‘The Legend of Zorro’ lacks sexual sparks, intense duels
He may wear a mask, snap a whip and swing a sword, but in “The Legend of Zorro,” the title character is more family friendly than SpongeBob SquarePants. Unlike “The Mask of Zorro,” which was rated PG-13, this PG-rated sequel lacks sexual sparks and intense duels. Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones and director Martin Campbell, all returning from the 1998 original, obviously wanted to take a softer approach to the Zorro story, and moms and dads should be pleased by that decision.
In this time when parents often cringe while watching movies with their children, “The Legend of Zorro” sidesteps questionable elements and offers a story in which the greatest tragedy that can happen is the destruction of a family. Zorro (Banderas) and Elena (Zeta-Jones) seem headed for divorce, much to the horror of their precocious 10-year-old son, Joaquin (Adrian Alonso), who believes his father is a prissy landowner, not the beloved masked freedom fighter.
Banderas’ Alejandro loves basking in the glory of being a workaholic hero and spends too many hours as Zorro in public and not enough as a father and husband at home. “You are missing your son’s entire life,” Zeta-Jones’ Elena tells him, though her spouse doesn’t initially understand what’s really important.
The situation worsens when a dashing Frenchman, Armand (Rufus Sewell of “Dark City”) arrives, wants to renew a previous interest in Elena and threatens to destroy everything Alejandro holds dear. Of course, the outsider also has some other baggage, most of which revolves around him wanting to destroy California’s quest to become the Union’s 31st state in 1850 and to use newly developed explosives to alter the outcome of the Civil War.
Of course, what really matters is that the 10-year marriage of Alejandro and Elena could be headed for ruin and must be saved. That requires the parents and child to ultimately band together and be willing to use any means necessary to save their family and, ultimately, their people.
Banderas and Zeta-Jones generate some good vibrations, but even the two attractive stars start to wear out their welcome as “The Legend of Zorro” runs longer than two hours and at least 20 minutes too long. Part of the extended length results from the time Campbell devotes to the sword fights, which usually have the villains falling into a lake or on a mound of dirt so that no one gets really hurt and participants can return immediately after to continue the duel.
Campbell delivers some outlandish stunts involving Zorro’s whip as it snaps, crackles and pops while being used to protect the black-clad hero from his enemies and to wrap around various objects as he free-falls through the air.
The passion between Alejandro and Elena has certainly been toned down for this new “Zorro” title, but the grins shared by Banderas and Zeta-Jones as their characters rediscover how important they are to each other means that their sexual attraction is still the stuff of “Legend,” even if little of it steams up the screen.
FILM REVIEW
“The Legend of Zorro”
Grade: B (for family viewers only)
Starring: Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Rufus Sewell and Adrian Alonso; screenplay by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman; produced by Walter F. Parkes, Laurie MacDonald and Lloyd Phillips; directed by Martin Campbell.
Running Time: 130 minutes.
Parental Guide: PG rating (broadly drawn violence)