The charismatic swordsman-poet (Jose Ferrer) helps another woo the woman he loves (Mala Powers) in this straightforward version of the play.So, this is a "straightforward" version of the play. And that could be seen as good or bad. Good because it remains faithful to the source material. Bad because it may seem less innovative. But there really is nothing bad here. You could say that it is not modern, like Steve Martin's "Roxanne". But it is not dated, either... the quips and romance are as fresh today as ever.The back of the box tries to draw a parallel between this and "The Three Musketeers", which is interesting. Indeed, they both have Renaissance sword fighters. That makes sense. But this is all about the humor and wordplay, with the fights very much secondary.

Try as I may, I can't imagine seeing anyone play the role as well as the unforgettable Jose Ferrer. He had all of the elements that make for such a faithful and total performance— voice, diction, carriage, all of the dramatic elements that such a larger-than-life character demand. And of course, that climatic barroom sword fighting scene, done with such aplomb by the brilliant stage actor. I have no doubt that the idea for the sword fighting scene in "The Princess Bride" was a direct takeoff of that memorable fight scene. Many, many years after I'd first seen the classic B&W film on television, I had the honor of working with the then much older Ferrer on the set of the TV series, "The Love Boat," the veritable graveyard of old and forgotten actors. When I approached him to shake his hand, I said: "You were the greatest Cyrano who ever lived." Since few people on that set even knew who he was, I think he was doubly appreciative of my high praise, as evidenced by his broad smile. He was a true gentlemen, both as gracious and warm as you can possibly imagine. R.I.P.

Jose Ferrer became probably the most UN-deserved recipient of an Oscar in film history when he was presented with an Academy Award for 'best actor' in this drab filming of Edmond Rostand's wonderful play, 'Cyrano de Bergerac'.Ferrer's bombastically loud voice and tediously self-conscious acting destroys this little undertaking as soon as it gets started. Ferrer aggressively spits all of his dialogue while he poses and postures in defeatism to the lavish costumes and extravagance of Rostand's piece. Mala Powers plays Roxanne with a bit more subtlety, but she fails to impress in any way.There are some rather clueless people out there who feel that Ferrer's performance was "brilliant". Anyone who thinks that knows absolutely nothing about acting.

Enjoyed this great 1950 performance by Jose Ferrer who won an Academy Award for Best Actor for this role and he sure put his heart and soul into his role. Cyrano De Bergerac was a very smart man with great talent in fighting with a sword, a poet, actor and a man who desperately need a woman to love and marry. Cyrano De Bergerac acted like a Douglas Fairbanks Sr., jumping all around and killing large numbers of people who wanted to insult him and his friends. Cyrano falls in love with his cousin who is very attractive and he even helps her find a lover and actually acts as cupid. I thought that Cyrano's nose was very attractive and much bigger than Jimmy Durante.