Anne of the Indies

This is one of several period sea-faring yarns of its era, which has the added distinction (although not in itself unique) of a female buccaneer at its center. At first, both leads – Jean Peters and Louis Jourdan – might seem miscast but they grow nicely into their roles eventually, thanks no doubt to the talented players (Herbert Marshall, Thomas Gomez and James Robertson Justice) who support them. Velvety-voiced Marshall is uncharacteristically cast as the ship’s obligatory philosophical lush of a doctor, and Gomez is suitably larger-than-life as Blackbeard The Pirate.

The cast is completed by Debra Paget as Jourdan’s wife, who incurs the jealous rage of the tomboyish titular character in whom Jourdan instills the first pangs of love (which, however, does not spare him the occasional flogging or sword-wound); incidentally, the film was the second exotic teaming of Jourdan and Paget in one year, following Delmer Daves’ BIRD OF PARADISE. The direct result of this unexpected softening of Anne’s character is her falling out with Blackbeard’s crew, and her unlikely climactic sacrifice in order to save the lives of the stranded Jourdan, Paget and Marshall.

While the film is not a particularly outstanding example of its type, Jacques Tourneur’s energetic direction and Franz Waxman’s grandiose score ensure an above-average effort that moves along at a brisk pace; incidentally, Tourneur had already done service in the genre with the superior Burt Lancaster vehicle, THE FLAME AND THE ARROW (1950). As usual with vintage Technicolor productions, the cinematography gives the film a sumptuousness that is invigorating. By the way, differing running-times are given for this film (81 or 87 minutes) and, for the record, the version I watched was the shorter one.

Anne of the Indies is good, clean, old fashioned pure entertainment. Pity that Hollywood doesn't make films like this anymore.....

In Anne of the Indies, and not for the first time, Jacques Tourneur takes a fairly clichéd genre (a swashbuckling adventure film doesn't seem particularly flexible) and moulded it to his whim. Other examples include the lesbian subtext of Cat People and critique of populism in Canyon Passage.

And as with these two films, Anne of the Indies' genre bending and most of Tourneur's other semi-studio oddities, it works a charm.

This film is essentially a battle between the feminine and the masculine. Starring Jean Peters as the female-but-hardly pirate Captain Providence, Tourneur uses expectations of gender roles and genre to explore Providence's struggles with her sexual identity. In fact, she remains almost asexual - whilst she shows little interest in men, or only as sexual objects, she is similarly ambivalent (or downright hostile) to women, or "wenches".

Although the cinematography and lighting lacks the stylistic force that is inherent in so many of Tourneur's other films (Cat People, I Walked With A Zombie and Out of the Past most notably), the film is almost thematically flawless. Though these stylistic concerns are to the film's detriment, the script and Tourneur's ability to play strongly to subtle subtexts overcome such problems.

This movie was much better than I expected. ++++ Jean Peters actually does a passable job as a pirate and does decent work in her sword fights. (To the extent she may have a double doing the action, it's hard to tell...but Peters herself obviously is doing a good deal of it, and doing it well.) ++++ With a good and serious script, this could have been an excellent film. But it's basically cheesy. Still entertaining however. ++++ Not up to a regular Jacques Tournier film, but definitely above a regular Jean Peters film. Color is typical of this '50s time period, ie. too garish and not realistic. The actors for Blackbeard and her first mate and the drunken doctor were good. Louis Jordan was a bit weak. I don't think Debra Paget was right either. But certainly Jean Peters and Debra Paget were probably the two best looking female stars in the '50s.

WARNING : Please,DON'T READ this comment if you have never seen this movie,as it can reveal some crucial points of the plot,but I needed to speak about these points in order to express my idea.

Anne of the Indies is one of my favourite movies.On my point of view,the central theme is the impossibility for a woman to live her own identity as a woman.She is trapped in a male identity,being grown up under Blackbeard's school: sword,ships and pirates.

When she falls in love for the first time,she is unable to express female feelings she feels.She almost ridiculise herself for her love,a new experience,and her own humiliation is exceptionally well acted by Jean Peters.Her desperation became more evident as the film goes on,above all when she has to admit herself her own sorrow after having been betrayed(this betrayal is a terrible event which destroys her under-construction female identity) and she is forced to admit her own weakness she has always tried to hide with a splendid use of her sword.

The final scene with Blackbeard planting his sword on the ship floor is fantastic,because he does just the same act that every person who understand the dramatic situation of Anne-Captain Providence would have done.I find this a marvellous movie,almost perfect:the only scene I don't like too much is the very last,when the name of her ship is cancelled from the register of outlaw ships:on my point of view,Tourneur made an error to show her again.It would have been more effective if the last time we look at her was just when she cries to Blackbeard "Come and take me,old pirate"(I base myself on the italian dubbing).

A moving film,which reminds me of the powerful acting of equally desperate Ella Raines in "Tall in the Saddle".