Zorro the Gay Blade (1981)

Director: Peter Medak
Starring: George Hamilton, Lauren Hutton, Brenda Vaccaro

Synopsis:
Playboy Don Diego Vega takes up the mantle of the legendary Zorro when a new alcalde terrorizes the peasants of Los Angeles.

Impressions:
For the longest time, this was the only Zorro movie I'd ever seen. It's a prominent feature in my family's film canon and we frequently quote lines from it. As evidenced by noms for Razzies and Stinkers, not everyone loves this movie as much as I do, but that's probably due to a pathological lack of humor. Tragic, really. George Hamilton is quite entertaining pulling double duty as the wannabe charmer Don Diego and his fey twin brother Ramon—er, I mean, Bunny Wigglesworth. However, the real treat is the uproariously over-the-top Ron Leibman as raving tyrant Esteban. Due credit also needs to be given to Brenda Vaccaro as Esteban's histrionic wife Florinda and Donovan Scott as Diego's lovable mute servant Paco (who you might know as Señor Beaver). Besides being very funny, there's also some pretty good swashbuckling and Max Steiner's score to the 1948 Adventures of Don Juan has been adapted to good effect (regardless of what the Razzie people would have you think). If the film's sense of humor clicks with you, you're going to have a blast. If not, well, you might want to have that checked out. It might be the sign of something serious. ^_^ As noted above, I love this movie a great deal and consider it a must-have. In a more objective analysis, it's worth a watch at the very least, but my rating is going to reflect how strongly I feel about it. Take that, naysayers, and remember, there's no shame in being poor, only in dressing poorly.

Rating:
Treasure It