frames of the film. The future of Europe is there, and no one knows it! A stroke of genius, and no spoilers. The plot is basically a swashbuckler story, but the film is so much more. It is also about the theatre of the time, and Scaramouche the star of it, behind his incredibly effective mask, steals for me almost the whole of this cinematic masterpiece. Stewart Granger never made a better film, and Eleanor Parker never more delightful. Janet Leigh shines as well, and so does Mel Ferrer as the aristocratic ' villain'. It is one of those rare films; one of pure artifice that has profound moments, and also made with a rare wit and intelligence. I cannot end this review without commenting on the colour which too is superb in its 'unreality' that is so real, and neither must I fail to mention the (for me) underrated Nina Foch as Marie Antionette who opens the film, and with an elegance that shines, and this elegance continues from beginning to end. Hollywood (and I am often critical of it) at its best.

In 18th century France, the air is filled with imminent Revolution. Accused of stirring the masses with pamphlets proclaiming, "equality, liberty, fraternity," handsome actor Stewart Granger (as Andre Moreau) is forced to disguise himself as clownish stage performer named "Scaramouche" to avoid authorities. Learning his best friend Richard Anderson (as Philippe de Valmorin) is actually involved in overthrowing the monarchy, Mr. Granger is drawn into the cause. He finds a major foe in swordsman Mel Ferrer (as the Marquis de Maynes) and romances two beautifully figured women...

Red-haired Eleanor Parker (as Lenore) and white-tressed Janet Leigh (as Aline) are well-costumed, as is this swashbuckler from MGM. It's a re-make of the studio's "Scaramouche" (1923), a critical and commercial hit for Ramon Novarro. Interestingly, his rival in the old "silent" was played by Lewis Stone, who has a featured role in this new version. A veteran MGM contract player, Mr. Stone is a standout; Elisabeth Risdon is a fine vis-à-vis. This production's greatest strengths are the colorful art/set direction and a nicely choreographed sword duel between Granger and Mr. Ferrer.

****** Scaramouche (5/8/52) George Sidney ~ Stewart Granger, Eleanor Parker, Janet Leigh, Mel Ferrer

The robust Stewart Granger is "Scaramouche" in this 1952 adaptation of the Sabatini novel, and it's a good example of the kind of film MGM excelled at - it's a fast-moving adventure in beautiful color, with great production values.

Granger plays Andre Moreau, who watches a friend killed in a sword fight with the Marquis (Mel Ferrer). Andre, alas, can't go after the Marquis - he can't handle a sword anywhere close enough. Instead, he joins a traveling company of actors and becomes "Scaramouche." He encounters romance, but he has plenty of time to learn how to use a sword. Finally, he and the Marquis meet again, in a long, exciting, swordfight that takes place in a theater, the highlight of the film.

Very exciting movie in spots, gorgeous to look at, with strong performances by the well-cast Granger, Mel Ferrer, and the beautiful Eleanor Parker. A rousing adventure - if you like swashbuckler movies, don't miss this one!

OK, so George Sidney's "Scaramouche" probably isn't the most historically accurate look at eighteenth-century France, but seriously, it's a fun romp! Lots of intrigue, sword-fighting, and romance. The best scene is certainly the sword fight at the end, but don't ignore the stage performances. I have no doubt that they had fun filming those.

Stewart Granger gets top billing, but I feel compelled to talk about Eleanor Parker's and Janet Leigh's characters. These women provide a pair of fine love interests, both of them in resplendent dresses and dolled up to the max. Of course, Janet Leigh could've worn a burlap sack and she still would've been a real piece of eye candy.

No, the movie isn't a masterpiece, but it's not supposed to be. The purpose is to provide two hours of entertainment, and it succeeds in every way. If ever you're looking for a truly enjoyable time, then this is the movie for you. Fun plot, cool score, clever dialogue, and Eleanor Parker and Janet Leigh showing off what babes they were. How can you not want to see it?

The most curious thing about Scaramouche is how much Stuart Granger resembles Mel Gibson in his looks and mannerisms. Has anyone else noticed this? I couldn't help wondering if Gibson had copied Granger. Thankfully, Granger doesn't go to such excesses as Gibson, so if you are not a Gibson fan, don't worry, you can still enjoy Scaramouche.

This is a good story, with plenty of twists and turns, and a clever O'Henry type ending. It has its rough spots early on, but it's worth sticking with it.

I stumbled on Scarmouche out of curiosity to see the younger Eleanor Parker, who played the Baroness in The Sound of Music. She certainly was beautiful. The acting all around is vintage 1952 Hollywood epic, though a major step up from earlier clunkers like Samson and Delilah and Quo Vadis. The Techicolor sets are wonderful, if not 100 percent realistic.

The background music is sometimes obtrusively loud and not very good, which is interesting because in 1952 studios were just beginning to use reel to reel tape recorders, instead of recording sound on special film audio recorders. I wonder if this is why they got carried away?

This film could have been better with less campy acting. For some reason, Hollywood took an odd turn in the Fifties. There had been so many great movies in the late 1930s, especially in 1939, with wonderful acting and sets. And then there was the war and whatnot, and it seems the studios lost the thread of making truly great movies and epics.

I have mixed feelings about Mel Ferrer's acting ability. Here he is fine, though his performance lacks range. He seems to be a chameleon who can put on different masks, but under the mask there lacks subtlety. He plays the villain here, and delivers a suitably dislikable persona. The sword fight with Granger is one of the most entertaining, along with The Princess Bride.

It's a little tricky to rate these old movies. By today's standards it might rate a 6 or 7, given its weaknesses. But by the standards of 1952, it would rate an 8 or 9. People paid their two bits and went into the theater and got elaborate sets, glorious color, plenty of action. It's still good entertainment, especially if you have a really good color monitor.

Good action scenes but quite dull at times too.

Set in 18th century France, the story of a man (played by Stewart Granger) who sets out to avenge the death of his friend at the hands of a master swordsman (played by Mel Ferrer).

Set up is long and tedious. The movie only really gets interesting towards the end, once Andre Morou ends up in government.

From then it is quite interesting, with some good intrigue, humour and action scenes.

Overall though, so-so.

Good performance by Stewart Granger in the lead role. Good support from Mel Ferrer, Janet Leigh and Eleanor Parker.