This unusually claustrophobic tale of piracy is languid and laden by uninspired direction, but two elements drew me into the story: one, Charles Laughton's deliciously sly portrayal of the title character; two, the labyrinthine plot of deception. The story involves Kidd captaining a vessel whose crew doesn't exactly know they're pirating. A few on board know what he's up to, and some of those are in league with him, an alliance of dubious wisdom, given the life expectancy of those who share Kidd's plunder. But it's not enough for Kidd to bump off his conspirators; he's got to get away with it, and that's a more delicate matter.

This is not a great film; it may not even be a good one, but, for me, it was a fun one, with several aspects of the acting and writing to admire.