MovieChat Forums > Zorro's Fighting Legion (1939) Discussion > The High Production Quality of This Seri...

The High Production Quality of This Serial

posted 15 years ago by brucknerdan05
6 replies | jump to latest

This serial's stunts by Yakima Canutt feature some of the most unusual of any cliff-hanger! Only Canutt could perform the famous stunt of having a stagecoach pass directly over him, latch on to the back end and end up on top of the coach (Chapter 6)! Canutt's grand entry (Chapter 1) swinging across the room on a chandelier is exciting stuff! Ralph Faulkner, probably the greatest fencing coach in movie history, actually duels Yakima Canutt in Chapter 1 and has a "Z" carved on his forehead for his efforts! William Lava's musical score is inspiring and he later did music for many of the Warner Brothers' cartoons such as Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck. Some of the chase music in the cartoons is very similar to the music in this serial. Finally, the costume for the chief villian, Don del Oro, is very original--it's similar to the Cylons featured in the much later T.V. series, "Battlestar Galactica. It would be interesting to know what the Republic studios did with this costume--they never used it again in a movie!

[–] The_Dying_Flutchman 15 years ago

I still show Canutt's famous stage coach stunt to peeps and they can't believe its real. He was truly a great showman!!

Nothing is more beautiful than nothing.

[–] grendelkhan 15 years ago

...And, he did it twice! He did the same stunt in Stagecoach.

It's fun to watch these old serials, then catch the stuntmen in later performances. I've seen Canutt's name turn up as a second-unit director, and spotted Tom Steele (Masked Marvel)in bit parts in other movies and tv (always with the character ending up in a fight).

[–] The_Dying_Flutchman 14 years ago

He and his son did the 1959 "Ben Hur". Superior careers like these need to be cherished.

Believe those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it.

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] The_Dying_Flutchman 12 years ago

"King of the Rocket Men" is another terrific Republic serial and was the basis for the comics "The Rocketeer" and the subsequent film of that title. As far as Tarantino goes, he's wrapped up in his latest silliness of "Django Unchained" to be released soon. A spagatini western cum judo or karate reworking of just about anything U can name.

Reference is inscrutable because there is nothing to scrute.

[–] Forgotten_Hero 10 years ago

The acting was wooden, but the action was good and the series had some good stunt work. The characters were fun too. Don Del Oro was too bizarre to be a film antagonist, but he fit right at home in a serialization.