There are far too many villains in "All the Brothers Were Valiant", an update of an old silent where two brothers continue the family destiny at sea. The two brothers are as different as night and day. We meet them over a series of flashbacks of their ancestors writing in the ship's log that has been passed down from one generation to the next, and as one of the brothers is presumed dead, surviving brother Robert Taylor learns his brother had made many enemies at sea. Taking over the vessel, he marries the dead brother's former sweetheart (the lovely Ann Blyth, cast as more than just another pretty face here) and heads out for an adventure of whaling. But like the legend of Enoch Arden, the dead brother (Stewart Granger) returns, and their old rivalry is revealed, Granger gloating over having always taken away Taylor's toys as a child, and vowing to do that now both with the ship and with Blyth.
First, though, there is an adventure concerning pearl diving where Granger explains his whereabouts while presumed dead as he joined up with pearl hunters James Whitmore and Kurt Kasznar who are as villainous as the men aboard Taylor's crew. The extended sequence is like something out of one of Dorothy Lamour's Paramount adventures featuring tropical settings (near the Cape of Good Hope) and the two men being done in by their own greed. But Granger learns nothing from this adventure, and utilizes the men on Taylor's boat to plot mutiny so they can return to find the bag of pearls accidentally dropped into the bottom of the sea.
Rather violent in some sequences, this attractive color production screams "silent movie!" with its melodramatic dialog and the contrast of good and evil between the two brothers. It is odd to see Granger playing such an amoral character, but there are elements of good in him that creep out on occasion to make him less one dimensional than the characters played by such character actors as Keenan Wynn, Robert Burton and James Lupton. "Judge Hardy" Lewis Stone has a cameo in this his last film, having died tragically on his front lawn after having a heart attack while dealing with juvenile delinquents breaking up his lawn furniture. Betta St. John is the native girl Granger briefly takes up with in his south sea adventure. Overall, this may not be a classic, but as adventure, it is lots of fun, and a reminder of the power of nobility.
First, though, there is an adventure concerning pearl diving where Granger explains his whereabouts while presumed dead as he joined up with pearl hunters James Whitmore and Kurt Kasznar who are as villainous as the men aboard Taylor's crew. The extended sequence is like something out of one of Dorothy Lamour's Paramount adventures featuring tropical settings (near the Cape of Good Hope) and the two men being done in by their own greed. But Granger learns nothing from this adventure, and utilizes the men on Taylor's boat to plot mutiny so they can return to find the bag of pearls accidentally dropped into the bottom of the sea.
Rather violent in some sequences, this attractive color production screams "silent movie!" with its melodramatic dialog and the contrast of good and evil between the two brothers. It is odd to see Granger playing such an amoral character, but there are elements of good in him that creep out on occasion to make him less one dimensional than the characters played by such character actors as Keenan Wynn, Robert Burton and James Lupton. "Judge Hardy" Lewis Stone has a cameo in this his last film, having died tragically on his front lawn after having a heart attack while dealing with juvenile delinquents breaking up his lawn furniture. Betta St. John is the native girl Granger briefly takes up with in his south sea adventure. Overall, this may not be a classic, but as adventure, it is lots of fun, and a reminder of the power of nobility.