HotToastyRag In a strange combination of The Mark of Zorro and The Count of Monte Cristo, John Derek stars as a masked hero out for revenge for his father's murder in Mask of the Avenger. There's really no suspense, though, because in the beginning scene, Anthony Quinn is revealed to be the murderer. It would have added a little intrigue, even if it were just fifteen minutes or so, if John didn't know who killed his father. There's also a watered-down romance between John and Jody Lawrance added into the plot. With the cheesy script, B-movie production values, and tv-esque music, this movie isn't one I'd recommend adding to your list. There are so many other better 1950s adventure movies to choose from.

bkoganbing It's mid 19th century Italy and Anthony Quinn pulls something of a palace coup by framing provincial governor Wilton Graff of the very treason that Quinn is perpetrating. He kills Graff in the process and sets up shop in his palace.And for some very weak plot reasons when Quinn has a chance to let the mob dispose of the 'traitor's' son John Derek he chooses to save him and keep him in the palace. Derek pretends to be more seriously wounded than he is and soon learns of Quinn's double dealing. At that point Derek dons the Mask Of The Avenger and starts to right some wrongs in the style of that other Dumas hero Edmund Dantes whose statue is in the town square.Phil Karlson who was two years from directing one of the great noir films of all time, Kansas City Confidential, seemed to lose his muse doing this one. Though the film is based on a Dumas novel and mentions his famous hero The Count Of Monte Cristo, it bares more resemblance to a weak remake of The Mark Of Zorro.Somehow I'm willing to bet that some obvious plot flaws that are in this film aren't present in the Dumas novel. Derek looks good with sword in hand, Anthony Quinn hams it up good as the villain. Jody Laurence is fetching as the dueling countess who Derek and Quinn both want to make some time with.Still Mask Of The Avenger is ultimately unsatisfying, Dumas has been better served cinematically speaking elsewhere.

whitec-3 Mid-twentieth-century historical dramas are worth a look for the sumptuous sets and costumes Hollywood studios might provide, plus their big casts might draw in accomplished character actors. Columbia Pictures' low-budget style unfortunately leaves Mask of the Avenger wanting in both areas. The best sets are brief backdrops of Austrian sailing ships approaching the Italian coastal towns, but most of the action takes place on familiar California riding trails or in formulaic European-looking interiors.The cast is disappointingly small and stereotypical, with one grand exception: Anthony Quinn as the corrupt military governor LaRocca. He makes a stock villain painfully comprehensible and overshadows the film's wan protagonist, Captain Dimorna played by John Derek. Their final sword fight looks like a total mismatch in LaRocca / Quinn's favor until he obligingly steps into Dimorna's blade. (In partial defense of Derek, I appreciated poster William Giesen's sympathetic review of Derek as a miscast character actor.) The only other attraction derives from the story's origin in a Dumas novel I haven't read. The town has a statue of "The Count of Monte Cristo" with the late Count's sword in a glass case in the statue's plinth, which DiMorna brandishes in an effort to convince the townspeople that he has resumed the Count's battle on their behalf. Beyond that, the film may be interesting as a late specimen of the swashbuckling genre, threatened with extinction by the rise of television and the decay of the studio system.

Melissa Alice It's a pretty good movie, with swordplay, secrets, murder, and horseback riding...reminiscent of the old Zorro movies. There's a bit of romance, too. Good over all.