Buccaneer, the

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.


The Buccaneer should have won Oscars   November 20, 2003
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

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.


Please let ' The Buccaneer' set sail on DVD   November 18, 2003
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.


Pass the "No-Doze" Please   November 19, 2002
Peter Stines (Anahuac, Texas USA)
As a history buff, reenactor and illustrator, I tend to watch movies like this without too much expectation. Hollywood is not known for getting the historical facts straight. The costumes and uniforms were horrible and the casting was a joke. I'll admit, Heston wasn't bad as Andy "By God" Jackson. He actually bore more than a little ressemblance to "Old Hickory", but at times the dialog he spouted was cartoonish and silly. Yul Brynner (I hope I spelled that correctly) was only fair as Lafitte. I felt that Fredrick March was MUCH better in the original BUCCANEER film from the 1930's. Of course as elusive as the real Lafitte is to historians, we'll probably never get a useful perspective of the man. I also agree with the reviewer who commented that any minute, the cast looked ready to break out into a song and dance number. Students of period weapons will be appalled at the number of "Trap-Door" Springfields rigged up to look like flint-locks. These are especially noticeable among the British troops, who should have had the imortal "Brown Bess" of the India pattern. The battle scenes looked pretty hokey with little attention paid to proper detail. Lorne Green makes a cameo of sorts as a "sell-out" who wants to surrender to the Brits. I almost wish the Americans would have thrown him in gaol for being such a horrible actor. I just wish that a serious director with a real sense of history would re-make this one and use reenactors to portray the troops. Who would play Lafitte ? Hollywood would probably pick Antonio Banderas, but I wouldn't. If just HAVE to get this one, be warned that it's a clinker. Go for the Fredrick March version if you can find it.


U. S History period 3   October 4, 2002
Ashley (Houston, TX)
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.