The Black Pirate

Starring: Douglas Fairbanks, Billie Dove, Tempe Pigott, Donald Crisp, Sam De Grasse, Anders Randolf, Charles Stevens
Directed by: Albert Parker
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Action, Adventure
1926

Times Seen:
Tim: 1


Summary: To seek revenge, a man (Douglas Fairbanks) pretends to be a pirate to join the crew that killed his father.

Review:

Tim: I recognize that Douglas Fairbanks' The Black Pirate is an important film in cinema history. I'll get into the specifics in a minute, but I want to highlight the film's influence. As for the movie itself, I liked it, but I was never quite as invested in the story or characters as I should have been. So, I would definitely claim this is a good movie, but oddly, not as satisfying a film as I'd hoped it would be.

First off, the technical achievements in this film are impressive. It's one of the rare feature length silent films designed for color. It was only the third film to ever use the two-tone Technicolor and the amount of testing Fairbanks' studio had to do is quite remarkable. For the time, the film is visually impressive in its use of color. I also recognize that Fairbanks delivered a more straightforward action adventure film here. The movie itself was definitely influential on future adventure movies, especially in the pirate genre. The scene where Fairbanks glides down the sails with his knife (which is impossible) has certainly carried on to impact future films.

The story itself is interesting, but a little too one-dimensional and earnest. I liked the idea of a man deciding to infiltrate a band of pirates by pretending to be one. To do this, he has to fight and kill the current captain. As he's brought into the pirates' fold, he quickly rises the ranks, chiefly because he takes over a ship single-handed. This scene is a bit farfetched, but it makes for an entertaining sequence. His meteoric rise obviously doesn't sit well with some of the other pirates, including one who becomes his nemesis. Things become complicated when a princess is discovered on board the ship the pirates now have. Some of the pirates want to keep her (for raping purposes, although they obviously don't outright discuss this). This puts our protagonist in a bad spot, as he needs to keep up appearances of being a villain, while trying to save the damsel in distress. This is a worthwhile story, for sure. There are a few too many convenient plot devices, though. The idea that a total outsider would rise to pirate leadership in a day was a bit hard to believe. The pirates are depicted as mostly stupid, which makes sense to an extent. But, everything feels a bit too glossy and Hollywood. The movie needed a bit more depth.

I would say I'm not the biggest Fairbanks fan in the world. I'd admit I've only seen a few of his films, mainly his Zorro ones. But, I felt similar about him here. He was definitely a silent film movie star. His charisma, his personality seemed bigger than life. But, there was something about his performances that never allowed me to forget I was watching Douglas Fairbanks. He tends to play himself, verses focusing on the character. Watching this movie, it was the same thing. He's posturing and preening as Douglas Fairbanks playing a pirate. Who was his character? A fake pirate who looks and acts like Douglas Fairbanks. I don't know, his performance is fine, but it just feels too self-aggrandizing. His smirking smile was famous, but it just doesn't connect with me. That is likely more a "me" thing than anything, but try as I might, I couldn't get past that here.

Sam De Grasse was effective as the Pirate Lieutenant and Fairbanks' chief rival. He was appropriately menacing and antagonistic. I thought Donald Crisp was quite strong as MacTavish. I never quite understood his character's motivations, but Crisp brings him memorably to life. Billie Dove worked well as the captured princess, although I feel like the biggest legacy from the film is the story of how Fairbanks' wife, Mary Pickford didn't want him kissing Dove, so she dressed up as the character to do that scene with Fairbanks. The 1920s were interesting.

The movie's pacing is fairly good, it mostly moves briskly. It might get bogged down a bit in the middle, though. It's fun to see Fairbanks get into the pirate band, capturing a ship by himself, and the conclusion are all the most effective parts of the film. The scenes with the princess and the inter-pirate conflict are less so. The movie does have some influential and memorable scenes. These almost all involve Fairbanks- him climbing around the ship, swinging across the ship, sliding down the sails. I wouldn't say I was blown away by these scenes, but they are definitely effective.

I admit I thought I'd like The Black Pirate more. I was hoping it would improve my opinion of Douglas Fairbanks. I generally like pirate movies and was interested to watch this historical, influential one. This is a good movie. I was entertained throughout. However, it felt too flashy and like it lacked enough substance. I'd consider it a good movie, but far down the list of my favorite pirate films.


Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: The Mark of Zorro