The Pirate Movie (1982)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Director:

Ken Annakin

Writers:

William S. Gilbert (operetta)
Trevor Farrant (written by)

Release Date:

6 August 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Musical | Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Buckle Your Swash and Jolly Your Roger for the Funniest Rock 'N Rollickin' Adventure Ever!

Plot:

The crew of a large ship sail the high seas encountering other pirates from other ships. The boy from...

Plot Keywords:

Pirate | Ship | Parody | Sword | Sea

Awards:

3 wins & 8 nominations

Cast

Kristy McNichol	...	Mabel
Christopher Atkins	...	Frederic
Ted Hamilton	...	Pirate King
Bill Kerr	...	Major General
Maggie Kirkpatrick	...	Ruth
Garry McDonald	...	Sergeant / Inspector
Chuck McKinney	...	Samuel
Marc Colombani	...	Dwarf Pirate
Linda Nagle	...	Aphrodite
Kate Ferguson	...	Edith
Rhonda Burchmore	...	Kate
Cathrine Lynch	...	Isabel
John Alansu	...	Chinese Captain (as John Allansu)
Paul Graham	...	Pirate
Bernard Ledger	...	Pirate

Runtime:

105 min | USA:98 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (re-rating) (1986) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:11 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Joseph Hamilton International Productions

Trivia:

Ted Hamilton (The Pirate King) was also the executive producer.

Goofs:

Continuity: After Frederick shuts the Pirate King in the coffin and runs swords through it, the swords completely disappear from the coffin when Frederic lies down in it.

Quotes:

Frederic: Oh I love you. I'll always love you, come what may.
Mabel: "Come what may"? We'll all be murdered in our beds come what may.
Frederic: Well run. For God's sake run!
Mabel: Death before dishonor. Besides, have you tried running in one of these things? It's a real bitch.

Movie Connections:

References "Wonder Woman" (1976)

Soundtrack:

Stand Up and Sing

Wacky version of G&S operetta

Cuties Chris Atkins and Kristy McNichol, he of the blonde curls and she of the blonde curls, star in this wacky version of the old chestnut, Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert & Sullivan.

Atkins plays Frederic the boy pirate who falls for McNichol's Mabel. He was 21 at the time, two years after starring in Blue Lagoon, yet he retained the perennial look of a fifteen year old teenager. McNichol was a famous star at the time, but this is her first role as a femme fatale, not as a tomboy.

This movie could be a musical version of Blue Lagoon. See Atkins and McNichol cavorting in the skimpiest of costumes designed to show their pretty legs and other bits. Surprise, both of these two cuties can sing, and even dance a bit!

The story is too well know to bear repeating. But there are a couple of wacky twists, in the best tradition of the British music halls. Except this movie is an Australian production!

Of course we get the model of the modern major-general (Bill Kerr) with his famous solo song. But we also get a light sabre from Star Wars. We get Inspector Closeau from Pink Panther with a hilarious word play on "pirate" and "parrot". We get a bit of Indiana Jones. And the stars make those asides which are British music hall tradition, stopping in mid-scene to address the audience.

There's lots of double entendre jokes, again another British music hall tradition, where simple words are used with a possible vulgar or sexual meaning. See Frederic at the mercy of the pirate's sword say "nuts". To which the pirate points his sword at Frederic's boy treasures and says "But you'd still have one left".

A jolly good movie. One for a cold winter's evening to warm the heart. Even the old Victorians would approve of this one.