Yellowbeard (1983)

Yellowbeard (PG)

"Like father like son"

An infamous pirate is alowed to escape jail (where he has been serving for tax evasion)  by the British Navy, who hopes to follow him to his legendary buried treasure.  It all goes wrong, the map is lost and his crew mutinies.  His unloved son has the map tattooed into his scalp however, leading to a race to an island populated with Spanish zealots and scurvy privateers for the love of booty in this farcical romp set on the high seas that often falls overboard on its own slippery deck.

Conceived by Python's Graham Chapman as a star vehicle for friend and cowriter Keith Moon (former madman/drummer for The Who may he RIP), it was instead stuck in development hell for years and reluctantly finished after much rejiggering.  The result is a mess of comedic proportions, with a script that can't focus on what works and a picture that focuses on what doesn't.  The amazing cast makes it watchable however, with the likes of Peter Boyle, Cheech and Chong, Mary Feldman, and Madeline Khan all treading water for dear life.  It is likewise a companion piece to Erik The Viking as an almost Python reunion with roles for Eric Idle, John Cleese and Graham Chapman's last best role as Yellowbeard himself, a funny, foulmouthed sailor that satirizes the squeaky clean image of piracy prevalent in Hollywood's golden years.  Unfortunately, Graham's hysterically over the top performance is downplayed and trimmed, with many other jokes left flat by likewise bad editing and poor production values.  Uneven and listing, Yellowbeard has a few belly laughs to enjoy, but more gut punches to endure from "studio interference".

4.5 Should Have Hired Mel Brooks to Direct out of 10 (BAD)