Catherine Zeta Jones Movie:

Editorial Review:
A lusty and rousing adventure, this calls to mind those glorious costume dramas produced so capably by the old Hollywood studio system--hardly surprising, in that its title character, a de facto Robin Hood in Old California, provided starring vehicles for Douglas Fairbanks and Tyrone Power, the '50s TV hit, and dozens of serials and features. Zorro, a pop-fiction creation invented by Johnston McCulley in 1918, is given new blood in this fast-moving and engaging version, which actually works as a sequel to the story line in the Fairbanks-Power saga, The Mark of Zorro. A self-assured Anthony Hopkins is Don Diego de la Vega, a Mexican freedom fighter captured and imprisoned just as Spain concedes California to Santa Ana. Twenty years later, he escapes from prison to face down his mortal enemy, a land grabbing governor played with slimy spitefulness by Stuart Wilson. Too old to save the local peasants on his own, he trains bandito Antonio Banderas to take his place. Much swashbuckling ensues as Banderas woos Catherine Zeta-Jones, becomes a better human being, and saves the disenfranchised rabble. Director Martin Campbell wisely instills a measure of frivolity into the deftly choreographed action sequences, while letting a serious tone creep in when appropriate. This covers much ground under the banner of romantic-action-adventure, and it does so most excellently. --Rochelle O'Gorman

Description of The Mask of Zorro [Region 2]:
In this day of movies in which one can't tell whether the action was manufactured by computer generation or by a cookie cutter, The Mask of Zorro is a grand throwback. It recalls and celebrates the fantasy workshop that Hollywood was and can be at its best. It's an audience pleaser in the best sense of the word, combining great-looking performers with gorgeous vistas and production design, a story that is familiar yet never insults the viewer's intelligence, and plenty of eye-popping action.

Anthony Hopkins stars as the original Zorro, a masked vigilante protecting his people from official corruption in Mexico and what will become California (from Hannibal Lecter to Merchant-Ivory to action hero--is there nothing this man cannot do?). He's imprisoned for his troubles, and upon his release, mentors an impetuous pupil (Antonio Banderas, more suave than ever) in the fine arts of swordplay and triumphing over evil. Catherine Zeta-Jones capably portrays the beauty linked to both men--Zorro I's daughter, Zorro II's object of desire.

The plotting contains few surprises, but the interplay between the three leads is always winning, and the winks to the swashbuckling genre are playful without ever being heavy-handed or campy. --David Kronke

The Mask of Zorro [Region 2] Reviews:
A New Zorro, right on track.
2009-11-28 - The Mask of Zorro Starring Anatonio Bandarass, Catherine Zeta Jones, and Anthiny Hopkins Came along at just the right time. Better than its sequel; The Legend of Zorro, this movie stays true to the character of Zorro.

The spiritual son of Zorro
2009-10-22 - Any Baby Boomer who grew up on Guy Williams playing Disney's version of the Robin Hood of Old California will want to see this movie, and should walk away well satisfied. The story begins with Don Diego de la Vega (Anthony Hopkins), the original Fox, now middle-aged and a married man, with an infant daughter, Elena. He's still fighting for justice, and what he hopes will be his last ride is made to prevent the execution of several prisoners about to be shot just as California is about to transform itself from a Spanish colony to a part of newly independent Mexico. Though he succeeds in his mission, his nemesis, royal governor Don Rafael Montero (Stuart Wilson), somehow figures out his identity, captures him, kidnaps Elena (who "should have been [his]" by virtue of his courtship of Diego's wife), and flees to Spain, leaving his foe immured in the local carcel. 20-odd years later, as Mexico is engrossed in a war with the United States, he escapes just as Montero and Elena (Catherine Zeta-Jones)--the former with grandiose dreams of an independent California and himself as its master--return to the New World. Knowing he's too old to carry on as before, Diego takes as his protege Alejandro Murieta (Antonio Banderas), brother of the recently dead Joaquin (Victor Rivers), and trains him to assume the mask and sword of Zorro while he seeks to assert his claim to Elena.

