The Black Pirate

Alongside Keaton and Gene Kelly, Fairbanks was perhaps the most gracefully athletic mover in the history of the movies, and The Black Pirate perfectly captures his relaxed, exuberant optimism. A pacy tale of romance and revenge on the high seas, it sees Doug swashing his buckle with unsurpassed ease: the daring stunts are breathtakingly stylish (none more so than the celebrated descent down a sail on the point of a dagger), while scenes like the shoal of soldiers swimming underwater to invade the pirate ship are shot through with a poetic beauty. An added bonus is that the film was shot in two-strip Technicolor, a lovely pastel process that defies description.