The Mark of Zorro (1940 film)
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| The Mark of Zorro | |
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 Original 1940 movie poster |
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| Directed by | Rouben Mamoulian |
| Written by | screenplay by John Taintor Foote adaptation by Garrett Fort Bess Meredyth from the story by Johnston McCulley |
| Starring | Tyrone Power Linda Darnell Basil Rathbone |
| Music by | Alfred Newman |
| Cinematography | Arthur C. Miller |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | November 8, 1940 (USA) |
| Running time | 94 min. |
| Language | English Spanish |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Mark of Zorro is a 1940 feature motion picture directed by Rouben Mamoulian and produced by 20th Century Fox. It starred Tyrone Power as Don Diego de la Vega (Zorro), Linda Darnell as his love interest, Lolita Quintero, Montagu Love as Don Alejandro Vega, Gale Sondergaard as the haughty Inez Quintero, Eugene Pallette as Fra. Felipe, and Basil Rathbone as the villainous Captain Pasquale. J. Edward Bromberg was the corrupt governor. The movie was directed by Rouben Mamoulian and produced by Raymond Griffith and Darryl F. Zanuck.
Based on the Johnston McCulley story The Curse of Capistrano, originally published in 1919, which introduced the masked hero Zorro, the movie's story is set in Southern California during the early 19th century. It deals with the foppish son of a wealthy ranchero who returns to California after a sojourn at school in Spain, only to be horrified at the way the common people are being mistreated by Governor Quintero. Don Diego adopts the guise of Zorro ("the Fox"), a Robin Hood-like outlaw who becomes a defender of the people. In the meanwhile, he romances the governor's beautiful niece, Lolita, and fends off the governor's ablest henchman, the malevolent Captain Pasquale.
This film is essentially a remake of the 1920 United Artists silent version, The Mark of Zorro, which starred Douglas Fairbanks.
In the DC Comics continuity it is established that The Mark of Zorro was the film which the young Bruce Wayne had watched with his parents at the cinema, and after which he witnessed the murder of his parents. Zorro is often portrayed as Bruce's childhood hero and an influence on his Batman persona. However, as shown in Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns, Bruce Wayne can no longer watch the movie without losing his composure.
[edit] DVD
This version of Zorro has come out twice on DVD. The first was released on Oct 7, 2003 and featured the movie in its original Black+White form, as part of 20th Century Fox Studio Classics Collection. The second was released on Oct 18 2005 as a Special Edition, and featured both a new restored Black+White version as well as a colorized one, prepared by Legend Films. Both versions contain "Tyrone Power: The Last Idol" as seen on Biography on the A&E Network, and a Commentary by film critic Richard Schickel. A trailer for the Special edition can be seen at http://www.legendfilms.net under Family Classics.
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| Notable Books |
| The Curse of Capistrano | Zorro |
| Notable Films |
| Douglas Fairbanks: The Mark of Zorro | Don Q, Son of Zorro |
| Robert Livingstone: The Bold Caballero |
| John Carroll: Zorro Rides Again |
| Reed Hadley: Zorro's Fighting Legion |
| Tyrone Power: The Mark of Zorro |
| Linda Stirling: Zorro's Black Whip |
| George Turner: Son of Zorro |
| Clayton Moore: Ghost of Zorro |
| Guy Williams: Zorro, the Avenger | The Sign of Zorro |
| Rodolfo de Anda: La Gran Aventura Del Zorro |
| Frank Langella: The Mark of Zorro |
| Alain Delon: Zorro |
| George Hamilton: Zorro, The Gay Blade |
| Anthony Hopkins / Antonio Banderas: The Mask of Zorro |
| Antonio Banderas: The Legend of Zorro |
| Television |
| "Zorro" | "The New Adventures of Zorro" | "Zorro and Son" | "Zorro" | "The Legend of Zorro" | "The New Adventures of Zorro" | Zorro: La Espada y La Rosa |"Zorro: Generation Z" |
| Notable Stage Productions |
| "Zorro in Hell" [1] | "Untitled Zorro Musical" [2] |
