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2.4 KiB
Plaintext
The film opens in 17-Century Europe...<br /><br />After many shameful incidents, Don Juan is forced to return to Spain where he discovers a country without life, driven to war, and a King in petticoat with a dissatisfied Queen...<br /><br />But, despite of all the court's intrigues, Don Juan saves the lovely Queen and the confused King Philip III (Romney Brent) from the treacherous schemes of a malicious minister, the great Duke De Lorca and his puppeteers Raymond Burr & Douglas Kennedy...<br /><br />His farewell scene with the Queen of Spain remembered me "Prisoner of Zenda."<br /><br />Don Juan, wisely, persuades the Queen that her duties lies with her people, and after kissing her, he says: "I shall be the only one who knew that for a little while there was no Queen."<br /><br />Flynn had the flair and style to play, with elegance, the charming manipulator, gaining admiration through his charisma, talents and abilities, seducing loving maidens, coming against angry husbands, causing a striking impression on the tall, dark, beautiful Queen... <br /><br />Challenging the mighty Duke De Lorca, he makes his point as the loyal and devoted friend to the crown, when he declared: "Some men prefer the conquest of beauty to the conquest of a throne." <br /><br />Viveca Lindfors plays a generous Queen who fights for peace and works for the welfare of her people... She is brave enough before an impertinent traitor who dreams to be a future king... She is a passionate young woman before Don Juan, her eventual true love...<br /><br />Robert Douglas played a stupendous villain in many adventure films, crossing swords with great stars (Burt Lancaster, Cornel Wilde and Robert Taylor). As Duke De Lorca, he was a very ambitious minister with a hand of steel... "I'm Spain!, he expressed once... His declaration remembered me Vincent Price in "The Three Musketeers," when he states, in his role of Cardinal Richelieu, "I'm France!"<br /><br />The duel between De Lorca ("I warned you, Señor, this time I shall cut deeply.") and Don Juan ("This time, I'm wearing my old clothes.") is exciting and stylish...<br /><br />With humorous moments displayed by the sympathetic dwarf actor Jerry Austin (Don Sebastian) and with a splendid exhibition of young swordsmen, lovely ladies, secret plots, drinking escapades, swords clashing, furious fights, and with a great complementary score by Max Steiner, "The Adventures of Don Juan" is a great entertaining swashbuckler, highly recommended... |