The Pirates of Penzance
Seen it?1985 | 124 min | Comedy, Family, Music
Sunday Safe Betearly ratingWhy it’s a Sunday Safe Bet
It's still drawing plenty of interest, though it had soft box office. A safe bet when you want something reliable.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Tailor-made for anyone who wants a laugh and parents and kids watching together. Good for nights when you want to switch off and laugh. Same wavelength as The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants.
- The mood
- Light and funny, feel-good.
- The pace
- Bright and bouncy, at 2 hr 4 min.
- What might put you off
- No age rating on record, so check it first for young kids.
- Skip it if you're after something serious tonight.
As a young child, Frederic had been apprenticed to a pirate by mistake when he should have been apprenticed to a pilot. Now, having reached his 21st year, Frederic's indentures are at last over and he happily leaves the service of the pirates. When Frederic meets the beautiful Mabel, one of the many daughters (or wards in Chancery) of Major-General Stanley, they fall in love and decide to marry. However, complications arise when the pirates decide to marry the rest of the Major-General's daughters, themselves - and Frederic's birthdate turns out to be not all it seems. Filmed live from the 1985 Stratford Festival in Ontario.
How it earned its rating
- CriticsNot counted
Not enough reviews on record yet
- AudiencesNot counted
Not measured yet: not enough ratings
- AwardsNot counted
Awards data unavailable, so this isn't counted
- Reach & staying powerBelow par
Streaming release that reached a small audience so far; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactStrong
About 290K people sought it out in the past year
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Cast & crew
Directed by Norman Campbell, Brian Macdonald
- Jeff HyslopFrederic
- Brent CarverThe Pirate King
- Caralyn TomlinMabel
- Douglas ChamberlainMaj. Gen. Stanley
- Pat GallowayRuth
- Jim WhiteSamuel
- Stephen BeamishSergeant of Police
- Karen SkidmoreKate
- Karen WoodEdith
- Alison GrantIsabel