Directed by:
Rudolph MatéScreenplay:
Oscar BrodneyCinematography:
Irving GlassbergCast:
Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh, David Farrar, Barbara Rush, Herbert Marshall, Torin Thatcher, Dan O'Herlihy, Patrick O'Neal, Ian Keith, Doris Lloyd, Rhys Williams (more)VOD (2)
Plots(1)
Tony Curtis always seemed a little uncomfortable in costume epics, but this trait serves him well in Black Shield of Falworth. Based on the robust novel Men of Iron by Howard Pyle, the film casts Curtis as Miles, the son of a disgraced knight. Through the sponsorship of the Earl of Mackworth Herbert Marshall, Miles is trained for knighthood, an arduous process that earns him the ridicule of his fellow trainees, who regard him as little better than a peasant. Eventually, Miles proves his mettle by squelching a plan to oust King Henry IV Ian Keith from the throne of England. On a more personal level, Miles carries on a romance with Mackworth's daughter Lady Anne Janet Leigh, while Miles' sister Meg Barbara Rush finds happiness in the arms of knight-in-training Francis Gascoyne Craig Hill. The heavy of the piece is the Earl of Alban David Farrar, whom Miles must ultimately face down in a well-directed climactic set-to. Torin Thatcher, who'd previously costarred with Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh in Houdini, delivers another topnotch characterization as the no-nonsense trainer of Miles and his fellow aspirant knights. (official distributor synopsis)
(more)Cast
Tony Curtis
USA
Best movies:
Some Like It Hot (1959)
The Defiant Ones (1958)
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Janet Leigh
USA
Best movies:
Psycho (1960)
Touch of Evil (1958)
Little Women (1949)
David Farrar
UK
Best movies:
Black Narcissus (1947)
The Sea Chase (1955)
Solomon and Sheba (1959)
Barbara Rush
USA
Best movies:
Hombre (1967)
The Young Philadelphians (1959)
Strangers When We Meet (1960)
Herbert Marshall
UK
Best movies:
The Little Foxes (1941)
Trouble in Paradise (1932)
Foreign Correspondent (1940)
Torin Thatcher
Best movies:
Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
Great Expectations (1946)
Band of Angels (1957)
Dan O'Herlihy
Ireland
Patrick O'Neal
USA
Best movies:
King Rat (1965)
Columbo (1971) (series)
The Way We Were (1973)
Ian Keith
USA
Best movies:
The Sea Hawk (1940)
The Ten Commandments (1956)
The Big Trail (1930)
Doris Lloyd
UK
Best movies:
The Sound of Music (1965)
The White Cliffs of Dover (1944)
To Each His Own (1946)
Rhys Williams
UK
Best movies:
Gentleman Jim (1942)
Mrs. Miniver (1942)
Julius Caesar (1953)
Leo Britt
UK
Best movies:
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)
Dial M for Murder (1954)
The Court Jester (1955)
Lance Fuller
USA
Best movies:
Singin' in the Rain (1952)
Scarlet Street (1945)
To Have and Have Not (1944)
Brett Halsey
USA
Best movies:
The Godfather: Part III (1990)
Columbo (1971) (series)
All I Desire (1953)
Nelson Leigh
USA
Best movies:
The Spirit of St. Louis (1957)
The White Cliffs of Dover (1944)
Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
Craig Hill
USA
Best movies:
All About Eve (1950)
Detective Story (1951)
Anguish (1987)
Damian O'Flynn
USA
Best movies:
The Glenn Miller Story (1954)
Daddy Long Legs (1955)
One Desire (1955)
Chuck Hamilton
USA
Best movies:
Modern Times (1936)
Sunset Boulevard (1950)
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Bob Hoy
USA
Best movies:
Spartacus (1960)
W.B., Blue and the Bean (1989)
North and South (1985) (series)
Claud Allister
UK
Best movies:
The Awful Truth (1937)
Kiss Me Kate (1953)
Platinum Blonde (1931)