Customer Reviews

Buccaneer [VHS]

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

A swashbuckler with pirates, smugglers and patriots, this is marvelous entertainment, with two actors who are riveting to watch, and some history, which though embellished in some places and condensed in others, is in essence correct.
Jean Lafitte was flamboyant and a favorite of the ladies, and with his horde of sea robbers had his headquarters on an island in Barataria Bay, and controlled the waterways known as the bayou. As Lord Byron wrote of Lafitte,
"He left a Corsair's name to other times-
Linked with one virtue and a thousand crimes".

Yul Brynner is terrific as Lafitte, with swagger and strut, and even singing a beautiful Creole ballad, which Lafitte was known to do. The Costume Design in this film received an Oscar nomination, and should have won for the way they managed to fit Brynner's numerous outfits.
In the smaller but pivotal part of Andrew Jackson, Charlton Heston is downright magnificent and looks fabulous. With thick white hair, his resemblance to General Jackson is a marvel. Both Brynner and Heston, who two years earlier had starred in C.B. DeMille's "The Ten Commandments", have command and presence that fills the screen and is a joy to watch.

Others in the cast are Charles Boyer, charming and humorous as Brynner's friend and fellow pirate, Inger Stevens as Brynner's love interest and the daughter of Governor Clairborne (E.G. Marshall), and Claire Bloom as tough girl Bonnie Brown. The score by Elmer Bernstein is wonderful, and cinematography by Loyal Griggs very good, especially the scene of the British advancing, with bagpipes and drums, in the Battle of New Orleans, which took place in the Winter of 1814-15. The Red Coats falling to Jackson's troops was accurate, as the British lost an astounding 2,600 to the loss of only 13 of Jackson's men.
A remake of Cecil B. DeMIlle's 1938 film, this was supervised by him, and directed by actor Anthony Quinn. DeMille also gives us a small history lesson at the start of the film, with maps to demonstrate where the action takes place.
Total running time is 121 minutes.

This movie is one of my favorite pirate movies. Based on true and fictional accounts of Jean Laffite the pirate, this movie brings to life one of the key battles of the War of 1812...the Battle of New Orleans. Yul Brynner is terrific in the role of Jean Laffite, and Charton Heston is wonderful in the role of Andrew Jackson. If you like pirate movies give The Buccaneer a try, I recemend it. Please bring this timeless classic to DVD with the movie trailer.

The Buccaneer is one of my all-time-favorite pirate flims. This movie should have won a few Oscars. It was, however, nominated for Best Costume Design and it should have won that award, because the costumes were exactly accurate to the time era of 1812. It should have been nominated for Best Cinemaography, Best Art Direction, Best Musical Score by Elmer Bernstien, Best Interior Design, and for Best Set Decarations. Even though this movie didn't get any awards, it's still a great flim. If you love pirate movies and if you want a piece of American history, give The Buccaneer a try.

When I could not find material for a novel I wanted to write involving the Battle of New Orleans & the pirate Jean Lafitte, I learned of this movie. I am thankful I found it, because the carefully woven historical intrigue and truths was helpful in my research. I had never realized how close America came to being British ruled, if not for Lafitte and his Baratarians. The adventure and ironic suspense is riveting, the historical events fairly correct although somewhat misplaced timewise (to add to the drama and move the plot of the picture, I suppose). Anyway, I enjoyed it greatly, and wish there were actors in today's Hollywood as skilled & fascinating as Yul Brynner and Charlton Heston. I'm curious about one thing, Was it Hollywood's token love story, or was there really was a daughter of governor Claiborne named Annette, and was she involved with Jean Lafitte?

Another review mentions the fact that there are not that many films on the War of 1812, and because why. The fact that Americans don't like being the "bad guys", I believe is a silly reason. There are many movies where the United States go to war and portray their true war side. The Buccaneer was a movie about victory and love. Yul Brynner plays the role of Jean Laffitte, a pirate who comes to help the United States when the British attack New Orleans. Charlton Heston, who plays General Andrew Jackson, was great. I think that his witty, in charge, demanding role came out beautifully. Having studied Andrew Jackson in junior high school, his role (to me) is a difficult one to recreate. This was a great movie and I recommend it greatly to any old, wartime buff.

I used to love these types of big, bold, colorful costume epics as a kid and I still like them today. It's been a number of years since I've seen The Buccaneer but it was always one of my favorites. Directed by Anthony Quinn the film stars Charlton Heston as General Andrew Jackson and Yul Brynner as pirate Jean LaFitte and is sent against the backdrop of the war of 1812. Lafitte and his pirates control a local and strategically placed Island near New Orleans. While he refrains from attacking American vessels he's still not in the good graces of Jackson. Jackson is faced with a dire dilemma...the British are massing a large force and planning to attack New Orleans and the American forces are vastly outnumbered. They turn to ally with LaFitte. Lafitte's men want them to side with England as they think they will certainly win, but LaFitte gets assurances from Jackson that his men will be pardoned if they aid the Americans. This deal is complicated when one of the Pirates under LaFittes command attacks an American ship and kills everyone except a boy who escapes. Even though LaFitte new nothing about the attack he accepts responsibility.

This is a truly lavish epic with great costumes, epic battles and dramatic performances by the entire cast. Some might argue that Heston and Brynner tend to ham it up a bit but I think this is more of a product of their era when bold, over-the-top performances like this were the norm and subtlety was not in the equation. The battles are staged quite well with lots of action. The fine supporting cast includes Charles Boyer, E.G. Marshall, and Lorne Greene. Quite well done and I hope we will see a DVD release soon. It's too good to be only on VHS and out of print.

Out of all the films that I have seen Yul Brynner act in, this is his very best. He has got to be the most handsome man that ever has been shown in film history. His acting is outstanding! He has a certain aura that should make every woman including myself shiver as a young girl in-love for the very first time. It is unfortunate that most of the best actors/actresses are mostly amongst the classic movies. Thank God, the public can recapture what has been lost (superb acting and cinematography) through these classis video films such as this one.

Yul Brynner buckles his swash with the best of them, and this is a great story. Just how historically accurate it is can be debated, but there is no argument as to the entertainment value. Charlton Heston joins Brynner in a tremendous cast that includes a young Lorne Greene and other fine character actors. The Buccaneer takes place during the most over-looked conflict in American filmmaking; the War of 1812. It provides an interesting glimpse at just how odd, and how untrustworthy, political and military bedfellows can be.

The Buccaneer is one of my all-time-favorite pirate flims. This movie should have won a few Oscars. It was, however, nominated for Best Costume Design and it should have won that award, because the costumes were exactly accurate to the time era of 1812. It should have been nominated for Best Cinemaography, Best Art Direction, Best Musical Score by Elmer Bernstien, Best Interior Design, and for Best Set Decarations. Even though this movie didn't get any awards, it's still a great flim. If you love pirate movies and if you want a piece of American history, give The Buccaneer a try.

While doing a college thesis in the 50's I saw this film for the first time. Yes it is entertaining and action filled, with excellent casting and actors. But my point in this review is that I checked the accuracy of historical accounts with the facts of the film, and I was amazed how well correlated they were. The story brings out once again how we can be prisoners of the past. Yet we all want to appear to be good, but fate is often against us. A final comment -- if it doesn't give away the plot: We may well owe our freedom today in part to the willingness of a pirate and his men to come to the aid of this country when there was a critical need. History buffs ought to enjoy this film. It is colorful, realistic and filled with suspence.