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13 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
One of my favorite pirate films, 10 October 2001
10/10
Author: lora64 from Canada

Excellent pirate entertainment! It has all the good ingredients to keep one's attention -- an absorbing tale of intrigue, a fiery lady pirate named Spitfire Stevens (Maureen O'Hara) who's attracted to the irresistible Mr. Hawke (Errol Flynn) who is out on a secret mission of his own. They make a fine romantic pair onscreen -- sigh!

Anthony Quinn is the mean, bad pirate weaving his villainous web of divide and conquer. I noticed the very familiar face of Mildred Natwick playing a supporting role as Mrs. MacGregor, the protector of young Princess Patma (Alice Kelley).

There is beautifully filmed scenery of shorelines, ships, and the bay. Lots of action too of sword fighting clashes, ship battles, daring leaps of Errol Flynn (Robin Hood on board ship!). From the flaming redhead herself I once heard in an interview of Maureen O'Hara that she boasted great command of the bullwhip and could also outdo Flynn in sword fighting in those days but there'd be no need to put it to the test here.

Very enjoyable movie.

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7 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Flynn's Universal Swashbuckler Fun, if Minor..., 15 September 2003
Author: Ben Burgraff (cariart) from Las Vegas, Nevada

AGAINST ALL FLAGS, Universal's 'take' on the WB swashbucklers of the previous decade, utilized the services of the quintessential Warner buccaneer, himself, Errol Flynn, in the lead. While he was no longer the devil-may-care young matinee idol he'd once been, the actor, finishing up his WB contract, negotiated a 'percentage of the gross' deal to make the film, and with a potential big payday as incentive, Flynn would show more energy and enthusiasm than in THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE (which would be released a year later, and would be his last WB swashbuckler).

As Brian Hawke, a British naval officer 'undercover' to destroy the batteries of a pirate island stronghold, Flynn looks far older and more jaded than in his halcyon days (when his commander refers to him as 'young', you can almost see both actors wince), but his rakish smile is still present, and his dialog is ripe with the sexual innuendo audiences had come to expect from a Flynn film (to female pirate Maureen O'Hara, he says, with tongue in cheek, "I'd looked forward to serving under you, ma'am"...). Posing as disgraced and discharged, his obvious refinement draws the suspicion of ruthless pirate captain Anthony Quinn, but stirs the long-suppressed sexual yearnings in O'Hara, whose father had built the artillery emplacements. Discovering that the plans are located in O'Hara's bedchamber, Flynn goes to work on her, combining his mission with his infamous off-screen reputation for seduction, in a funny scene that both actors play to the hilt.

Placed under Quinn's command, Flynn participates in the capture of a galleon, then discovers that the 'cargo' is a virginal Indian princess (Alice Kelley), who'd never been close to a man before, other than her father. Having Errol Flynn as a 'first' provides another point of humor, as, after he gives her a platonic kiss, she nearly swoons, and begins incessantly begging, "AGAIN!" (A chant O'Hara would take up, as the film's final line).

There is the 'mandatory' discovery of Flynn's true identity, O'Hara's betrayal to rescue him, and O'Hara and Kelly both held as hostage aboard Quinn's ship, leading up, of course, to a 'by-the-numbers' final swordfight between Flynn and Quinn. Unfortunately, in filming the final duel, Flynn fell, breaking his leg, and the production was halted until the aging actor could heal (Universal, ever conscious of budget, filmed YANKEE BUCCANEER, with Jeff Chandler, on the Flynn sets, as he recuperated).

The shooting was, overall, a pleasant experience for Flynn, at a time when the WB had relegated him to 'B' pictures, and he advertised AGAINST ALL FLAGS in theatrical trailers as one of his favorite films. While it wasn't the hit he had hoped for, it did do well enough that the WB would 'green light' THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE, to be made in England. (Universal would remake AGAINST ALL FLAGS, 15 years later, as THE KING'S PIRATE, with Doug McClure in Flynn's role.)

Financial difficulties would soon force Errol Flynn to leave the United States, and the pirate yarn would be his last film shot in America for five years.

A new stage of his rollercoaster career was about to begin...

