JohnHowardReid A Frank Borzage Production. Copyright 29 September 1945 by RKO Radio Pictures, Inc. New York opening at the Palace: 6 November 1945. U.S. release: September 1945. U.K. release: 15 May 1946. Australian release: 20 June 1946. 9,215 feet. 102 minutes.SYNOPSIS: A pirate who calls both himself and his ship "The Barracuda" threatens Spanish shipping in the Caribbean.NOTES: RKO's first wholly in-house full-length Technicolor three- strip feature. Previous Technicolor releases had either been co- productions or releases for British or independent producers like Disney and Goldwyn.With a net profit to the studio of $1½ million, The Spanish Main was 3rd to The Bells of St Marys and The Kid from Brooklyn as RKO's most popular release of the 1945-46 season.George Barnes was nominated for 1945's most prestigious Hollywood award for Color Cinematography, losing to Leon Shamroy's Leave Her to Heaven.Available on an Editions Montparnasse DVD.COMMENT: An odd film for Frank Borzage. (His name rhymes with "key", and is pronounced "Bore-zay-gee"). There are a couple of scenes between O'Hara and Henreid which have a sentimental edge, but by and large it's just your typical piratical adventure, with a bit too much talk for the kiddies and far too much painted backdrops and obvious miniature work for the adults. Slezak plays with his usual gusto, although he has only one or two really witty lines. Henreid is too glum for a Fairbanks-Flynn hero, whilst Maureen O'Hara is indulged with far too many close-ups. The characters are superficial, the scenario far too bland. It has no bite. A more humorous stooge to Slezak than Antonio Moreno is badly needed, plus a more rousing music score. Fortunately, the action sword fights are not badly staged, although Binnie Barnes is a bit hard to take.

Prismark10 Paul Henreid plays Van Horn a Dutch sailor shipwrecked off the coast of a Spanish settlement. The despicable governor of the colony (Walter Slezak) holds the crew and plans to sell them into slavery but sentences Van Horn to death but the crew escape.Five years later, Van Horn is now a mysterious pirate sailing the ship, The Barracuda. He captures privileged Contessa Francisca Alvarado (Maureen O'Hara) who is on her way to marry governor even though she has never met him. He forces her into marriage with him. Over time both fall for each other as Van Horn is a gentle law abiding soul.I saw a restored version of this movie as it looks glorious in colour, Henreid does not cut is as a pirate, O'Hara is beautiful and Slezak put in a scene stealing turn. There is a side plot with another female pirate tussling with Van Horn and Contessa but the story is too mundane.

mark.waltz Technicolor could take history, alter it to serve its own purpose and still make it palatable. All you had to do was take a supposed law-abiding citizen, make him not only more evil than the band of cut-throats he was out to capture, but also a brute to the leading lady. This made the pirates more sympathetic and forgivable. When the leading pirate is a handsome man and the citizen a portly bureaucrat, it is obvious where sympathy will lie.Maureen O'Hara, whose red hair made her a natural for Technicolor, is superb as the noble woman engaged to aristocratic Walter Slezak (who also played a similar villain in "The Pirate"), yet ends up kidnapped by pirate Paul Heinreid. A rivalry grows between O'Hara and the real life female pirate Anne Romney, played here by Binnie Barnes, and results in a funny scene involving a gun duel. Action packed and exciting, this can't be called reality, but it sure is fun!

whpratt1 Greatly enjoyed this film from the past with all the actors looking so young and with great careers on the silver screen for many years. Maureen O'Hara, (Contessa Francesca), "The Black Swan", played the role of a sweet charming young lady going to be married to Don Juan Alvarado(Walter Slezak), "Born to Kill", who was a rather over weight and constantly was eating. As Contessa travels on the open seas, she comes face to face with Capt. Laurent Van Horn, (Paul Henreid),"Casablanca", who plays sort of a Robin Hood of the seas and steals from the Spanish. Capt. Van Horn desires to go to America and settle in the Carolina's but Don Juan Alvarado does everything in his power to stop him from interfering with his marriage plans to Contessa Francesda. There is plenty of action with swords and antique pistols and girls who have trouble trying to fire them off. Great Classic film and very entertaining.