The Black Shield of Falworth (1954)

This is a tale of intrigue and the training of squires and knights in the early 14th century, during the reign of Henry IV of England. Tony Curtis plays the lead role, as Myles, beginning as a simple peasant, unsure of his parentage, living with his eligible sister Meg (Barbara Rush), and another man: Driccon. They suffer an attack by a group of men, apparently looking to force Tony to become a soldier. Also, one tries to rape Meg. This incites Tony into a frenzy of gymnastic moves that subdues the whole bunch, then steals a horse and rides to the sanctuary of a church, with caretaker Friar Edward. Meg and Diccon somehow soon join Tony. The friar recommends that they journey to the castle of the Earl of Mackworth, who hopefully will offer protection, and a chance for Tony to learn to become a squire. This they do, not being welcomed enthusiastically in the absence of the earl. They are subject to cat calls relating to their status as peasants, and Tony eventually starts a brawl, in which he again demonstrates his ability to combat a group of men without any conventional weapons. He learns about the Book of Heraldry in the earl's forbidden library, and that it contains a list of the coat of arms for all the noble families. He wants to look through it for his possible family, and is caught sneaking into the library, receiving a punishment. He has another brawl with some of the squires in training, especially Walter Blunt, brother? of the Earl of Alban.(Just why Walter is training in Mackworth's castle rather than his brother's castle is not explained). Tony begins the training to become a squire, which consists mostly of discipline and sword fighting with or without a shield, taught by Sir James. It appears he is actually being trained to be a foot soldier or guard rather than an aid to a knight, which was my idea of what squires did. The earl recommended that Tony be trained as a knight, since he was advancing faster than the other squire candidates. He had to get used to carrying the 70 lb. weight of his suit of armor, and how to handle his horse as well as a sword and shield. Lady Anne(Jane Leigh) the earl's daughter, took a liking to Tony, but was forbidden to interact with him, as he was of peasant stock and she was promised to squire-in-training Walter Blunt. Nonetheless, they sneaked in rendezvous in the courtyard that cemented their romantic attraction. Eventually, they are caught, and Tony's 'punishment' is to joust with the visiting jousting champion from Burgundy: Count Vermois. But this is scratched when Walter Blunt claims Tony has to go to the dungeon and await his hanging the next day! But, arguments before King Henry, who was visiting Mackworth, finally convinced him that Tony was due a trial by combat(jousting)with the Earl of Alban. Many things rode on the outcome of this joust. Not only Tony's life, but his claim to the castle of Alban and surrounding lands, which had previously belonged to the Falworths, and the question of the guilt of the Falworth clan as traitors, plus the prospect of Lady Anne as his bride. As things turned out, the outcome of their joust was interrupted by a general brawl between the men of the 2 castles, occasioned by an attempted assassination of King Henry, looking on. Tony and the Earl continued their contest on foot among the brawlers. If interested, the screenplay for this film was adapted from the novel "Men of Iron". A list of some of the differences between the book and film are listed at Wikipedia. I include some of these. In general, I would say the screenplay sounds like it's more exciting. 1)Myles' parents were still alive at the beginning 2)Myles' lacks a sister 3)Francis Gascoyne(Myles' friend) has no sweetheart(Meg being absent) 4)Meles' great enemy(Earl of Alban) is not revealed until near the end 5)Walter Blunt is not the Earl of Alban's brother and he disappears part way through. 6)Walter Blunt is not a suitor for Lady Anne 7)The Earl of Alban doesn't try to seize the throne from Henry 8)King Henry isn't as pleased by Myles' victory over the Earl of Alban. 9)Full restitution of the Falworths wouldn't occur until Henry V took the throne.There is an excellent copy at YouTube

SYNOPSIS: King Henry IV of England is dominated by the ambitious Earl of Alban. The Earl of Mackworth attempts to thwart his rival. Pawns in his strategy are the disgraced Myles Falworth and his sister, Meg, whose father was executed for treason.NOTES: Universal's first CinemaScope film was also released in a normal widescreen version… This is the second teaming of Tony Curtis and his real-life wife, Janet Leigh. Their first joint outing was in Paramount's Houdini (1953).COMMENT: For those of us who dote on the exploits of ye knightes of olde, "The Black Shield of Falworth" —especially in its richly pictorial CinemaScope version — is an absolute must. Howard Pyle's once-famous novel is vigorously brought to teeming life by as fine a group of players as such derring-do ever assembled. True, the accents of Mr. Curtis and Miss Leigh, don't altogether conjure up the medieval courts and pageants of Merrie England, but really those momentary distractions are of small account. What really matters is that both players not only look their parts but enter into their roles with enthusiasm and panache. This they definitely do. And of course, no such piffling complaints can be leveled against the delightfully villainous David Farrar, or suavely scheming Herbert Marshall and company. Here are 99 minutes packed with action and excitement, a bit of romance and even a jesting touch or two of welcome humor. And all not only briskly paced by director Rudolph Maté, but also most colorfully and vividly photographed by Irving Glassberg (a much under-rated cinematographer, if ever there was one).

Tony Curtis...how I wanted to be him back in 1956.The hair,the voice,the athleticism and grace....and married to Janet Leigh,it must have been just about the perfect life.I saw him on "The One Show" on BBC last month and he still looks better than me,still has the ladies swooning,and he's in a wheelchair for heaven's sake.Go figure. Unfairly denigrated and ignored for nearly half a century,"The black shield of Falworth"is just getting the recognition it deserves as a near perfect example of the Hollywood technicolor costume picture. It has no pretensions to historical accuracy,not a huge use is made of the iambic pentameter,the general filth and casual cruelty and violence of the Middle Ages is nowhere to be seen.This is Henry IVth's England as it never was,presented to ordinary 20th century audiences as a world of gentle knights with perfect teeth,dimpled maidens and big bad barons. It's entertainment,not a history lesson.And very successful entertainment too. Mr T.Curtis is outstanding as the young Falworth.Fizzing with suppressed energy,he tears into the part like a young puppy with a new toy.As a dispossessed heir,it is a role not unlike the one he would later play in the mighty "The Vikings".Mr T.Thatcher(no relation) gives his customary all as his mentor.Miss Leigh is charming and demure,Mr O' Herlihy a bluff Prince Hal. This picture is best viewed from behind a stick of candy floss,having just finished your "Kia Ora" and prior to daring to sneak your hand into your girl friend's.As your heart beats louder in your chest you can think that maybe you wouldn't want to swap places with Tony Curtis after all.

I guess this qualifies as an overdue "thank you" to this movie for getting me started in a lifelong love of history. I saw this movie originally as an 8 year old. I knew nothing about movies, stars, plots, directors or anything else about film, but Oh how I wanted to swash and buckle after seeing it! It also got me interested in reading more about the era, and beyond that to other eras as well. Since then I have always been sympathetic to historical epics and movies on screen--and elsewhere. No matter how horrendous they might be (and some of them are pretty horrendous), I figure if it gets people interested they can go from there. The funny thing is is that the real history is often much more fascinating--and can be more fun--than the Hollywood variety. In fact I never fully understood why people thought history was boring--perhaps it was too many dates.So thanks Tony, Janet, David, and Craig for getting me started.