MARIO GAUCI To be perfectly honest, I was not expecting a lot from this one – I was under the impression it would be a remake of the seminal Michael Curtiz/Errol Flynn CAPTAIN BLOOD (1935), but Rafael Sabatini did actually pen a novel bearing its title – since neither the film under review, nor the sequel CAPTAIN PIRATE (1952; whose own viewing would follow presently), have much of a reputation within the genre concerned!; still, their Rafael Sabatini pedigree and the presence of swashbuckling regular Louis Hayward ensured my interest regardless. For better or worse, the fact that both are now available in virtually pristine (if non-anamorphic) editions is due to the massive box-office takings of the recent overblown "Pirates Of The Caribbean" saga!Anyway, I had already watched Hayward's previous buccaneer venture – namely Edgar G. Ulmer's THE PIRATES OF CAPRI (1949) – and, frankly, was wary of his making a convincing Peter Blood (truth be told, even Flynn's star-making turn had been somewhat overrated!); given that he usually tends to play fops harbouring a revenge agenda, the narrative contrives to put the actor in his element by having the former doctor don a South American disguise for a sizeable part of the duration! Plot-wise, it is – admittedly – no great shakes: a handful of Blood's gang are ambushed when they go ashore and put in chains, so he determines to free them. In the course of the 90-minute duration, he is helped and hindered (often both) by a number of other characters: a bartender, a saloon-girl, a prison warden enamoured of the latter (Alfonso Bedoya), a shifty nobleman, his girlfriend (leading lady Patricia Medina – clumsily named Isabelita!), and the obligatory chief villain (played by the ubiquitous George Macready). Blood's brawny crew, then, typically encompasses all sorts – from Scots to Swedes…and, perhaps mercifully, I only counted two negligible instances of comic relief on their part throughout!While it may appear half-hearted in black-and-white (especially in comparison with the glowing Technicolor afforded the sequel), director Douglas was practiced enough at this sort of thing (for the record, he had already guided both Hayward and Macready through the monochromatic paces of the R.L. Stevenson adaptation THE BLACK ARROW {1948} and, involving Macready yet again, would follow this with the colourful ROGUES OF SHERWOOD FOREST {1950}) to render the essence of the material via the modest means at his disposal. With this in mind, amid the sheer amount of fun to be had, it was possible to include such striking images as a hanging body casting a sinister shadow over a wall, a guard being set ablaze during the mass prison escape and, in the exciting seafaring climax, a bloodied Macready at the helm of the hero's own vessel "Avenger"(!); interestingly enough, Hayward will be forced to blow up his ship again in the sequel! By the way, I had been led to believe this involved the English King Charles II, but the royal by that name here (appearing in the guise of Curt Bois at the start of the film) actually presides over the French court!

Neil Doyle FORTUNES OF CAPTAIN BLOOD never rises above being a pedestrian take on the Captain Blood legend originated by Rafael Sabatini in his immortal pirate tale, CAPTAIN BLOOD.This is strictly secondary stuff, with LOUIS HAYWARD as the doctor turned pirate on the high seas. He's competent in the swashbuckling role rather than charismatic--and there lies the difference between him and Flynn. At times, he seems almost bored with his role.DONA DRAKE does nicely enough as a peasant girl who flirts with Captain Blood (while he's assuming the name of Pedro), and PATRICIA MEDINA is equally at home in her role as a headstrong aristocratic lady. LOWELL GILMORE and GEORGE MACREADY are likewise competent as the rather villainous men interested only in pearls and wealth--but the story and its characters barely rise above the routine in a lifeless pirate tale.ALFONSO BEDOYA at least furnishes a bit of sly humor as the prison overseer hoodwinked by Captain Blood (he was the man with the famous line about "We don't need no stinkin' badges" from TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE).But the saga only really comes to life during the last half-hour, and then it's standard pirate swordplay and cannon fire until the predictable happy ending finds Captain Blood and the aristocratic lady sharing a kiss before the fadeout.Summing up: Standard pirate tale with only occasional flashes of lively swordplay. As for Hayward, he was much better as "The Man in the Iron Mask".

Flash Sheridan I'm writing this in response to the plea for a review; if anyone has seen it more recently, please chime in. I saw this a decade or two ago on TV, and remember rather liking it, but being disappointed that it didn't follow Sabatini's book more closely. It wasn't quite as weak as I'd expected from a sequel, and Louis Hayward wasn't as weak as I'd expect from a replacement for Errol Flynn. All in all, a reasonably good standard-issue pirate movie; sorry I can't be more definite than that. There was also a sequel to the sequel, based on Sabatini's _Captain Blood Returns_, entitled for some reason _Captain Pirate_, which I remember as being, surprisingly, somewhat better than this one.

TequilaMockingbird63 There is not even a brief outline? Maybe because it's a typical 1950 B Pirate movie. Pirate guy meets unlikable bad guy meets sexy Spanish girl. Odd British accents, weak sword fights and over the top acting abound. The only reason i even looked up this film was to find out the background of one semi-annoying typical Spanish character actor. Alfonso Bedoya who played "Carmilio" the Prison Overseer. To my surprise Bedoya was accomplished indeed. In The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) Bedoya delivered the famous line about not needing any "stinking badges". He made a number of popular films in the U.S. but a drinking problem destroyed his health. He died at the age of 53. I don't need to go on about the film as no one will probably ever read this. Apparently this film is not popular at all. However! I now have a new respect for the actor i wanted to dislike. Thanks IMDb.