Anyone who enjoyed Michael York & Co. in The Complete Musketeers (The Three Musketeers / The Four Musketeers) should love this old-fashioned, action-packed swashbuckler, which is full of wild swordfights, narrow escapes, intrigue, and sly humor. Elena is both a beauty and a very courageous and up-to-date woman who's been trained in swordsmanship "since I was three," and Alejandro, once he settles down and begins putting his mind to his lessons, proves that Diego has made a good choice for a successor. It's unfortunate that the historical background is somewhat off: though California did become Mexican in 1823 (a year after Mexico itself threw off the Spanish yoke), General (later President) Santa Anna had nothing at all to do with it (in 1821-3 he was involved in affairs at home, most notably the rise of Emperor Agustin de Iturbide and his overthrow by Pedraza and Guerrero, the latter of whom named him Governor of Yucatan is '24), and by the time of the outbreak of the Mexican War its American settlers had proclaimed the Bear Flag Republic (an entity not even mentioned here); and the real Joaquin Murieta (if indeed he existed) didn't flourish until the 1850's. (However, it's great fun for an old Western-lover like myself to see veteran character actor L. Q. Jones--whom I didn't even know was still alive--appearing as his cohort, Three-Fingered Jack.) If you're willing to accept the notion that all this is going on in a slightly alternate reality, you can enjoy the story as well as the action, which is really splendid, and the emotional intrigue as Diego and Montero duke it out over Elena and Diego's murdered wife Esperanza (Julieta Rosen) (though I do wonder why Montero didn't haul Diego off to Spain with him, since as Zorro he had been an offender against the Crown and could well have been tried as such and executed). Matt Letscher as Montero's mercenary enforcer Capt. Harrison Love is a villain you'll love to hate, and there's even a bow to the Disney version in a passing mention of "Garcia" during the early scenes. On balance, this is a modern and very competent update of the kind of genre they don't seem to make very much any more, and as such definitely worth a place in your collection.

Superbit was Supergood!
2009-10-03 - Should I try to review The Mask of Zorro? That's been done competently for years. By now, most everybody has seen it...but not this way in Superbit. Granted, it's not Blu-ray quality but it looks significantly better that standard DVD and miles ahead of the VHS copy we had subsisted on for years. Superbit simply uses all or almost all of the disc space by transferring the movie at higher bit rate but still keeping it within the DVD format. Any extras that would have been found on the original DVD have been moved to a second disk. Playback in 720p, my 57" HDTV's native resolution, on our late model upconverting Panasonic player looks simply sumptuous! I found it to have great detail in every aspect despite our TV's size and lower resolution. Imagine what it would look like on a higher resolution TV. Is it worth it to replace your standard DVD? Only you can answer that question. If you're a BD user, probably not. If you don't see your self moving up to Blu-ray in the near future, you just might.

A1 Swashbuckler, the way they bused to make 'em!
2009-09-13 - "The Mask of Zorro" is a rousing,sometimes poignant actioner.full of great performances and, as the title I wrote says,"They don't make 'em like that anymore". Antonio Banderas and Anthony Hopkins,a young ruffian who aspires to heroism and his somewhat reluctant mentor respectively,have wonderful chemistry but the delight and surprise of the is the lovely Catherina Zeta Jones as the spunky,beautiful heroine who can hold her own in a swordfight(and look pretty dandy doing it!) The film is texture and the fight scenes are well choreographed as are the "smaller" moments in the film that give it it's heart. Give this one a look, especially if,like me, you love a good old fashioned adventure film!

FUN!
2009-09-09 - FUN,is the only word I can think of. I enjoyed this story when I was a kid and even more now that I am an adult. Zorro is one of my favorites and to see him historically is a treat. Great actors, beautiful (authentic looking) scenery and decent story line.