The Pirates of Capri

A group of men calling themselves 'The Pirates of Capri", headed by Captain Sirroco, who is really Count Amalfi, are trying to restore freedom to the people of Naples. The Queen is advised of the pirate's assault of a member of her court and she seeks to escape to Palermo. But, she is advised it would be good politics for her to attend a ball Amalfi is giving for his fiancée, Mercedes, who is unaware of the dual role Amalfi is playing.

Louis Hayward is at his foppish best in this somewhat derivative swashbuckler as the "Count de Amalfi" (alias "Scirocco") who plays the buffoon at the Neapolitan court of the well meaning, but feeble Queen "Maria Carolina" (Binnie Barnes) who is pretty much under the thumb of her minister "Baron Holstein" (Rudolph Serato) and his savage regime. This isn't just your usual "Zorro" style story, though - the "Scirocco" wants change - he is working with his fellow freedom fighters, but he wants as peaceful transition as possible and that's his challenge... The rest of this is all pretty set-piece, Hawyard is the star with little around him to eclipse his status. Plenty of sword fighting and intrigue does keep it going, though, and although you have certainly seen it all before (and better with Douglas Fairbanks or Errol Flynn), Hayward still makes a decent fist of it - it looks stylish enough, and I quite enjoyed it all.