Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Walt Disney's The Fighting Prince of Donegal

Walt Disney began making films in Great Britain in the 1950s as a way to use "frozen funds." The studio had amassed strong sales from its products during the 1940s. However, Britain's laws prevented pounds earned there from being fully converted to U.S. dollars. Disney's solution was to spend that money on live-action films such as Treasure Island (1950), The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952), and The Sword and the Rose (1953). These films had the added benefit of costing less and being quicker to produce than Disney's full-length animated movies.

The Disney studio still had a strong presence in Great Britain when it made The Fighting Prince of Donegal in 1966. This fact-based tale traces the exploits of Hugh O'Donnell (Peter McEnery), a 16th century prince intent on uniting the clans of Ireland against Queen Elizabeth. After convincing one of the strongest rival clans to join him, Hugh gets captured by the English and imprisoned in Dublin Castle. He escapes, gets captured, escapes again, and goes on to rally the Irish to a small, but significant victory over the English troops.

McEnery in one of the fighting scenes.
Based on the 1957 novel Red Hugh: Prince of Donegal by Robert T. Reilly, The Fighting Prince of Donegal is a partially accurate depiction of history. The real Hugh O'Donnell was fifteen when he was thrown into prison (while Peter McEnery was 26 when he played the role). O'Donnell did indeed escape from Dublin Castle twice and went on to fight several battles against the English. However, Disney's film ignores the political infighting among the clans and Hugh's later role in the Nine Years' War and his most famous victory at the Battle of Curlew Pass.

As a historical action film, The Fighting Prince of Donegal comes across as solid, but without generating any tangible excitement. Part of the blame goes to its lightweight star Peter McEnery, who first gained film fame as Boy Barrett in 1961's then-controversial Victim. McEnery certainly looks the part of a fighting prince, but he can't project the passion required for the role (especially in a key scene where he must convince the other clans to join him).

The luminous Hampshire.
In contrast, the rest of the cast consists of some of my favorite British performers of that period: Susan Hampshire (The Forsyte Saga, The Pallisers) as McEnery's love interest; Gordon Jackson (Hudson from Upstairs, Downstairs) as the villainous Captain Leeds; Andrew Keir (Professor Quatermass in Quatermass and the Pit) as one of the clan leaders; and Tom Adams (Charles Vine in a pair of spy film capers) and Donal McCann (The Pallisers) as Hugh's mates. Unfortunately, except for Jackson, most of these marvelous performers have little to do.

Still, their presence plus some colorful scenery make The Fighting Prince of Donegal a pleasant way to spend 112 minutes. It's just a shame that Disney missed the opportunity to produce a first-rate historical yarn about a lesser known, but interesting, figure in Irish history.

9 comments:

  1. Today I plan to see "Brave" (about a red haired Scottish girl) so I smiled seeing your review of "The Fighting Prince of Donegal" this morning. The settings are a lot of fun in this film and it is interesting to watch the escapes and final battle. My favorite performance in "Fighting Prince" would have to be the one by Gordon Jackson, even though he is very un-Hudson like. And it is always fun to see Susan Hampshire! Well done, Rick, and Happy Independence Day!

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    1. Toto, when I saw the cast, I thought Tom Adams would be the heavy and Gordon Jackson a mentor to the prince. But Gordon is fine as the villain and Tom effective as Hugh's ally (whose character is famous in his own right).

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  2. It's hard to imagine Gordon Jackson as a villain, but I love Susan Hampshire, a wonderful actress. She brings a special luminosity to everything she does.

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    1. Well said about Susan Hampshire. She has become one of my favorite stars.

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  3. I'd love to see this one again - Disney must have made THE THREE LIVES OF THOMASINA about a cat around the same time, Susan Hampshire was also in that with Patrick McGoohan and the MARY POPPINS kids. McEnery (the first Hamlet I ever saw on stage in 1967) was also the lead in Walt's THE MOONSPINNERS - where he gave Hayley Mills her first kiss - a terrific one from 1964 with a great range of acting styles, from Eli Wallach's method to Pola Negri's silent star with not much to do for the great Irene Papas from Greece or Joan Greenwood from England, along with those farceurs Sheila Hancock and John Le Mesurier. Heady stuff !

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    1. I haven't seen THOMASINA in years, but it's on my short list after watching THE PALLISERS, THE FORSYTE SAGA, and MONARCH OF THE GLEN with Susan Hampshire.

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  4. I actually watched this BECAUSE of Peter McEnery (I'm a big fan), but I found the fake red hair quite frightening! ;-D

    I agree that, although pleasant, it's not something one watches over and over!

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  5. I remember seeing a lot of these Disney Brit movies either in the theater or on early television and you've hit the nail right on the head, Rick, with your comment that could really be applied to all of the live-action Disney films of that time: '...comes across as solid, but without generating any tangible excitement.' These are all, far as I'm concerned, forgettable films. Though at the time, they were okay for a Saturday afternoon at the movies. They live in my memory in a kind of Technicolor haze of similarity. Hmmmm, since I remember them in color, I must have seen them in the theater.

    Was it Richard Todd that played Disney's Robin Hood? Now that was an actor who had looks (I had a crush on him) and acting ability, but who never could generate any real excitement on screen. He was perfect for Disney. You can tell I much preferred Disney's animated films. :)

    Thanks for that info on the money thing. I never realized that was the reason for all those Brit Disney films then.

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  6. Yes, Richard Todd was the lead in THE STORY OF ROBIN HOOD. I always liked him and he could be very good if given a chance, as in THE HASTY HEART and Hitchcock's STAGE FRIGHT.

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