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9 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
Yet Another Errol Flynn Triumph!, 9 November 1999
8/10
Author: JHC3 from Seattle, Washington

"Against All Flags" is every bit the classic swashbuckler. It has all the elements the adventure fan could hope for and more for in this one, the damsel in distress is, well, not really in distress. As Spitfire Stevens, Maureen O'Hara is at her athletic best, running her foes through in defiance of the social norms of the period. Anthony Quinn rounds out the top three billed actors as the ruthless Captain Roc Brasiliano and proves to be a wily and capable nemesis for Brian Hawke (Flynn). For the classic adventure fan, "Against All Flags" is a must-see. While it may not be in quite the same league as some of Errol Flynn's earlier work (Captain Blood and The Sea Hawk, for instance), it is still a greatly entertaining romp.

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5 out of 5 people found the following comment useful :-
One of Flynn's better "twilight" films, 15 April 2004
Author: retro_gal

This is among one of Errol Flynn's better films during his career decline, particularly after a long stretch of duds (his last best film was 1945's "Objective, Burma!" and possibly 1948's "Adventures of Don Juan") and before his short-lived comeback in the notable "The Sun Also Rises," "The Roots of Heaven" and "Too Much, Too Soon." A high-seas tale that doesn't rank on the illustrious level of Flynn's other, earlier pirate flicks during his career height ("Captain Blood" and "The Sea Hawk"), but nevertheless what otherwise would have been a completely run-of-the-mill production is elevated by the main roles of leads Flynn and Maureen O'Hara and the oft-cast Flynn co-star Anthony Quinn as the villian (again). They all bring their characteristic star quality to their roles, but rather than "cancelling" or overpowering each other as such strong screen presences are sometimes in "danger" of doing, they play off each other well. Flynn plays Brian Hawke, a British naval officer on a top-secret mission to infiltrate pirate activity in Madagascar, under the guise of turning renegade. He manages to convince the buccaneers that he's not a spy and is allowed to join them, but their captain, Roc Brasiliano (Quinn), remains unconvinced and suspicious. Their uneasy alliance is made all the more tenuous by the gorgeous and dashingly glamorous lone female pirate "Spitfire" Stevens (an apt name if ever there was one), whom both men desire; and by the pretty Patma, an Indian princess (who doesn't look Indian in the least, BTW) whom Hawke has rescued and, along with being smitten by him and thus incurring the wrathful jealousy of Spitfire, ends up causing no end of nit-witted, unintentioned trouble and danger.

While not displaying the breathtaking level of razzle-dazzle as in his younger days, Flynn still retains his trademark charisma and cheek, turning in a solid, albeit unremarkable, performance by imparting a mature worldliness appropriate to his character. And while he's gotten bloated and jowly in the face, he remains handsome enough and has still has a fine-looking physique for his age, and, especially, for someone of his high-living lifestyle. Still I have to admit I would have loved to have seen Flynn in this film several years earlier, at the peak of his godlike beauty, physical grace and magnetic powers. As for Maureen O'Hara--no other actress could have portrayed a female pirate quite as convicingly as she. With fire and desire, dynamic spunk and sass and rakish allure, she epitomizes this she-rogue who is a match (and even more) for any man, but has rather forgotten how to be a woman--yet despite, or rather, because of this, is remarkably fresh, frank and sexy, no cunning feminine wiles here. Also, the sight of O'Hara's impressive, strapping physique costumed in green pirate gear is a masterstroke--the color shows exceptionally well on her and is an amazing complement to her flaming red hair, green eyes and white skin.

Poor Anthony Quinn is--in what must have been quite frustrating for him--again in the kind of unchallenging part he knows all too well, so therefore he doesn't go wrong and, more to his credit, doesn't allow any boredom he may have with his typecast role affect his menacing, spirited performance. He is overshadowed, though, by the meatier roles of his 2 co-stars. The big fly in the ointment is undoubtedly Alice Kelley as Princess Patma. Looking not unlike a slighter-built, dumbed-down version of Jennifer Tilly (who's not all that intelligent-looking to begin with), she's emotes with such tiresome vacuousness and stupidity that it's near cringe-inducing proportions. It's easy to understand, despite her character's fabulous wealth and pedigree, why she holds no fascination for Hawke and doesn't hold a candle to Spitfire. To be fair, her character is not the sharpest knife in the drawer (more like the dullest one there), but Kelly lacks the skill and allure to make the role endearing. And while the movie is filmed in lush Technicolor, a drawback is an obviously fake seaport set. But the plusses outweigh the minuses, making it above-average fare, and at a succinct 83 minutes, it moves at a brisk, entertaining pace.

