weezeralfalfa As far as telling a reasonably accurate account of Blackbeard's career as a pirate, forget it! It reminds me more of certain westerns that have Billy the Kid, Wild Bill Hickok, and Jesse James, for example, interacting. The two main pirates in this yarn are Blackbeard and Henry Morgan. Well, Morgan was active as a pirate toward the beginning of 'The Golden Age of Piracy', whereas Blackbeard was a pirate near the end of this period, in the next century! Nonetheless, why not have probably the 2 most famous pirates who operated in the Caribbean tangle with each other in a classic tale, irrespective of the historical impossibility......RKO was taking advantage of the success of the mesmerizing characterization by Robert Newton of Long John Silver" in the 1950 hit "Treasure Island" to hopefully produce another pirate tale hit. Throw in a ravishing Linda Darnell as a major player, to spice things up even more....Keith Andes is criticized by most reviewers for being too bland in his role as the romantic lead Robert Maynard. I found him OK. If you need an Errol Flynn or Burt Lancaster, check out "Against All Flags" and "The Crimson Pirate", which were also released that year('52). Torin Thatcher makes an excellent Henry Morgan, while William Bendex is OK as Blackbeard's first mate. Irene Ryan(of "The Beverly Hillbillies")makes an occasional impression as a tipsy Maid in Waiting for Linda. While drunk, Blackbeard got her to reveal the location of Morgan's treasure: right on his ship!........The final scene , in which Keith and Linda are sharing a romantic interlude in their flight from a dying Blackbeard and his crew ignores the reality that the crew is probably hot on their tail in the other landing craft. Good luck!......Blackbeard found the presence of Linda on his deck a great aid in discouraging bombardment or boarding by Morgan or others. Linda claims to be the daughter of one time pirate captain Edwin Mansfield. This name is a slight alteration of Edwin Mansvelt: an actual pirate captain of these times........Blackbeard finally gets his due from his crew for being excessively greedy with the treasure. The ultimate fate of the treasure is ironic......Robert Newton would get yet another opportunity to display his unique charisma as a classic pirate 2 years later in "Long John Silver"

bkoganbing Despite the fact that Sir Henry Morgan and the infamous Edward Teach aka Blackbeard operated in different centuries and that Teach was a mere six years old when Morgan died in 1686 don't worry about historical accuracy. This is a film to be savored and enjoyed especially by those who are true devotees of ham.Robert Newton who could also restrain himself and give good performances turns off all restraint in this rollicking and colorful pirate portrayal. He blasts everyone else off the screen, not easy to do when you consider Linda Darnell's beauty and William Bendix who usually steals the films he's in.The plot such as it is has Keith Andes looking to obtain evidence that Henry Morgan is still a pirate after getting a King's pardon. Andes boards a ship that is commanded by the infamous Blackbeard, rival to Morgan. Newton has also taken as hostage Linda Darnell who is the governor's niece and her maid Irene Ryan. Morgan who is also played by another scene stealer Torin Thatcher, is real interested in Darnell and he's held at bay somewhat by Newton having her as hostage.Newton is a guy who thinks fast on his feet and is not above double crossing his own crew. That's something he does once too often as it turns out.Once seen you will absolutely never forget Newton as Blackbeard, you will be unconsciously mimicking him for weeks.

C.K. Dexter Haven Hollywood turned out dozens of pirate adventures in its heyday, most, such as The Black Swan, The Spanish Main, Captain Kidd etc etc, were flat and routine swashbucklers that lacked the kind of acting presence, story, and edge that made MGM's 1934 version of Treasure Island, and Warner's Captain Blood from 1935 standards of the genre. The pirate movie throughout the 40's, much like the western, was in need of something fresh.In 1950, Robert Newton made a stalwart impression as Long John Silver in the British remake of Treasure Island, released through Disney. Though the film was not nearly as good as the '34 MGM version, Newton managed to surpass the performance of Wallace Beery's Silver, which was no easy feat as Beery was exceptional in that role.Coming off of that success, RKO paired Newton with hit and miss director Raoul Walsh to make Blackbeard the Pirate. Newton's performance in the title role was even better than his turn in Treasure Island - a definitive portrayal of the pirate captain that continues to predominate the genre. Not a single actor from Wallace Beery to Victor McLaglen to Charles Laughton to Peter Ustinov to Dustin Hoffman to even Geoffrey Rush and Johnny Depp have managed to usurp the pure overbearing sea scenery chewing double-dealing rapscallion that is Robert Newton as Blackbeard. His performance, as brutal as it is humorous, is a joy to behold, and elevates the film to a higher level.The film itself is not as routine as one might expect either. There is a plot going on here (albeit not exactly an airtight one), and some fine supporting performances from William Bendix (always watchable), Linda Darnell, and Keith Andes, a mostly forgotten actor who apparently could do it all in show business from sing and dance to swordfight. His cutlass battles in Blackbeard are of Flynn/Rathbone quality, but actually remind one more of the kind of swordfighting seen in Lester's The Three Musketeers 20 years later. For a film made in 1952, there is a surprising amount of gore in this as well.Not a great story, but a good one, and entertaining throughout. Everything you'd expect from a 50's adventure on the high seas is delivered here - action, romance, blood and treachery. One of the best pirate movies of all time.

shiloh_3 This is not a movie of great measure. It's just a VERY good showcase for the ultimate pirate actor, Robert Newton, who fits the role so perfectly as to become THE pirate to be imitated in every pirate movie to follow. He is the centerpiece of this film, make no mistake about that. Every scene belongs to him and every word of dialogue he speaks is the learning base for future "pirates" of the silver screen.Not a Newton fan? Steer clear, then Matey, because this movie is his and his alone. Not even the beautiful Linda Darnell can distract from him in any scene they share. He is an overpowering and magnetic force when he plays his pirate to perfection.AWWWWWRRRRRRRRRR.Being a big fan of the man I enjoyed this movie thoroughly. I find his acting to be natural and amusing. This is his niche and here he rules.