The Master of Ballantrae (1953)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

William Keighley

Writers:

Herb Meadow (writer)
Harold Medford (additional dialogue)

Release Date:

5 August 1953 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure

Plot:

Buckle on your swashes for this swashbuckling adventure with a highlander who fought for Bonnie Prince Charlie who...

Plot Keywords:

Pirate | Brother vs Brother | Escape | Period Piece | Swashbuckler

Cast

Errol Flynn	...	Jamie Durie
Roger Livesey	...	Col. Francis Burke
Anthony Steel	...	Henry Durie
Beatrice Campbell	...	Lady Alison
Yvonne Furneaux	...	Jessie Brown
Felix Aylmer	...	Lord Durrisdeer
Mervyn Johns	...	MacKellar
Charles Goldner	...	Mendoza
Ralph Truman	...	Maj. Clarendon
Francis De Wolff	...	Matthew Bull
Jacques Berthier	...	Captain Arnaud
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Charles Carson	...	Col. Banks
Moultrie Kelsall	...	MacCauley
Gillian Lynne	...	Marianne
Jackie Taylor
Stephen Vercoe

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

UK:PG (video) | UK:U (original rating) (cut) | Finland:K-16 | USA:Approved (PCA #16016) | West Germany:12 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Eilean Donan Castle, Dornie, Highlands, Scotland, UK

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Last film of director William Keighley.

Quotes:

Col. Francis Burke: Why, you swindling scum of a coward! You mouse-hearted imitation of a man! You green crawling snake that slipped up from the slime when your thieving mother wasn't looking!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Ken Adam: Designing Bond (2000) (V)

THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE (William Keighley, 1953) **1/2

Errol Flynn's 1950s work has always been taken for granted as being inferior to the star's output during his period of glory (1935-45); personally, I've always liked AGAINST ALL FLAGS (1952), which is forthcoming on DVD from Universal: now that I've caught up with this one, I can safely say that it too emerges as a very adequate addition to his string of popular swashbucklers.

The appeal of the film is actually two-fold: apart from being a typical Flynn vehicle, it's based on a classic adventure novel by Robert Louis Stevenson; incidentally, not having read the original, I was surprised the narrative took the star from the highlands to (the more familiar territory of) the high seas – where he's involved with many a colorful character, at least three women, and even a usurping sibling. Perhaps to account for Flynn's age (he was 44 at the time), his character isn't quite as agile as in earlier adventures – given that he's wounded some three times during the course of the film; that said, as already mentioned, his attraction to females remains undimmed (though, in perhaps another sign of maturity, he never actually strays from his devotion to fiancée Beatrice Campbell) – ditto his wit, especially when it becomes necessary to put-down some gruff and pompous adversary.

This lively costumer is competently helmed by Keighley, a regular throughout Flynn's heyday, and deals with the 18th century struggle by the Scots to break free from British rule and elect Bonnie Prince Charlie as their sovereign. Besides, the film is boosted by an array of British players (including Anthony Steel as Flynn's over-eager brother, Felix Aylmer, Mervyn Johns, Ralph Truman, Francis de Wolff and, especially, Roger Livesey – cast against type as the star's fun-loving Irish sidekick, a role usually filled by Alan Hale); the Warners DVD I watched, then, really does justice to the film's gorgeous color cinematography (courtesy of the great Jack Cardiff).

Ultimately, while no classic, THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE is a pleasant romp and, at this stage, I wouldn't mind checking out the rest of Flynn's ventures in similar vein: actually, I only have three more to go – THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN FABIAN (1951), CROSSED SWORDS (1954) and THE DARK AVENGER (1955) – but their low-profile (and, in the case of the first two, their European backing) doesn't augur well for the films' imminent availability...