The Flame and the Arrow

One of the more enjoyable swinging-from-the-chandelier-with-a- -sword adventures made a la Erroll Flynn. A lively pace, loads of action, a witty-if-fluffy script, an enchanting score, good performances, and above all an incredible number of acrobatic stunts make this utterly enjoyable. Lancaster had been a circus acrobat before he got into films, and managed to work every stunt he could do into the script. He even balances and poses on the top of a 20-foot pole, for real. I'm still amazed that a guy that big could be so good.

(This film also had an ongoing effect on Hollywood: At the time Lancaster's career was fading, he was typecast as a big dumb lug in the kind of Film Noir that was rapidly going out of fashion. He realized that he had to do something, and rather than rely on the studios he bought this script and produced it himself. And gave himself a whole new career, an example not lost on other actors. This was one of the films that marked the beginning of the end of the paternalistic studio system, one that showed actors that they could control their own careers. For good or ill.)