Truly Dreadful Film

Charming and brutal

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

On paper, Captain Kidd looks quite presentable. Laughton, Scott, Owen, Carradine, Daniell in a scenario by Norman Reilly Raine (Emile Zola, Robin Hood, Elizabeth and Essex, Fighting 69th, Captains of the Clouds, A Bell for Adano, etc), directed by Rowland V. Lee (Son of Frankenstein, Tower of London, The Bridge of San Luis Rey, etc.).However, in actual fact the script is awful, the direction pedestrian and excitement somewhat meager. The acting is atrocious too - but at least it's entertaining. Laughton must have signed for the film without first reading the shooting script. Certainly it's great to see him in the star part (the hero played by Randolph Scott is definitely subsidiary, while the heroine doesn't even come on till the halfway mark), but handed such impoverished lines and woeful business! However much this assignment would have defeated a lesser actor, Laughton sets to with a will, hamming up the part with such lively gusto and infectious enthusiasm as to turn the bird-droppings of an almost featherless screenplay into a veritable feast of robust entertainment. Laughton is greatly helped in his endeavors by Reginald Owen, another seasoned performer who knows all the tricks of inflection and demeanor to strike sparks of histrionic excitement from the driest pasture. John Carradine also has a nicely insinuating way with words, but the rest of the players are far less able to spin their spidery lines into threads of gold. Henry Daniell is miscast as good King William. Gilbert Roland tries hard and does most of his own fencing (while an obvious double substitutes for our hero) but misses the ingratiating charisma of a true-born villain. Mr Scott's resourceful hero signally lacks a tongue in his cheek. Miss Britton is a bland and featureless heroine.As for the production itself, it sweeps high on promise but considerably short in actual achievement. A few of the sets are remarkably lavish, but a general air of cheese-paring pervades. The pacing is slow, the action spots few and far between, the direction flat and the photography colorless. In short the film bears every sign of being soldered together in budget-conscious haste.For Laughton fans who are oblivious to all else, Captain Kidd offers a reasonably entertaining romp through the pages of piracy. For the rest of us, it's a definite disappointment.

Captain Kidd is directed by Rowland V. Lee and adapted to screenplay by Norman Reilly Raine from a story by Robert N. Lee. It stars Charles Laughton, Randolph Scott, Barbara Britton and John Carradine. Music is scored by Werner Janssen and cinematography by Archie Stout.The late 17th century and ruthless pirate Captain William Kidd (Laughton) is the scourge of the seas and attempts a double cross of King William III (Henry Daniell). His dastardly scheming, however, is in danger of falling apart when he hires ex-convict Adam Mercy (Scott) to be his master gunner. For Mercy has a secret and he also has his own mission to complete.The most ruthless of them all, Captain William Kidd.Forget history and try to enjoy Captain Kidd for its light hearted piratical touches. Running at 90 minutes the film is surprisingly short on blood pumping action, with much of the screenplay given to draggy verbose passages. But there is an overriding sense of fun throughout, with a cast of highly watchable actors making it very much an acting 101 picture. Particularly striking is Laughton who seems to be enjoying himself royally as he gets to pout, stomp and dally in villainy. However, there's not enough of the excellent Daniell and the very pretty Barbara Britton is a token offering who is reduced to a near walk on part late in proceedings. Janssen's score is suitably full of high seas bluster, and plot has enough skullduggery, back stabbing and treasure plundering to at the least keep one interested to the finale. 6/10

