colin-265 Why don't they make movies like this anymore? I had never seen this movie before and considering the year it was made it was fairly "spicey". Some great acting,especially Bail Rathbone and with his Dr Watson sidekick in the cast, I expected him to put on his deer stalker hat!I have to applaud the scenery and photography and of course the costumes. The scene where our heroine sees the Pirate Ship for the first time from the cliff top in all it's glory is breathtaking. Having lived in Devon and Cornwall I can't remember a beautiful day and calm seas at any time like that scene. Of course it wasn't shot in Cornwall at all.Slow start but it got very exciting from the half way point. And the heroine killing the damnable male villain. That's in vogue now. Super heroine before her time.If only Errol Flynn had played the Pirate lover I would have given it a 10

edwagreen When the young lad cried at the top of the staircase, after killing off Basil Rathbone, Joan Fontaine realized that a life with a pirate was not for her. O brother, how corny could one get?The really only good thing about this 1944 Daphne DuMaurier story is the clothes worn as well as those wigs the men wore. The set decorations are also quite good depicting an opulent period.Unfortunately, the story here really isn't. Annoyed with her wealthy husband and his lack of concern when his friend, Basil Rathbone, who really didn't get the opportunity to be his usual sinister self, flirts openly with her, the Fontaine character flees to a remote island and finds love with the pirate raiding the coast.All is lovely until her husband and Rathbone show up supposedly in search of the pirate.Cecil Kellaway is excellent as the house servant, his devilish ways are clearly shown for his loyalty to the pirate.

pjmille Yes, this movie is a secret pleasure of mine. I loved the book by DuMaurier--considering it one of my all time favorites--and have read it several times. To have the book brought to life on the screen is rewarding. Yes, the color and acting are great, but I imagine so much more in my fantasies. I wish Hedy Lamarr would have played Dona. She was so beautiful, and I believe, could have carried off the "tomboy" just as well, if not more believably, than Fontaine. (Such as her Samson and Delilah role.) As far as the pirate, I'm OK with Cordova, but his small stature sort of detracts from the fantasy. He's adequate enough, and foreign enough, to carry this film for me. I puzzle over who I would have preferred to play that part. I'm not sure I would have liked Errol Flynn in the part (as suggested). I not familiar with enough foreign actors at that time (1940's) to suggest who. I suppose if it were more recent, possibly Gerard Depardieu would have fit in nicely. All in all, I love this movie. The ending is bittersweet. Basil Rathbone provides a believable menace and Nigel Bruce is perfect in his role as the dithering husband. As I said, a "secret pleasure". I treasure this movie.

Neil Doyle Joan Fontaine was never more beautifully costumed and made up as a lady longing for romance with a dashing pirate to escape her dull marriage--but she never quite convinces she has all the spirit and fire of the heroine. (Evidently, Maureen O'Hara was unavailable). She poses prettily in a number of extravagant costumes but the fantasy escapism of the story seems artificial and contrived. A nice asset is a background score featuring Debussy's 'Clair de Lune' and a properly wicked performance from Basil Rathbone (who gets his comeuppance from the fair lady by having a suit of armor tossed at him.) Cecil Kellaway and Nigel Bruce don't fare as well in rather thankless roles. Unfortunately, the pirate is played unimpressively by Arturo de Cordova, entirely lacking in the charisma required to make his part believable. Women will especially love the idea behind the story--escape with the man of your dreams if only for a day or night of pirate adventure. Nothing deep here, but it's beautiful to look at and justly won an Oscar for Best Color Art Direction and Interior Decoration. For fans of romantic fiction, this one fills the bill.