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5 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
The best pirate movie ever!, 6 February 1999
9/10
Author: Alexander Kriegisch from Höchstadt, Germany

Being the prototype of the classical Errol Flynn adventure movie and having a good story as well as two more brilliant co-stars in Maureen O'Hara (what an exquisite beauty!) and Anthony Quinn, I can only recommend this movie to all those having even the slightest liking for romance and adventure.

Hollywood at its best!

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3 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Acceptable Pirate Film, 30 September 2006
6/10
Author: ragosaal from Argentina

If you like pirate films, you shouldn't miss this one. "Against All Flags" is not a great film of the genre, but it is entertaining and enjoyable.

It has all the ingredients. Battles at sea, the hero, the villain, the hero's romantic interest, the final sword duel, good settings and color and special effects are very good too (don't forget we are in the early 50's).

I think the cast helps a lot if not for outstanding performances (there are not very demanding roles) but for actors that were symbols in this kind of movie. Errol Flynn -probably the all time swashbuckler- was aging here but he still had his unique screen presence. Maureen O'Hara was often casted in adventure films and her undeniable beauty was always welcome. And Anthony Quinn -not a major star back then, but a classical villain- was on his way.

Pure pirate adventure; no more, but no less.

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5 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Silly, Rollicking Fun, 9 September 2001
7/10
Author: stills-6 from california

A featherweight plot and dubious characterizations don't make any difference when a movie is as fun to watch as this one is. Lively action and spectacular stunts - for their day - give this movie some real zip. And there's some actual comedy from the ripping chemistry between the two leads. Quinn makes a good villain also, although his role is completely overshadowed.

But don't be fooled by Maureen O'Hara's tough broad role, this is as sexist as any Hollywood movie of this era. You might be able to forgive that because of the time in which it was made, but it's still hard to get past. For all the heroism and gruesomely adult off-screen situations, this is still little more than an adolescent good time.

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
AGAINST ALL FLAGS (George Sherman, 1952) ***, 30 March 2008
7/10
Author: MARIO GAUCI (marrod@melita.com) from Naxxar, Malta

By 1945, and after a string of solid WWII propaganda pieces, Errol Flynn’s hold over U.S. box office had started to decline so, in spite of the increased burden of waning looks, he embarked on a series of films pertaining to that genre which had earlier made his name: the swashbuckler. The first of these was a good one actually – ADVENTURES OF DON JUAN (1948) – but it also proved to be his last big-budget Hollywood starring vehicle. The rest of his sword-wielding days were spent wandering all over Europe: in England for KIM (1950), THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE (1953) and THE DARK AVENGER (1955), in France for ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN FABIAN (1951) and Italy for the aborted THE STORY OF WILLIAM TELL (1953) and the little-seen CROSSED SWORDS (1954). However, Hollywood did beckon him one last time to his old seafaring ways – albeit for a modestly-budgeted Universal picture rather than a Warner Brothers ‘A’ production to which he had been accustomed when at his peak…

Still, the glorious Technicolor cinematography leaps off the screen here and, while an older and flabbier Flynn may look like the pale shadow of his former self, his red-headed leading lady Maureen O’Hara has a field day as a tomboyish buccaneer leader who deep down craves romance and wants to be treated like a lady. Anthony Quinn was still a few years away from his larger-than-life starring vehicles, so here he is typically seen as the baddie – the pirate captain Roc Brasiliano, a role he attacks with gusto. Like THE BLACK SHIELD OF FALWORTH (1954) – a viewing of which preceded this one – AGAINST ALL FLAGS takes me back to my cherished childhood days of constant TV viewing when vintage Hollywood movies were the order of the day on both the local and neighboring Italian channels.

