Prince of Pirates (1953)

Directed by Sidney Salkow. Starring John Derek, Barbara Rush, Whitfield Connor, Carla Balenda, Harry Lauter, Robert Shayne, Edgar Barrier, Don C. Harvey.

Technicolor sleeping pill masquerading as a pirate swashbuckler, and considering how little piracy and swashbuckling there is, it’s not a good disguise. Derek’s charisma-starved pretty boy prince leads a revolt against his despotic sibling, the king (Connor). Rush plays the hero’s love interest, but Balenda is far more likely to catch the viewer’s eye as a snobbish Spanish princess (she’s probably the best thing in this sorry bit of escapism). Rushed finale presents a few kabooms, but they land as fizzles. A lot of stock footage from earlier films is used for establishing and action shots, and it’s sometimes very easy to spot.

35/100