Cutthroat Island (1995)
51%RT Audience Score: 40%
Awards & Nominations: 1 nomination
Cutthroat Island may aspire towards the earnest thrills of classic swashbucklers, but a distinct lack of charm and stilted script make this adventure a joyless hodgepodge of the pirate genre’s flotsam and jetsam
Cutthroat Island” is a movie that’s so bad, it’s almost good. Almost. Geena Davis tries her best to be a badass pirate captain, but the script is a hot mess of bad jokes and cliches. It’s like they took every pirate movie trope and threw it into a blender, hoping it would come out as a masterpiece. Unfortunately, the result is a chaotic mess that’s more likely to make you seasick than entertained. If you’re looking for a good pirate movie, you’re better off watching “Pirates of the Caribbean” for the hundredth time.
Production Company(ies)
Storyville Films, Imagine Documentaries, Storyville
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Malta
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG-13 for some strong pirate action/violence and brief sensuality
Year of Release
1995
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital DTS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English, Spanish, Latin, French
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): May 22, 2007
Genre(s)
Adventure/Action
Keyword(s)
starring Geena Davis, Matthew Modine, Frank Langella, Maury Chaykin, Patrick Malahide, Stan Shaw, directed by Renny Harlin, written by Robert King, Marc Norman, Adventure, Action, Comedy, PG-13, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Todd McCarthy, Trevor Johnston, Janet Maslin, Peter Stack, Desson Thomson, Roger Ebert, Eddie Harrison, Daniel Barnes, Nick Rogers, Emanuel Levy, Charles Cassady, produced by Renny Harlin, Joel B Michaels, Laurence Mark, James Gorman
Worldwide gross: $10,017,322
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $19,697,660
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,719
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 2,148,055
US/Canada gross: $10,017,322
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $19,697,660
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,421
US/Canada opening weekend: $2,371,415
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $4,663,055
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,110
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $98,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $192,703,265
Production budget ranking: 130
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $103,770,708
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$276,776,314
ROI to date (est.): -93%
ROI ranking: 1,979
Matthew Modine – Shaw
Frank Langella – Dawg
Maury Chaykin – John Reed
Patrick Malahide – Ainslee
Stan Shaw – Glasspoole
Director(s)
Renny Harlin
Writer(s)
Robert King, Marc Norman
Producer(s)
Renny Harlin, Joel B. Michaels, Laurence Mark, James Gorman
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 nomination
Academy Awards
All Critics (41) | Top Critics (10) | Fresh (16) | Rotten (25)
What seemed like a dubious proposition on paper plays even more dubiously onscreen, as “Cutthroat Island” strenuously but vainly attempts to revive the thrills of old-fashioned pirate pictures.
March 26, 2009
Todd McCarthy
Variety
TOP CRITIC
In this $90m revisionist swashbuckler, we get Geena Davis doing the all-action honours, and a hotchpotch script that seems to think pirate movies are so funny in themselves the need for more humour is superfluous.
February 9, 2006
Trevor Johnston
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
t’s not possible to believe that Ms. Davis is the highly respected captain of a pirate ship, and it’s not even fun to try.
May 20, 2003
Janet Maslin
New York Times
TOP CRITIC
June 18, 2002 | Rating: 0/4
Peter Stack
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
It takes a two-hour act of will to keep facing the screen during this moribund movie.
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
TOP CRITIC
It is a pirate picture, pure and simple, and doesn’t transcend its genre except perhaps in the luxurious production. Leaner and meaner pirate movies have worked more or less as well, but this one gets the job done.
January 1, 2000 | Rating: 3/4
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
TOP CRITIC
as a Saturday night frolic in ye olden style, Cutthroat Island is worth a visit
March 24, 2022 | Rating: 3/5
Eddie Harrison
film-authority.com
A chaotic jumble of bad action, juvenile comedy and chilly romance, all wrapped in a cheesecloth of limp, lifeless pirate cliches.
December 11, 2018 | Rating: 1/5
Daniel Barnes
Dare Daniel
It’s hardly the landlubber suggested by its reputation (which has more likely shifted more toward novel curiosity than cautionary tale). But if all the parties involved suspected they were going broke, they should have gone *for* broke to boot.
December 3, 2015 | Rating: 3.5/5
Nick Rogers
The Film Yap
Poorly written, acted, and executed advanture tale of pirates.
August 4, 2011 | Rating: D
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Geena Davis brings girl power to the pirate ship.
December 14, 2010 | Rating: 2/5
Charles Cassady
Common Sense Media
Hey, are you looking for an exciting movie about pirates of the, well, um, Caribbean? [Blu-ray]
August 17, 2009 | Rating: 2.5/4
Peter Canavese
Groucho Reviews…
Plot
Morgan Adams and her slave, William Shaw, are on a quest to recover the three portions of a treasure map. Unfortunately, the final portion is held by her murderous uncle, Dawg. Her crew is skeptical of her leadership abilities, so she must complete her quest before they mutiny against her. This is made yet more difficult by the efforts of the British crown to end her piratical raids.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Geena Davis brings girl power to the pirate ship in Cutthroat Island.
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