Ghost of Zorro (1949) User Reviews

Clayton Moore rides again!

[JohnHowardReid · 5/10 · 14 November 2017]

Clayton Moore (Ken Mason), Pamela Blake (Rita White), Roy Barcroft (Hank Kilgore), Gene Roth (George Crane), George J. Lewis (Moccasin), Dale Van Sickel (Mike Hodge), Alex Montoya (Yellow Hawk), Marshall Reed (Fowler), Steve Clark (Jonathan White), John Crawford (Mulvaney), Steve Farrell (Marshal Simpson), Holly Bane (Larkin), George Blystone (Dan Foster), George Chesebro (leading townsman), Roger Creek (Mike, wagon shotgun), John Daheim (thug at cave), Frank O'Connor (doctor), Jack O'Shea (freight agent), Bob Roninson (winch operator), Tom Steele (thug with Indians).

Director: FRED C. BRANNON. Screenplay: Royal K. Cole, William Lovely, Sol Shor. Based on a character derived from Johnston McCulley. Photography: John MacBurnie. Film editor: DeWitt McCann. Art director: Fred A. Ritter. Set decorators: John McCarthy, jr and James Redd. Make-up: Bob Mark. Music director: Stanley Wilson. Unit manager: Roy Wade. Special effects: Howard Lydecker and Theodore Lydecker. Optical effects: Consolidated Film Industries. Sound recording: Dick Tyler, sr. RCA Sound System. Producer: Franklin Adreon. Executive producer: Herbert J. Yates.

Copyright 1949 and 1959 by Republic Pictures Corp. No recorded New York opening. U.S. release: 30 June 1959. 69 minutes.

SYNOPSIS: A descendant of Zorro helps a lady lay a telegraph line across hostile Indian territory, despite opposition from a band of outlaws.

NOTES: This is a cut-down of Republic's 12-chapter serial of the same name, originally released in 1949.

COMMENT: Of minor interest to Lone Ranger and Zorro devotees, this is pretty humdrum stuff, despite generous slices of solid action lifted from Republic's 1943 serial "Daredevils of the West".

Clayton Moore enacts the masked avenger, whilst Pamela Blake makes an attractive heroine. And it's good to see Roy Barcroft in a major role as the not over-bright heavy. (It's well-spoken blacksmith Gene Stutenroth who gets all the nasty ideas. Outlaw Roy just puts them into effect).

Some Very Dark Moments

[granvillecooley · 6/10 · 8 August 2015]

"Ghost of Zorro" is a pretty good serial so I will give it a rating of six. But there are a few things wrong with it that need to be noted. The main thing I found wrong with it were the night shots and shots in caves, etc. Could not make out much of the detail and could not see what the characters were doing. In the 1940s, especially in Roy Rogers movies, "night" scenes were actually shot during the day in bright sunlight. A red filter was used making the scene look like it was a moonlit night. Very effective. Don't know why that was not used in this serial. As noted by another reviewer two chapters had the same "cliffhanger" endings. As far as scenes being used from other serials that was done in making several serials as well as other movies in the 1940s.

Fair serial - routine except for Clayton Moore

[miyamoto · 5/10 · 26 May 2002]

The standard plot and acting are acceptable but the fight scenes lack the excitement of the earlier Republic serials because they are not under-cranked. Even the runaway coach scenes (the same shot repeated twice in the same serial for two different chases) are relatively unexciting. The shooting angles don't provide a sense of motion. Just look at the Lone Ranger serial by Republic and compare the riding scenes in the earlier serial to this one.

Best thing about the serial is George J. Lewis, playing a good guy.

USE OF STOCK FOOTAGE IN SCENES

[frontrowkid2002 · 17 November 2004]

Much of the footage from Ghost of Zorro was taken from a previous Republic serial DAREDEVILS OF THE WEST (1943) starring Allen Lane and Kay Aldridge. Note the outfits of Clayton Moore and Pamela Blake in one scene where they are riding on a out of control stagecoach about to go over a cliff. They are identical to the outfits worn by Lane and Aldridge in a similar chapter ending. Also the name of the stageline shown on the coach is "Foster Stage Line" indicating it was the same stage used in the 1943 serial. Also in the first chapter, Miss Blake's construction crew is attacked by maurading Indians (Native Americans, for the politically correct readers!!!). She and the others are shown on an obvious indoor set rigged to look like it was shot outdoors. However the footage of Indians attacking came from the other serial. I wrote a detailed article using the actual pressbook copies from the Library of Congress for the first issue of the Classic Images film magazine. As to the quality of Ghost of Zorro, it was made at a time when Republic was using lots of stock footage in their serials and westerns trying to stave off the inevitable. The one benefit which came from its production was that it gave Clayton Moore the portrayal which helped him get the role of TV's Lone Ranger.