For all I know, this might well have been the very first pirate movie I’ve ever seen and I cringe at the thought of today’s generation of youngsters supposedly believing that the grossly overblown PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN trilogy is what buccaneering is all about! As I said earlier, AGAINST ALL FLAGS might not be the finest pirate yarn ever brought to the screen but it’s a solid example of this prolific genre all the same. Nowadays, the amorous persistence of the child-like Indian princess (Alice Kelley) towards her pirate captor Flynn may strike one as being awfully silly but the rest of it – despite clearly not scaling the heights of THE SEA HAWK (1940) and THE BLACK SWAN (1942), to mention the finest seafaring ventures of its respective stars – is briskly paced and reasonably engaging. Incidentally, the film would later go on to be remade as THE KING’S PIRATE (1967) with Doug McClure!

For what it’s worth, the unprecedented box office success of that unappetizing modern franchise is most probably what induced reluctant movie studios to dust off their catalogue swashbuckling titles and release them on DVD and, as a matter of fact, AGAINST ALL FLAGS itself was the one gem in a poorly-thought out “Pirates Of The Golden Age Movie Collection” set from Universal which also consisted of obscure dross like BUCCANEER’S GIRL (1950; with Yvonne De Carlo), DOULE CROSSBONES (1951; with Donald O’Connor) and YANKEE BUCCANEER (1952; with Jeff Chandler)! Value for money, perhaps but, so far, I have only acquired the Errol Flynn flick from other sources; even so, if the mood strikes me in future, I might wish to lay my hands on similar marine adventures like Edward Dmytyk’s MUTINY (1952), the afore-mentioned YANKEE BUCCANEER and PIRATES OF TORTUGA (1961).

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Enjoyable pirate movie (some spoilers), 16 June 2004
Author: (Jessica-65) from Montreal, Quebec, Canada

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

I just finished a mini-marathon of Errol Flynn pirate movies: Captain Blood (1935), The Sea Hawk (1940), and Against All Flags (1952). Strangely, I'd never heard of AAF, though I knew most of Flynn's other films. It was interesting to see Flynn's face change so dramatically over the years, and listen to his accent become more American. I've never heard anyone mention this before, but I find that in his 40s, Errol Flynn looked a great deal like John Wayne. In fact, I had to blink more than once during AAF to remind myself that this was *not* John Wayne!

I enjoyed this film, mainly thanks to the three leads, as others have said. I had read a previous review about how sexist this movie is, so I was prepared for the worst, but I didn't find it *that* bad (comparatively speaking), except for the stupid ending. The insistence of Maureen O'Hara's character that she will only kiss a man when she feels like it, instead of the other way around, her intelligence, confidence, honesty and her kindness to her "rival" all seem pretty feminist to me. On the other hand, apparently it's quite all right to sell the Indian princess's nine companions into marriage, as long as the princess herself is saved!

Overall, though, I found this film more racist than sexist. The villain is once again the olive-skinned Hispanic (Anthony Quinn), and the "Indian" princess in her harem outfit (played by a white actress, naturally) is so stupid she shouldn't be allowed to cross a street by herself!

I wasn't that thrilled by the sword-fighting, but that might be due to an overdose after watching three movies' worth! I don't know whether it was the soundtrack, but Errol Flynn spoke so softly throughout this film that often I had trouble understanding what he said. One little question: if you'd just stabbed someone, wouldn't the owner expect to see a little blood on his knife when you returned it to him? The technicolor shows to good advantage, and I'd like to know where they filmed the outdoor scenes! All in all, an enjoyable pirate movie for an evening's entertainment.

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1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
Good Old Movie With Great Performances!, 13 February 2008
Author: canadiancinderella from Canada

This is a very good pirate movie! It has all the typically good elements that a good pirate movie needs. An engaging tale of intrigue, a fiery lady pirate -- aptly named "Spitfire" Stevens, and ably played by the great Maureen O'Hara. Of course she is attracted to Errol Flynn's character, Mr. Hawke. But Hawke is on a top secret mission of his own. These two actors are great together! But my favourite is Anthony Quinn as the villain. He is fantastic in this movie. The performances are the main reason I like the film. The plot itself is nothing special, so I give it 7 out of 10. The visuals are often just okay but sometimes fantastic.

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