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Walter Matthau, Damien Thomas, Richard Pearson, Cris Campion, Charlotte Lewis ... see more see more... , Olu Jacobs , David Kelly , Roy Kinnear , Bill Fraser , José Santamaría , Anthony Peck , Georges Trillat , Roger Ashton-Griffiths , Sydney Bromley , Josine Comelas , Richard Dieux , Robert Dorning , Ian Dury , Michael Elphick , Daniel Emilfork , John Gill , Jacques Maury , Ferdinand "Ferdy" Mayne , Bernard Musson , Cardew Robinson , Emilio Fernandez , Bill Stewart , Raouf Ben Amor , Angelo Casadei , Denis Fontayne , David Foxxe , Carole Fredericks , Allen Horst , Luc Jamati , Wladyslaw Komar , Bill MacCare , Brian Maxine , Smilja Mihailovitch , Georges Montillier , Eugeniusz Priwieziencew , Antonio Spoletini , Anthony Dawson

Although the title evokes a swashbuckling adventure, Roman Polanski's Pirates tuns out to be a seagoing tale with a bit of a difference. Captain Red (Walter Matthau) runs a hardy pirate ship with the ... read more read more...able assistance of Frog, a dashing young French sailor (Cris Campion). One day Capt. Red is captured and taken aboard a Spanish galleon, but thanks to his inventiveness, he raises the crew to mutiny, takes over the ship, and kidnaps the daughter of the governor of Maracaibo (Charlotte Lewis, soon to co-star in The Golden Child opposite Eddie Murphy). The question is, can he keep this pace up? ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Flixster Users

48% liked it

10,299 ratings

Critics

25% liked it

8 critics

PG-13, 2 hr. 4 min.

Directed by: Roman Polanski

Release Date: July 1, 1986

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Flixster Reviews (282)

  • thefog1331
    September 13, 2009
    thefog1331
    Quirky, uneven comedy that coming from Polanski I expected a little bit more out of. Now I understand why it doesn't have a legitimite release on DVD.
  • pier007
    February 22, 2008
    pier007
    An atypical and charming adventure. It's great to see an auteur like Polanski shaping his vision no matter what genre or tone he's in, but in this case he forgot to apply a little more carefree attitude. some parts are great but still most of the film lacks sparkle and rhythm. Wa... read morelter Matthau is amazingly cool in his role of a greedy, filthy and wisecracking old pirate.
  • garyX
    May 24, 2007
    garyX
    This Polanski pirate adventure bombed at the box office and was slated by critics, but I actually found it great fun. It was probably the first to deconstruct the classic swashbuckler, showing the grimier, more seedy side of piracy. It has loads of humour and period detail in a s... read moreimilar vein to Richard Lester's The Three Musketeers and Walther Matthau is always great fun to watch. Think of it as "the adventures of Jack Sparrow's dad"!
  • jimbotender
    November 26, 2009
    jimbotender
    Chaotic.Polanski is struggling to control a big extravaganza of immoral surrealism,but my objection stands as to the absence of any point at all.I must give credit to the baffling satire e.g. pirates less smart than a molecule,our hero as a sinister bargainer and the obvious iron... read morey of them all.Mixed feelings but overall a sassy "adventure" film.
    Hey,we all have our guilty pleasures,don't we?
  • g1pp4l
    August 27, 2008
    g1pp4l
    Awful. I'll never understand how could Polanski do this.
  • MnyNames
    August 23, 2007
    MnyNames
    Not your typical pirate movie, this one is less swashbuckling and more criminally filthy, and thus, in some ways, more honest in its depictions. Almost a comedy, Captain Red is in many ways not too far away from Captain Jack Sparrow. If Jack ever gets to live as long as Red, hi... read mores misadventures may not be too different.
  • perry40
    June 27, 2007
    perry40
    A good, solid pirate movie. Walter Mathau as a bad-ass pirate plus the future-delicious Charlotte Lewis. The scene with the harbor chain made my sides hurt.

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Critic Reviews

Fernando F. Croce
March 15, 2010
Fernando F. Croce, CinePassion

The joke lies in the contrast between the beauty of Polanski's framing and the scurvy visuals being framed Full Review

Chuck O'Leary
October 5, 2005
Chuck O'Leary, Fantastica Daily

If Roman Polanski has done a worse film than Pirates I certainly haven't seen it.

Ken Hanke
June 16, 2003
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Uneven, misunderstood Polanski film deserving another look.

March 26, 2009
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Walter Goodman
May 21, 2003
Walter Goodman, New York Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Cole Smithey
October 10, 2005
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com

No review available.

Jake Euker
July 17, 2005
Jake Euker, F5 (Wichita, KS)

No review available.

Emanuel Levy
July 6, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
March 27, 2004
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

No review available.

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Pirates Trivia

  • Johnny Depp was Oscar-nominated for his work in which of the following movies?   Answer »
  • In Pirates of The Carribean, what was the design on the cursed coins?  Answer »
  • Name the movie this piece of music was taken from.  Answer »
  • What movie was this quote said "Stop blowing holes in my ship"  Answer »
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