File this one in the kind of stupid movie ideas folder. 1980's semi teen idols, Kristy McNichol and Christopher Atkins, sing and mug for the camera in this updating of The Pirates of Penzance, the light operetta from Gilbert and Sullivan.
I guess the idea was to appeal to the kids using these two American stars and have them race around and camp it up with lots of slapstick, silly references to the Star Wars and Indiana Jones films and frequent breaking of the fourth wall as the actors spoke directly to the audience.
Even for a pretty boy Atkins is really hopeless. It's hard to see what the big deal about Kristy McNichol once was. She was an Emmy winning actor in the late 1970's and did lots of those after school specials and guest spots on 1970's TV shows. She was always more of dramatic actor than a comedian. Her role as Mable in The Pirate Movie calls for her to be funny and sexy. She's not very funny and not particularly sexy even running around in skirts slit up the side of her leg.
The whole thing has the smell of desperation and probably needed a director like Richard Lester to pull it off. Ken Annakin really wasn't the guy for this type of film. Annakin had done some good work early in his career when he was involved with Walt Disney. But I doubt Disney would have ever gotten involved with this kind of silly musical fantasy.
105 minutes.
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