Swashbuckler (film)

Infobox Film
name =Swashbuckler

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director =James Goldstone
producer =William S. Gilmore, Elliott Kastner, Jennings Lang
writer =Paul Wheeler
screenplay =Jeffery Bloom
starring =Robert Shaw
music =John Addison
cinematography =Philip H. Lathrop
editing =Edward A. Biery
distributor =Universal Pictures
released =1976
runtime =101 min.
country =USA
language =English
imdb_id =0075294

"Swashbuckler" is a romantic adventure film produced in the U.S. by Universal Studios and released in 1976. It is a story that takes place in Jamaica in 1718 about a band of buccaneer pirates, led by Captain “Red” Ned Lynch, pitted against a greedy overlord, evil Lord Durant. Durant has ruthlessly imprisoned his Lord High Justice and mercilessly evicted his wife and daughter Jane Burnet who eventually attempts a rescue with Lynch’s help. The film stars Robert Shaw as Lynch, Peter Boyle as Durant, Geneviève Bujold as Burnet as well as James Earl Jones, Beau Bridges, Geoffrey Holder, Anjelica Huston and Avery Schreiber. The film is based on the story “The Scarlet Buccaneer”, written by Paul Wheeler and adapted for the screen by Jeffery Bloom. It was directed by James Goldstone and rated PG.

The film was shot in Mexico and on the galleon "Golden Hinde", a replica of the "Golden Hinde" captained by Francis Drake from 1577 to 1580. In the film it was called the "Blarney Cock" and actually received a movie credit.

Public Opinion

"Swashbuckler" received a lukewarm reception from the critics, and was less popular than its similar contemporaries "The Three Musketeers" in 1973 and its sequel "The Four Musketeers" in 1974. Indeed, adventure and disaster films were all the rage in the seventies with films like "The Towering Inferno" (1974), "Earthquake" (1974) and "Jaws" (1975), which also starred Shaw, and "Swashbuckler" was capitalizing on that and his success, albeit formulaic and budget minded. It was a hit or a miss with audiences and a film that was not very serious - more a sequence of comedic skits and sword play than a cohesive story as a whole. It was nonetheless a film that was well suited to the matinee set and younger audiences alike. Besides the tropical allure of its film locales, the film was memorable for its wonderful, light hearted score by John Addison, which included the uplifting "Blarney Cock" theme at the beginning and end of the picture.

Cast

(in order of credits)

* Robert Shaw as Captain "Red" Ned Lynch
* James Earl Jones as Nick Debrett
* Peter Boyle as Lord Durant
* Geneviève Bujold as Jane Barnet
* Beau Bridges as Major Folly
* Geoffrey Holder as Cudjo Quadrill
* Avery Schreiber as Pulaski
* Tom Clancy as Mr. Moonbeam
* Anjelica Huston as Woman of Dark Visage
* Bernard Behrens as Sir James Barnet
* Dorothy Tristan as Alice
* Mark Baker as Lute player
* Kip Niven as Willard Culverwell
* Tom Fitzsimmons as Corporal
* Louisa Horton as Lady Barnet
* Sid Haig as Bald pirate
* Robert Ruth as Bearded pirate
* Bob Morgan as Peg Legged Pirate (as Robert Morgan)
* Jon Cedar as Pirate gun captain
* Diana Chesney as Landlady
* Manuel DePina as Barnet servant
* Tom Lacy as Chaplain
* Alfie Wise as Sailor
* Harry Basch as Banana man

Quotes

* Lynch “There's no such thing as fair in a fight to the death!”

* Lynch “I'm not a gentleman; I'm an Irishman!”

* Lord Durant “You're a fool, Captain Lynch!” Lynch “No, m'lord, I'm not a fool... I'm an Irishman!”

* Lynch “Here you are, my lord [handing over a cutlass] The blade, you know, is very sharp.” Lord Durant “Unlike your wit.”

* Nick “A pirate in love! Like a fish out of water. Both are where they shouldn't be. But only the fish has sense enough to know it.”

* Nick “There once was a maiden named Starkey who had an affair with a darkey. The result of her sins was quadruplets, not twins: One white, one black, and two khaki.”

* Lord Durant [his dying words as he falls from the balcony] “Draw the curtains. The farce is ended!”

* Nick [as newly-freed Jane Barnet and Captain Lynch kiss] “We've come to make war, Captain, not love!”

Trivia

*Although seen through most of the film, a very young Anjelica Huston had no lines.

*Beau Bridges spent months rehearsing a trick with a horse but after he perfected it, the filmmakers decided not to shoot it.

* Not only did the galleon "Golden Hinde" receive a movie credit for being the "Blarney Cock", it is listed in the IMDB as an "actor"

* Director James Goldstone also directed the second pilot, "Where No Man has Gone Before" for "". This episode sold the show to NBC and got "Star Trek" on the air.

External links

* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075294/"Swashbuckler" on IMDB]
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2161681/"Golden Hinde" on IMDB]