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Tuesday, October 29, 2019

The Scarecrow Of Romney Marsh (aka Dr. Syn, Alias The Scarecrow) (1964)

During the oppressive reign of King George IIIa General (Geoffrey Keen) and his troop are sent to a small village to smash a ring that smuggles brandy from France to avoid paying revenue to His Majesty. The leader of the smugglers is a masked man known as The Scarecrowwho smuggles not for his own profit but to pass the proceeds to the overtaxed villagers and other needy people. Based on the DOCTOR SYN books by Russell Thorndike and directed by James Neilson (THE MOON SPINNERS). Originally conceived by Walt Disney for a three part television event in the U.S.an edited version was shown theatrically in Europe and in the 1970s eventually shown in U.S. cinemas. Previously made into films in 1937 and 1962this version is a more family friendly effort (violence is kept to a minimum). Patrick McGoohan plays the title characterwho when not the masked Scarecrow is the village vicar. It's a pleasing and well acted action/adventure yarn with a nice period detail and enough plot complications to keep adults and youngsters engaged. If you prefer your adventure movies darker and more adultyou might be better off with the 1962 versionCAPTAIN CLEGG but they both work equally well. With Kay WalshMichael HordernPatrick WymarkGeorge Cole and Eric Pohlmann. 

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