Anne Of The Indies (1951)

A protege of Blackbeard The Pirate (Thomas Gomez), Captain Anne Providence (Jean Peters) ruthlessly pillages the British fleet in the Caribbean. On one such ship, she discovers a Frenchman (Louis Jourdan) in chains and cautiously takes him under her wing despite the misgivings of her right hand man (James Robertson Justice). Based on the short story by Herbert Sass and directed by Jacques Tourneur (I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE). This rousing pirate adventure has a twist. The pirate is a lady! There's a revelation mid film however that renders Jourdan rather unsympathetic. The screenplay by Philip Dunne and Arthur Caesar allows Peters to flesh out a fully realized character rather than just a gender switch. Her drive to get her revenge on the British, her determination to receive the respect she feels she deserves conflict with her very human emotions, both romantic and psychological. The lively score is by Franz Waxman. With Debra Paget, Herbert Marshall and Sean McClory.