The Fighting Prince of Donegal (1966)

It deals with a prince, Hugh O'Donnell : Peter McEnery , who when his father dies inherites the main title , the prince of Donegal . As an Irish prince battles the invading English in 16th Century Ireland and subsequently attempts to unite the opposite clans to wage war on England , creating a solid alliance between the O'Donnell and O'Neill . But then Hugh is abducted and imprisoned by the Viceroy : Norman Wooland and his nasty henchman , captain Leeds : Gordon Jackson . He did escape twice their clutches with the assistance of his friends the O'Neills , as he leads his clan in rescuing his mother and his beloved : Susan Hampshire . This aventure movie released by Walt Disney Distribution Company contains thrills , fights , emotion , battles , several escapes , pursuits and romance . Being filmed at Pinewood studios , London , England and including a lot of matte painting . Decent main cast , such as Peter McEnery as the brave hero who escapes from impregnable prisons to unite the Irish , at the same time he courts the beautiful Kathleen McSweeney well played by the attractive Susan Hampshire . They are accompanied by a magnificent plethora of Brit secondaries such as his friend McSweeney finely performed by Tom Adams , Gordon Jackson as the villain captain , Norman Wooland as Sir Jim Perrott , Donald McCann , Peter Jeffrey , film debut of Maurice Roeves and Andrew Keir as leader of the Irish clan McSweeney . Critical reception was split between those who accepted it as unpretentious entertainment and those who thought it cliched and oversimplified.The motion picture was regular but professionally directed by Michael O'Herlihy , though the film did no well at boxoffice . He was a major TV filmmaker from the fifties to the eighties . His credits include Maverick episodes , Star Trek , Gunsmoke, MASH , Hawai 5-0 , Miami Vice , A Team , among others .He also made some films , such as : Original family band , The one only genuine , Detour to terror , The magnificent hustle , Deadly harvest Smith and this Prince of Donegal .This Disney swashbuckler based on the novel Red Hugh Prince of Donegal by Robert T Reilly is partially based on historic events , these are the followings : O'Donnell were an ancient and powerful Irish family , princes and lords of Tyrconnell : county Donegal , in early times and the chief allies and sometimes rivals of the O' Neills in Ulster . The jewel of the crown was Donegal castle , one of the 7 castles O'Donnell and nowadays a natioal monument slowly restored . Hugh ODonnell led an uprising against England , at 15 he was imprisoned in Dublin castle , at 20 he became Lord of Donegal after his father's abdication . He united various Irish clans and his forces vanquished a long string of battles as Clontibret and the Yellow Force battle . But they were ultimately defeated at the battle of Kinsale 1602. Unfortunately , Hugh fled and sailed to Coruña , Galicia , Spain , hoping king Philip III would provide more aid . However , Hugh Prince died at Simancas Castle , Valladolid 1602.

Peter McEnery in a good early role as "Red" Hugh O'Donnell, the head of the O'Donnell clan and the hope of Ireland in its war against the English. Rising to fulfill the legend that he will set Ireland free, McEnery sets out to win the other clans to band with him to stand against English dominance. McEnery rises to the energy and enthusiasm of the role, and blends well with cast members Andrew Keir, Susan Hampshire, Tom Adams. His fight sees him clashing with Gordon Jackson, who is a superb villain as the lord in charge in Dublin. Because it's Disney, it isn't bloody or over-violent. Look for a very young Maurice Roeves as Martin, the servant boy. Great fun for all.

American audiences tended to get only the glorified English version of the Tudor period in films...so this vastly pleasing piece of swashbuckling came as a breath of fresh air, telling the story from the Irish viewpoint for a change. The Disney studios had earlier tried their figurative hand at Scots history with Rob Roy; the Highland Rogue, an interesting but less successful and flawed attempt. It wasn't until the 1995 films of Rob Roy and Gibson's Braveheart that we got a better idea of the other side. Peter McEnery, at that time a great favorite Romantic lead from the previous Disney hit "Moonspinners" opposite Hayley Mills, had just proved in the French film "La Curee" that he was ripe for more mature roles. The Irish prince Red Hugh O'Donnel turned out to be arguably his best and most sympathetic role to date, a truly dashing and romantic swashbuckling hero. If you like costume epics, don't miss this one!

Walt must have been thinking of tying into the "young rebel" trend of the '60s. This is a tale of a generic young Irish nobleman during the Elizabethan era, rebelling against a generic English colonial master (this was made just before the modern troubles broke out.) He gains generic friends and allies, is imprisoned, escapes, leads a generic merry chase all over Ireland, and rescues his generic lady fair from the generic castle.All that's missing is Herbie the Love Bug! Not once is anyone in any terror of bloodshed. Even Snow White had her frights but Walt, in his dotage, must have been losing his taste or his nerve.The one real bright spot is the cast full of gonna-be's of British Stage and Screen, including Gordon Jackson, Susan Hampshire, Donal McCann and Maurice Roëves. If nothing else, the director had an eye for serious talent.