A brief and definitely eclectic list of cinematic nautical, piratical, or generally swashbuckling Hallowe’enish romance and adventure. Enjoy!

Horror Island

Campy lightweight 1941 fun from Universal’s horror vault. A B movie for sure but entirely enjoyable. Great sets and props, and every Scooby Doo buried pirate treasure trope and cliché imaginable. The Blu-ray transfer is excellent, given what the movie is.

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

For the romantically-inclined! A widow, a sea captain’s ghost, a haunted house, and true love — one of the great films of fantasy intersecting reality. Starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison. Twentieth Century-Fox, 1947, based on the novel by R. A. Dick.

Pandora and the Flying Dutchman

The Flying Dutchman in the modern era: lost wandering souls, ancient sins, excellent insight into human nature, with spellbinding action and story, plus true love. An outstanding, elegant, sophisticated film starring Ava Gardner and James Mason. The New York Times has a short but updated review on a new digital transfer here.

The Spirit is Willing

Nautical in the sense of a sea captain’s ghost, not to mention those of his wife and mistress, the cellar ghost scenes in this comedy of sex, mores, and manners frightened me into nightmares for weeks when I was eight or nine years old, humor notwithstanding. Paramount Pictures, 1967. Starring, among others, Syd Caesar, Vera Miles, and Gomez himself, John Astin. Based on the novel The Visitors by Nathaniel Benchley.

The Ghost Breakers

Not a swashbuckler or pirate flick, but the comedy does have a sea voyage, a Caribbean island castle, a voodoo zombie, ghosts, tropical Gothic mystery, and buried treasure, therefore it qualifies, especially given that I’m the final arbiter on this post. The mostly self-rescuing damsel in distress is played by delightful girl-next-door Paulette Goddard, the cowardly hero by Bob Hope, and his manservant by the brilliant Willie Best, some of whose scenes have racist overtones common to the era.

Blackbeard’s Ghost

Lighthearted, lightweight, fun, much more enjoyable than The Spirit is Willing (and rated G too), and with the coolest old pirate house ever filmed even if it was probably only paint-on-glass. Starring Peter Ustinov, Dean Jones, and the ever enchanting, ever captivating, girl next door Suzanne Pleshette. Based on the novel by Ben Stahl.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

Not as much a true pirate swashbuckler as it is swashbuckling pirate ghost story with a host of other fantasy nonsense added as well, in spite of its inspiration from the Disney ride depicting buccaneers sacking a hapless Spanish town. Declares Captain Barbossa to his captive and captivating Elizabeth Swann: “You best start believing in ghost stories, Miss Turner… you’re in one!” Starring Johnny Depp, Kiera Knightley, et al. Walt Disney Pictures, 2003.

The Black Castle

By no means a great film, yet still an enjoyable B-movie diversion, with swordplay (albeit mediocre), a dark castle, a Green Man tavern, evil villains including a one-eyed swordsman, alligators in the dungeon (why not — alligators could live in a cold European dungeon, right?), coffins with living occupants, and, naturally, a fair damsel in distress. Starring Boris Karloff, film swashbuckler Richard Greene, Lon Chaney, and Paula Corday. Universal, 1952.

The Ghost Galleon

A ghostly galleon, Templar zombies rather than ghosts, several disagreeable cowardly villains, and less titillation than advertised. A cult classic, but so awful but not to my mind “so bad that it’s good” category although aficionados of the genre disagree, giving it great ratings overall. Loaded with dated yet true-to-life patriarchal sexual tropes and behaviors but [Spoiler Alert!] at least the villains get their just due in the end. Available on 4K, whose purchase I regret. Still, it fits the category… Spanish, 1974, Belén Films.

The Brotherhood of the Wolf

Last, the only film on the list truly bordering on twenty-first century modern horror in style, but with a cross-genre historical costume swashbuckling cape and sword twist. Based on the true story, never solved, of the Beast of Gévaudan. In this telling, the chevalier de Fronsac and his Iroquois friend Mani (a specialist in Eastern martial arts no less) investigate tales of the beast on behalf of the King. I’m not usually a fan of Eastern martial arts anachronistically slapped onto Western martial arts in period films set in Europe or the UK, but it more or less works this time–and it’s fantasy, after all. Starring Samuel Le Bihan, Mark Dacascos, Émilie Dequenne, Monica Bellucci, and Vincent Cassel. Canal+, 2001.

Copyright Benerson Little, 2020 – 2026. First published October 15, 2020. Last updated October 1, 2026.