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IMDbPro

The Flame and the Arrow

  • 19501950
  • PassedPassed
  • 1h 28m
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
3.9K
YOUR RATING
Burt Lancaster and Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
Official Trailer
Play trailer2:31
1 Video
99+ Photos
  • Adventure
  • Drama
  • Romance
Dardo, a Robin Hood-like figure, and his loyal followers use a Roman ruin in Medieval Lombardy as their headquarters as they conduct an insurgency against their Hessian conquerors.Dardo, a Robin Hood-like figure, and his loyal followers use a Roman ruin in Medieval Lombardy as their headquarters as they conduct an insurgency against their Hessian conquerors.Dardo, a Robin Hood-like figure, and his loyal followers use a Roman ruin in Medieval Lombardy as their headquarters as they conduct an insurgency against their Hessian conquerors.
IMDb RATING
6.8/10
3.9K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Jacques Tourneur
  • Writer
    • Waldo Salt
  • Stars
    • Burt Lancaster
    • Virginia Mayo
    • Robert Douglas
Top credits
  • Director
    • Jacques Tourneur
  • Writer
    • Waldo Salt
  • Stars
    • Burt Lancaster
    • Virginia Mayo
    • Robert Douglas
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 42User reviews
    • 25Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 2 Oscars
      • 2 nominations total

    Videos1

    The Flame and the Arrow
    Trailer 2:31
    The Flame and the Arrow

    Photos127

    Burt Lancaster and Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Burt Lancaster and Nick Cravat in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Burt Lancaster, Nick Cravat, and Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Robert Douglas in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Nick Cravat in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)
    Virginia Mayo in The Flame and the Arrow (1950)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Burt Lancaster
    Burt Lancaster
    • Dardo Bartolias Dardo Bartoli
    Virginia Mayo
    Virginia Mayo
    • Anne de Hesseas Anne de Hesse
    Robert Douglas
    Robert Douglas
    • Marchese Alessandro de Granaziaas Marchese Alessandro de Granazia
    Aline MacMahon
    Aline MacMahon
    • Nonna Bartolias Nonna Bartoli
    Frank Allenby
    Frank Allenby
    • Count 'The Hawk' Ulrichas Count 'The Hawk' Ulrich
    Nick Cravat
    Nick Cravat
    • Piccoloas Piccolo
    Lynn Baggett
    Lynn Baggett
    • Francescaas Francesca
    • (as Lynne Baggett)
    Gordon Gebert
    • Rudi Bartoli - Dardo's Sonas Rudi Bartoli - Dardo's Son
    Norman Lloyd
    Norman Lloyd
    • Apollo - The Troubadoras Apollo - The Troubador
    Victor Kilian
    Victor Kilian
    • Mazzoni - Apothecaryas Mazzoni - Apothecary
    Francis Pierlot
    Francis Pierlot
    • Papa Pietroas Papa Pietro
    Robin Hughes
    Robin Hughes
    • Skinneras Skinner
    Paul Baxley
    • Guardas Guard
    • (uncredited)
    Leon Belasco
    Leon Belasco
    • Arturo of Milanas Arturo of Milan
    • (uncredited)
    • …
    Ray Beltram
    • Townsmanas Townsman
    • (uncredited)
    Richard Brehm
    • Outlawas Outlaw
    • (uncredited)
    George Bruggeman
    George Bruggeman
    • Guardas Guard
    • (uncredited)
    Sue Casey
    • Angelaas Angela
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Jacques Tourneur
    • Writer
      • Waldo Salt
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Nick Cravat, who plays Piccolo, was an acrobat who was teamed with Burt Lancaster before Lancaster became a star. He appears in many of Lancaster's movies. In this one, and in The Crimson Pirate (1952), he plays a mute. The reason was that his thick Brooklyn accent, which he could not lose, would have been wildly out of place in such period pieces.
    • Goofs
      The outlaws' pet bear cub is a Malayan Sun Bear, of which there could have been none in medieval Italy.
    • Quotes

      Skinner: ...we're civilized and the art of civilization is doing natural things in an unnatural way.

    • Connections
      Referenced in The John Player Lecture with Burt Lancaster (1972)

    User reviews42

    Review
    Top review
    7/10
    THE FLAME AND THE ARROW (Jacques Tourneur, 1950) ***
    Lively, colorful period romp in the Warners’ style made in the wake of ADVENTURES OF DON JUAN (1948) – featuring the same villain, Robert Douglas, no less – but actually fashioned after their most successful swashbuckler, THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD (1938).

    Burt Lancaster – with his acrobatic training and cheerful countenance in full bloom – is perfect casting for the heroic role of Dardo, a kind of Italian Robin Hood (even down to displaying similar prowess as an archer); Virginia Mayo, then, makes for an ideal heroine – like Olivia De Havilland’s Maid Marian, playing a noble woman who’s gradually drawn to the outlaw’s cause. Again, like the 1938 Robin Hood film, we have two villains: Frank Allenby as a tyrant known as “The Hawk” and the afore-mentioned Douglas as a Marquis; the latter’s role is interesting in that, banished by the former for tax evasion, he manages to infiltrate Lancaster’s band (along with his smart companion, a troubadour played by Norman Lloyd) and outwardly reform – but, when the opportunity arises, proceeds to reveal their plan of attack to Allenby!

    Other twists and quirks to the Robin Hood formula (the sharp script was written by Waldo Salt, later an Oscar winner for MIDNIGHT COWBOY [1969]!) are the fact that Lancaster’s wife has left him for Allenby - their spirited son has remained with Lancaster, whom he idolizes, but is eventually captured and thought good manners against his will; when Lancaster imprisons Mayo in exchange for his son’s freedom, he keeps her chained by the neck to a tree!; for no apparent reason other than that he's able to, one of Lancaster’s men uses his feet to write ransom notes, etc.; Lancaster is sent to the gallows but, here, he gives himself up rather than being captured and actually fakes his own death!; and the climactic struggle inside the castle, which the gang penetrate incognito (this time dressed-up as a band of strolling players). The obligatory swordfight between Lancaster and Douglas, then, is given a novel touch by being partly set in the dark – the only evident nod to the noir style director Tourneur is best-known for!

    The film itself received a couple of Oscar nominations for Ernest Haller’s gorgeous cinematography and Max Steiner’s marvelous score (it too bears a striking resemblance to Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s unforgettable work on THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD – as do the castle interiors – but this takes nothing away from the quality of THE FLAME AND THE ARROW itself!). Also worth noting in the cast is Nick Cravat as Lancaster’s mute sidekick: in the star’s days as an acrobat, he had been his partner and would often work with him in films – basically reprising his role here in Lancaster’s next swashbuckler, the seafaring THE CRIMSON PIRATE (1952; incidentally, also surprisingly but vigorously helmed by an expert in film noir, Robert Siodmak). Speaking of the latter, a couple of years back I re-acquainted myself with it via a rental of Warner’s bare-bones DVD edition – but its predecessor/companion piece is, mysteriously, still M.I.A. on disc...
    helpful•14
    1
    • Bunuel1976
    • Jun 6, 2007

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 9, 1950 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • The Hawk and the Arrow
    • Filming locations
      • Bronson Caves, Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Norma Productions
      • Frank Ross Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,600,000 (estimated)
    • Gross worldwide
      • $6,713
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 28 minutes
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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