The Mark of Zorro

Rating:
Summary: Zorro the fey blade.
Review: Tyrone Power's Zorro is both effeminate and masculine, one moment the picture of delicate and fey passiveness and the next the masculine caballero of legend. The film has held up well, mostly due to the excellent swordplay and Power's magnetic persona. The lack of actual Spanish actors will be noticeable and perhaps offensive to today's audience, although in 1940 it was probably a minor point at best. The DVD transfer could have been better, although it is generally grain-free and vivid. A 60-year old film can only look so good, after all. A fine version of the Zorro legend, lacking somewhat in political correctness but making up for it in sentiment and charm.

Rating:
Summary: A "Must See" for true Zorro Fans!
Review: Tyrone Powers gives an excellent performance as both Diego and Zorro. Diego gets called home to find tyranny reigns and dons the Zorro attire to fight injustice and win the girl. Lots of good fencing scenes.

Rating:
Summary: ...He makes the sign of the Z...
Review: When Johnston Mculley created Zorro as a pulp fiction story in "The Curse of Capistrano" in 1919, he had no idea his creation would become an American legend. Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. starred in the original film, "The Mark of Zorro" during the silent film era. In 1936, the fox returned in sound. Robert Livinstone starred in Republic Pictures "The Bold Caballero." Republic extended Zorro's legacy with action chapterplays, although "Zorro's Fighting Legion" was the only true Zorro story. However, Tyrone Power seems to be the definate version of Zorro. Although a departure from Mculley's original story, it remains entertaining and enjoyable.
Don Diego Vega (Power), the best fencer in Madrid, is ordered home by his father, the alcalde. Upon returning, he learns from Capitan Esteban (Basil Rathbone) that his father "resigned," and that Luis Quintero serves in his place. Quintero is a greedy theif, over-taxing the peons and caballeros to poverty. Diego pretends to be a foppish coward. However, he soon dons the mask of Zorro. He robs the alcalde of his money and restores it to the people. Quintero's kind neice Lolita(Linda Darnell) admires the courageous fox for his determination for freedom. Zorro continually threatends Quintero to leave for Spain and name Diego's father Alejandro as his succesor.
This film was one of the greatest portrayles of the fox. Diego is such a sissy in this film that you would never guess he could ever become Zorro, and that was a key point in the story-Diego could not be daring. The setting is the pueblo of Los Angeles in the 1800s. In Mculley's story Capitan Ramon served as commandante of Los Angeles. Los Angeles was not a Presido, so it would not have been ruled by a commander. "The Mark of Zorro" corrected this error, using an alcalde as it really was. This film has a stron cast, stunning battles, and delightful characters. This film was re-made in the 1970's, but it was a terrible letdown.

Rating:
Summary: MUCH MUCH MUCH BETTER THAN THE MASK OF ZORRO
Review: WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL FILM. FULL OF HUMOR, ADVENTURE AND ALSO A GREAT LOVE STORY. TYRONE POWERS WAS THE PERFECT ZORRO. ANTHONY HOPKINS AND ANTONIO BANDERAS SHOULD OF WATCH THIS FILM TO GET THE CONCEPT OF WHAT ZORRO WAS ALL ABOUT. GREAT FILM TO WATCH WITH THE KIDS.