Devil's Disciple (1959)
by Alexander Mackendrick, Guy Hamilton
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Product details
Actor: Burt Lancaster, Eva Le Gallienne, Janette Scott, Kirk Douglas, Laurence OlivierDirector: Alexander Mackendrick, Guy Hamilton
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Original Language), Analog
Format: Black & White, NTSC
Running Time: 83 minutes
Release Date: 1998-09-01
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Publisher: MGM (Video & DVD)
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
VHS Movie Reviews of Devil's Disciple (1959)
Movie Review: The 18th Century, 50's Style
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of my favorite movies. Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas are in thier prime, both sexy and studley. If they really had ministers like Lancaster, I'd never miss church. The story, adapted from a play is a bit stagey, but it's very enjoyable. I liked the black and white photography as well. The best part of this picture is Lawrence Olivier as General Burgoyne. He is just so fantastic. He steals every scene he's in and the wordplay between him and Kirk Douglas is really entertaining. Also the score is very good. It's a nice movie and I can remember seeing this in the movies with my grandmother when I was 8. It still brings back great memories.
Movie Review: The 18th Century, 50's Style
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of my favorite movies. Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas are in thier prime, both sexy and studley. If they really had ministers like Lancaster, I'd never miss church. The story, adapted from a play is a bit stagey, but it's very enjoyable. I liked the black and white photography as well. The best part of this picture is Lawrence Olivier as General Burgoyne. He is just so fantastic. He steals every scene he's in and the wordplay between him and Kirk Douglas is really entertaining. Also the score is very good. It's a nice movie and I can remember seeing this in the movies with my grandmother when I was 8. It still brings back great memories.
Movie Review: What a load of Horse Sh**
Summary: 1 Stars
I'm not a fan of G.B. Shaw (who was a blithering idiot in my book)and therefore I didn't have high expectations for this tripe. And I was right again. The sequences with the animated paper "puppets" was annoying from the start. Burt Lancaster, who plays the parish minister, sleep-walked through this whole mess. (The scene where he attempts to blow up a British powder wagon looked more like a Three Stooges routine) And everyone all stood around watching like a bunch of statues ? Give me a break!!! Only Burt could take on a handful of British soldiers, armed with muskets and bayonets and defeat with a table! More horse sh** And Kirk Douglas should have stayed with Sparticus and left the 18th films alone. He was totally inappropriate for this part. His mannerisms and demeaner was a joke. The only saving grace was "Gentleman Johnny" as played by Sir Laurence Olivier, but even his acid wit couldn't save this load of horse sh**. The best line uttered during this whole nonsense was "History will tell us lies as usual" Like so many Hollywood productions, clothing, uniforms, etc. were all wrong. Don't waste your time, unless you enjoy self torture.Movie Review: The Devil Gets His Own
Summary: 5 Stars
This classy film mixes fact and fiction. Bernard Shaw's take on the American Revolution has all the smart touches that we associate with his plays with some scant reference to history thrown in. What makes this movie a hit are the three great actors who are all in their prime here. Laurence Oliver's John Bourgoyne (Gentlemanly Johnny) is simply brilliant. His acid wit makes for a most stunning portrait of this famed general. Shaw was probably inspired to write a play on this subject because Bourgoyne was something of an ametuer playwright himself in the 1770s. The film losely depicts his 1777 campaign from Canada to divide the northern colonies. The plan envisioned Bourgoyne's 9,000 (British, Hessian and Loyalists, with a few Indians) to combine with a drive up from New York under general Sir William Howe's main army. Berry St.Leger was to come down from Oswego with a smaller force. All three were to meet in Albany to divide and conquer the colonies. Bourgoyne's plan, while elegant on paper did not reflect the logistical reality as far as 18th century armies were concerned. The events were to show that great miscalculations were made. The movie is based losely on the campaign. The towns and locales shown, as well as the characters of Lancaster and Douglas are purely fictional. But the clever plot and role reversal, plus the way these characters evolve in response to events illustrates how the Revolution must have seemed to many not directly involved in it.
The British were fighting a war for the hearts and minds of the Americans (sounds familar in Iraq now). The movie shows this quite well. While a little slow in the beginning, this short film quickly gains speed while its trio of lengendary actors unfold their magic on screen. Its interesting that the production was B&W as the color of the period and the unifroms would have come out better in color. The production value of the movie is quite good with correct period detail, unifroms, military bands, and artillery. While the emphasis of the movie may not be on the Revolution per se, it provides excellent period details all the same.
This sophisticated look at the American Revolution may appear too wordy for some, but it runs circles around such films as the "The Patriot". Whether you are a fan of the great actors shown here, love wity dialogue, or are seeking an unusual period movie, "The Devil's Disciple" has it all.
Movie Review: An excellent cast and an excellent movie
Summary: 4 Stars
From the "poof" of the muskets to the attitudes of the common soldier this movies portrays, in my opinion well one little corner of the american revolution. Lancaster and Douglas as always make each other look great while Olivier and the supporting cast shine as they peel away layers of the human psyche. As for the plot many people seem to make the mistake of thinking of this as a revolutionary war movie, that is a very simple conclusion. This movie isn't so much about the revolution as it is about people serving their own ends. The writing and dircecting makes its points with the help of all the characters. You'll use more gray matter than you expected on this picture, but it will be well used
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