| The Pirate | |
|---|---|
 Original film poster |
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| Directed by | Vincente Minnelli |
| Produced by | Arthur Freed |
| Written by | S. N. Behrman (play) Frances Goodrich (screenplay) Albert Hackett (screenplay) |
| Starring | Gene Kelly Judy Garland |
| Music by | Lennie Hayton (score) Cole Porter (songs) |
| Cinematography | Harry Stradling Sr. |
| Editing by | Blanche Sewell |
| Release date(s) | May 20, 1948 |
| Running time | 102 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3,700,000 (estimated) |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Pirate is a 1948 American musical feature film from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It starred Gene Kelly and Judy Garland with co-stars Walter Slezak, Gladys Cooper, Reginald Owen, and George Zucco.
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Full Plot Synopsis
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The plot summary in this article or section is too long compared to the rest of the article. Please edit the article to focus on discussing the work rather than merely reiterating the plot. |
Manuela Alva (Judy Garland) lives in the Caribbean village of Calvados with her Aunt Inez and Uncle Capucho and dreams of being swept away by the legendary pirate, Mack the black Macoco. However her dreams are shattered when her Aunt and Uncle say she is to marry the town mayor, Don Pedro, a 'rotund' bully with deeply hidden roots. When Don Pedro tells her that her wedding dress is being shipped to Port Sebastian, Manuela begs her aunt to let her go and see the sea before she is married. Unwillingly Aunt Inez agrees. Enter Serafin (Gene Kelly) a traveling player and all around ladies man who performs and leads a traveling circus. In the first musical number of the pirate, 'Nina', the handsome Serafin explains his philosophy of calling each girl he meets Nina, so to avoid confusion. In Port Sebastian, Manuela convinces her aunt to let her see the sea alone, and hurries off. Finally she sees the sea, and Serafin sees her, and from then on every other girl loses their charms for him. He follows her and tells her of her charms and beauty and begs her not to marry Don Pedro, and that she shouldn't throw herself away on a lump like him. Furious Manuela hurries away and Serafin tells her to come to his show that night. When Manuela cannot sleep that night, she decides to go and see Serafin's show, and creeps out with only her skirt pulled over her nightgown. When there, Serafin seizes his opportunity and hypnotizes Manuela, thinking that she will admit how much she loves him. But instead Manuela confesses her love for Mack Macoco and in a trance dances about and sings of the pirate in the number 'Mack The Black'. The audience cheers and goes wild for Manuela's singing and dancing, but when Serafin pulls her off the stage he cannot wake her. Finally a kiss awakens Manuela, who flees in horror at what she has done. Back in Calvados on her wedding day, Manuela is horrified to see Serafin and his troupe who have tracked her down parading up the village streets to collect her. He walks a tightrope to her room and begs her to join his troupe and tells Manuela that she couldn't possibly still be getting married, and that she is in love with Serafin. When Manuela refuses Serafin goes to leap off the balcony and Manuela stops him. "You love me! You do love me!" Serafin cries to Manuelas screams of deny. Suddenly Don Pedro and Aunt Inez and Uncle Capucho arrive at Manuela's door, and Manuela begs Serafin to leave before Don Pedro can kill him. But Serafin says he will only go if Manuela accompanies him. She refuses, and Don Pedro orders her to be taken away whilst he teaches a lesson to this strolling vagabond. But Serafin soon recognises Don Pedro as Macoco, retired and obese. He swears to tell Manuela if Don Pedro doesn't let their act perform a show tonight and keep quiet. But then Serafin has an idea, and pretends to be the pirate in order to win over Manuela, and warns Don Pedro that if he says a word he'll watch him hang in a gibbet. Serafin then reveals himself to Manuela and the town as the pirate Macoco, then asks Manuela if she will come with him. But when she refuses he leaves. Then she watches from her window as he dances, and imagines he really is the pirate. The next day, Serafin, stil acting as Macoco, orders the townspeople to bring Manuela to him, or he will set the town afire. They speak to Manuela, who in secret is more than willing to go, but she says it will ruin her entire life. Finally she happily agrees to go. When waiting for 'Macoco', one of Serafin's troupe accidentally reveals Serafin's plan to Manuela, who decides to seduce Serafin. He is confused by her, but follows her into the next room where she proceeds to get her revenge by hurtling every item that isn't nailed down at him. Then she accidentally knocks him out, and in guilt and regret confesses her undying love for Serafin, and sings the next song, 'You Can Do No Wrong.' and they kiss. Meanwhile, Don Pedro has fetched the viceroy, and convinces him that Serafin is the real Macoco and should hang. He even implants treasure into Serafin's prop trunk as fake evidence. The viceroy's army then storm Don Pedro's house where Serafin and his troupe are living, and arrest Serafin on charge of being the bloodthirsty pirate. Even when Manuela protests it seems all hope is lost and Serafin faces the handman's noose. On the night of his hanging, Manuela pleads to the people to stop the hanging, but when she is shown the evidence by the viceroy (the prop trunk) she recognizes a bracelet with the same design as her wedding ring given to her by Don Pedro, and works out that he is the pirate. Serafin asks the viceroy to allow him to do one last show before he is hanged, and when he agrees Serafin and two of his troupe (The Nicholas Brothers) perform the athletic song and dance, 'Be A Clown' to the people. Then as a finale Serafin plans to hypnotize Don Pedro into admitting he is Macoco but is stopped when Aunt Inez breaks the spinning mirror he uses to hypnotize people with, recognizing it from Manuela's story as black magic. In a moment of panic, Manuela pretends to be hypnotized and confesses her undying love to Macoco, and vows to live the rest of her life worshiping him. She then sings the song, 'Love of My Life' and jealous Don Pedro reveals himself as the true Macoco and seizes Manuela. Suddenly though the rest of Serafin's troupe attack Don Pedro with custard pies and juggling balls, and Manuela and Serafin embrace. The next time we see them, Manuela has joined Serafin's act and they do a reprise of 'Be A Clown' in baggy pants and make-up.
Production
Vincente Minnelli directed, from a screenplay by Frances Goodrich from the 1942 play by S. N. Behrman. The score, by Lennie Hayton, featured the song "Be a Clown" by Cole Porter. This dance sequence was omitted when shown in some cities in the South, such as Memphis, because it featured black performers The Nicholas Brothers, Fayard and Harold. The score was nominated for an Academy Award for Original Music Score, losing out to Easter Parade.
Songs
- "Be A Clown"
- "You Can Do No Wrong"
- "Mack the Black"
- "Love of My Life"
- "Nina"
Production notes
- Studio head Louis B. Mayer demanded that the negative for the smoky "Voodoo" number with Garland and Kelly be burned as it was deemed too erotic for 1948 audiences.
- Overall, the film lost US$2 million at the box office, a considerable sum at the time, making the movie one of the earliest box office flops.
- Overall Garland missed 99 of the 135 working days due to illness, but some of which were not her fault as she was not needed on set.
- Garland and Kelly were originally to be paired again in 1948's Easter Parade, but Kelly broke his ankle and was replaced by Fred Astaire.
- The Pirate is the second of the three films in which Garland and Kelly appeared together; the first was For Me and My Gal in 1942, and the third Summer Stock in 1950, and Garland's last MGM picture.
- It is rumoured that Garland and Minelli had numerous arguments and fights on set during the filming of the movie. Some believe this is why that neither of two gave their best work to the film.
