edwagreen In this mediocre at best 1951 film, Jean Peters has an absolute field day playing the commanding female pirate aboard her ship with anger against the British who had killed her half-brother.Peters handles herself well with sword and acts just like we expect a pirate to act.Louis Jourdan plays the supposed French pirate who she meets and who will ultimately lead to her downfall.Both supposedly team up to find a lost treasure. When Blackbeard, the Pirate, recognizes the Jourdan character from a previous experience, out of love for Louis, she breaks with Blackbeard and this in itself will cause her ultimate downfall with Blackbeard crying out for revenge against her.Debra Paget emerges as the wife of Jourdan who is kidnapped by Peters when she realizes that Jourdan has fooled her all along.

Michael Morrison Good-looking women pirates is probably one of those juvenile male dreams, like good-looking women burglars. That a good-looking woman would stand much chance among the scurvy cut-throats who make up the crew of a pirate ship is beyond plausibility.(I think in particular of a generically named movie, "Swashbuckler" (1978), in which a good-looking woman played by Genevieve Bujold just nonchalantly doffs her clothes and jumps into the Caribbean -- not to escape, but just for a swim! Reality does not often intrude in movies about women and pirates.)However, though women don't generally get much better-looking than Jean Peters, she came across as believable ordering men into battle and swinging a sword herself.In fact, though maybe I'm not a good judge, I thought she looked fearsome dueling with sailors and pirates. Supposedly Basil Rathbone was at least one of the best fencers in Hollywood, if not the best, and I felt she could have taken him on.Watching her incredibly expressive face, especially during the fight scenes, is the best part of viewing "Anne of the Indies." She struck me, in fact, as one of the best actresses I have ever had the pleasure of watching, and certainly the best woman pirate -- taking nothing away from any of the others.She was ably assisted by a superlative cast, including Herbert Marshall playing the only really sympathetic character.But James Robertson Justice did shine as the right-hand man. Thomas Gomez, usually so good in anything, was terribly over-weight to be Blackbeard but still seemed suitably scary.Louis Jourdan was so cool and collected, so at home in his role, he almost blended into the background -- which might be a sign of great talent.One of my personal favorites is Sean McGlory, whom I interviewed after his stage appearance in an Oscar Wilde play. He doesn't appear in "Anne of the Indies" until fairly late but just grabs a viewer's attention.I think the ending was rather weak, and even disappointing, but every part is so well played, and the effects were so nearly perfect, I can rate the move very good over all.I highly recommend "Anne of the Indies" if only for the joy and pleasure in watching Jean Peters and the admiration her performance will inspire.

mark.waltz The legend of Anne Romney (here referred to as Anne Providence) has recently been made into a short-lived Broadway musical, but in the early 50's, there were two films about her which couldn't be any more different in presentation. Universal's "Double Crossbones" features Romney as a secondary character (played by the quite imposing looking Hope Emerson) in support of Donald O'Connor. That was a comedy/adventure, but for a more serious look at her, 20th Century Fox cast their rising player Jean Peters as the legendary captain of the Sheba Queen. Peters was much more diminutive than Emerson (best known as the evil matron in "Caged"), so it makes a different character altogether. But she is still as tough, trained by none other than Blackbeard (Thomas Gomez in a very showy performance) to captain her own ship. She is first seen in a sword fight with Blackbeard, revealed only to be for fun. When Frenchman Louis Jourdan is about to be made to walk the plank, Peters steps in to save his life, learning he is an enemy of the British. It is her love for him (an enemy of Blackbeard's) which causes her mentor to declare war on her, and she in turn, declares war on Jourdan when she learns that he is married. Herbert Marshall plays her drunken adviser who incurs her wrath when he disapproves of her revenge on Jourdan and his wife (Debra Paget).This is a colorful tale of the romanticism of pirate life that will delight fans of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" series. Some parts of the movie, in fact, highly resemble the ride at Disney's Amusement Parks. From an entertainment point of view, the film works its magic and ranks a good review. Peters gives a lot of gusto to her portrayal, and Jourdan is romantic and handsome. Paget gets to be a bit more than decorative, and veteran actor Marshall gives a touching, wise performance. While the true story of Anne Romney may be quite different, this will do for a typical rousing Hollywood version of the legends of the high seas.

Neil Doyle Fox must have had a lot of left-over sets from Tyrone Power's THE BLACK SWAN (and a trunkfull of period costumes on hand) when they decided to film ANNE OF THE INDIES. It provides JEAN PETERS with a flashy role as a lady pirate (a la Ann Boney), but her swagger seems more like the pose of a well-rehearsed actress willing to submit herself to a pirate film totally lacking originality aside from starring a lady pirate.All the clichés are here, including the black-hearted Blackbeard the Pirate (THOMAS GOMEZ) given the hammy, tongue-in-cheek style usually reserved for such an outgoing villain. This time the captive is not a beautiful woman but a handsome Frenchman (LOUIS JOURDAN) who, naturally, catches the eye of the tomboyish heroine and makes her wish she looked more like a woman. What she doesn't know is that he does indeed have a wife (DEBRA PAGET) who fills the role of conventional beauty nicely.Some of it is actually fun to watch and it's a no-brainer that, given the standards of the 1950s, the ending will conclude the way it does. I like JEAN PETERS very much, but this is one role that would have served MAUREEN O'HARA better. O'Hara had a more convincing way with a sword and the fiery temperament to go with the role.