Captain Kidd (1945) starring Charles Laughton is a wonderful movie.It is stagy, and hurray for that. Stage plays with main actors like Laughton are nowhere to be seen anymore, and "stagy movies" like this one keep us reminded about the wonderful art of staged drama and great stage actors.Laughton's actor work is breathtaking...he's the star, and other actors are supporting actors.Barbara Britton, the lead actress, is physically beautiful and that's all. Good. It's a man's movie, a swashbuckler, and she's decoration. Not more. That used to be a frequent tradition in swashbuckler movies, but since women have been "liberated" and are always, and must always be..."important".....just beautiful and otherwise agreeable and quiet is not longer seen. Hurray for Barbara Britton and her leading lady character....one can understand why the leading romantic male...Randolph Scott.....was interested in her, and ended up with her.This movie is available (2009) at WalMart in bins which offer cheap, older movies. I got it for $4.00 along with twenty other movies (several very good) in a "family pack" movie which had poor labeling....I took pot luck, and lucked out! Many good movies of the past ended up "slipping through the cracks" and were never available in video stores, or ranked as "great movies," including some truly great movies! Captain Kidd (1945) starring Charles Laughton is a truly great movie. See it.How many others are "out there" unhonored and cheap to buy, sold by the likes of WalMart (the chain store we all "love to hate" but buy from frequently....and with good reason, it turns out)?-------------------Written by Tex Allen, SAG Actor. Visit WWW.IMDb.Com and choose "Tex Allen" "resume" for contact information, movie credits, and biographical information about Tex Allen. He has reviewed more than 42 movies posted on WWW.IMDb.Com (the world's largest movie information database, owned by Amazon.Com) as of January 2011. These include: 1. Alfie (1966) 29 July 2009 2. Alien (1979) 24 July 2009 3. All the Loving Couples (1969) 17 January 2011 4. All the President's Men (1976) 16 November 2010 5. American Graffiti (1973) 22 November 2010 6. Animal House (1978) 16 August 2009 7. Bullitt (1968) 23 July 2009 8. Captain Kidd (1945) 28 July 2009 9. Child Bride (1938) 24 September 2009 10. Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) 22 September 2010 11. Destination Moon (1950) 17 January 2011 12. Detour (1945) 19 November 2010 13. Die Hard 2 (1990) 23 December 2010 14. The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl (1993) 19 November 2010 15. Jack and the Beanstalk (1952) 26 July 2009 16. King Solomon's Mines (1950) 1 December 2010 17. Knute Rockne All American (1940) 2 November 2010 18. Claire's Knee (1970) 15 August 2009 19. Melody Ranch (1940) 10 November 2010 20. Morning Glory (1933) 19 November 2010 21. Mush and Milk (1933) 17 January 2011 22. New Moon (1940) 3 November 2010 23. Pinocchio (1940) 6 November 2010 24. R2PC: Road to Park City (2000) 19 November 2010 25. Salt (2010) 24 August 2010 26. Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) 21 January 2011 27. Sunset Blvd. (1950) 1 December 2010 28. The Forgotten Village (1941) 21 January 2011 29. The Great Dictator (1940) 1 November 2010 30. The King's Speech (2010) 19 January 2011 31. The Last Emperor (1987) 20 January 2011 32. The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962) 9 January 2011 33. The Man in the White Suit (1951) 5 August 2009 34. The Philadelphia Story (1940) 5 November 2010 35. The Social Network (2010) 19 January 2011 36. The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) 1 August 2009 37. The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) 14 August 2009 38. The Witchmaker (1969) 21 July 2009 39. Thousands Cheer (1943) 3 December 2010 40. Till the Clouds Roll By (1946) 24 November 2010 41. Wake Up and Live (1937) 27 July 2009 42. Witness for the Prosecution (1957) 1 August 2009 A full list of Tex Allen's movie reviews appearing on WWW.IMDb.Com with links to full texts of reviews is accessible via: http://imdb.com/user/ur15279309/comments Tex Allen's email address is TexAllen@Yahoo.Com.See Tes Allen Movie Credits, Biography, and 2012 photos at WWW.IMDb.Me/TexAllen. See other Tex Allen written movie reviews....more almost 100 titles.... at: "http://imdb.com/user/ur15279309/comments" (paste this address into your URL Browser)

In the late 1600s, dastardly pirate Charles Laughton (as Captain William Kidd) convinces King William III (Henry Daniell) he's above board - but, of course, Mr. Laughton is pulling the King's leg. One of the Captain's seafaring crew of cutthroats, heroic Randolph Scott (as Adam Mercy), poses a threat. Laughton killed Mr. Scott's father, and soon adds the father of beautiful-on-board Barbara Britton (as Lady Anne Dunstan) to his list of victims. Scott falls for the fetching Ms. Britton.Entertaining as always, Laughton makes the most of his role. Scott seems like a fish out of water; and, to varying degrees, so do many in the cast. The interesting crew features "first mate" performances from Reginald Owen (as Shadwell) and John Carradine (as Povey). Smaller roles essayed by Gilbert Roland (as Lorenzo) and William Farnum (as Captain Rawson) are equally satisfying. Alas, the production is rushed and unsatisfying, despite an "Oscar"-nominated score, by Werner Janssen.***** Captain Kidd (11/22/45) Rowland V. Lee ~ Charles Laughton, Randolph Scott, Barbara Britton