THE DEVIL'S DISGUISE (Feature Film Synopsis) Pirate Adventure
THE DEVIL’S DISGUISE
Screenplay © By David Collins and Peter Devonald
LOGLINE
A tale of adventure, passion and excitement as a young man progresses to manhood through pirate battles, political espionage, cannibalism, mutiny and a desperate game of cat and mouse with a legendary and sadistic English pirate hunter.
SYNOPSIS
The year is 1710. Edward Fisher is a young man who lives with his drunken, abusive father in the small fishing town of Fort Worth, Georgia America. After a vociferous argument, Edward leaves home. On the shore he discovers a shipwrecked pirate ship and is captured by Captain Jacob Teach and his motley crew. At first Teach threatens him, but he then realizes that the boy is educated and like-minded. Edward is given a position on the ship and he leads Teach and his men to Fort Worth. Everything in the town goes well until the Mayor double-crosses them… The pirates’ revenge is terrible. The town is ransacked and Edward’s father is killed. So begins a life of violent adventure. At sea the pirates attack a Spanish merchant ship and Edward is drawn into the battle, proving himself a worthy member of the crew.
In Charleston, South Carolina Teach is commissioned by Governor Charles Eden to loot ships, but is warned not to attack any English ships. After a night on the town involving whores, romance and a cannibal devil worshipper, Teach and the pirates set sail for Martinique. The ship is named The Devil’s Disguise and a Jolly Roger is raised. In a violent battle with another pirate ship, many of the crew are killed. Again, Edward proves his prowess with a cutlass. Teach then makes two errors of judgment – first he changes route, and then he attacks an English ship. From now on they are followed by two English Frigates led by the legendary, pompous and sadistic English pirate hunter, Captain Adams. Only through Edward’s ingenuity do they manage to outrun the frigates. But there are huge problems onboard. Raith, the Quartermaster increasingly disobeys Teach and mutiny is in the air. On a short expedition inland in Haiti, Raith shows his power by butchering the natives in cold blood. This shocks Edward but he fears that if he tells Teach then he will be killed himself.
Edward has grown wary of the voyage. When they reach the south-eastern coast of Puerto Rico, Teach spots Adams and the English frigates sailing towards them. In a desperate maneuver, Edward persuades Teach to sail into the storm… The ship is thrown asunder. Somehow they survive and at daybreak Adams is nowhere to be seen. But they are now totally lost. Desperately seeking food and directions they board an English ship – but, going insane Teach ignores his instincts and kills all the passengers. Lost at sea, Edward leads a mutiny against Teach… Teach kills many, but eventually Henry puts an end to him. The ship sails for weeks. More crew die or suffer from cabin fever and scurvy. Luckily they find land and safety. Just when things are looking on the up, Captain Adams catches up with them and promises to hang them all. Their only chance to survive is a bloody battle with Adams… Edward leads the escape. In the final, epic battle Edward must prove himself to be the greatest pirate fighter of them all.
QUOTES
Vicious. Brutal. Bloody. Exactly what a pirate tale should be. Well written with a nice pace, a good cast of characters, exciting action set pieces and what I perceived to be dead-on dialogue for the time and place (M.S)
YO HO HO AND A BUCKET OF BLOOD… Please be on notice that you will be receiving bills from my dentist. As I was reading Devil, I was so gripped by the story, I clenched my teeth so hard, they hurt. This is the ultimate, freewheeling, over the top pirate movie the censors wouldn't let Errol Flynn make. Well written and researched, this pulls no punches about pirate booty. I thoroughly enjoyed the script (LIMAMA)
I was glued to every page! The pirates are beautifully alive with avarice, hate, evil and purpose. Edward turning from boy to man was brilliantly orchestrated and Teach's diminishing sanity kept me on the edge of my seat (T.I.H.)
The most bloody history lesson I've ever received. Lots of adventure, gallons of blood, and battles over power, pride and survival (M.D.)
Well written, in a fluent and vivid style; this writer knows the craft. The descriptions are very visual… Edward is a wonderful character; you hooked me with him right away. He develops from a shy boy dreaming about adventure to a somehow disillusioned man who is a fighter, a leader and still keeps his humanity and a bit naivete (Elan)
Very few scripts have as exciting an opening as this one. Fade In, and we're thrown pell-mell into the thick of a bloody battle and the action is pretty much sustained at fever pitch until the final Fade. Lush scenery, memorable characters - including a love interest, of course, lots of gore but tastefully done - and what would a pirate story be without blood and guts anyway? Writing is great and sustained my interest the whole way through… few have arcs (pig farmer to pirate king) and adventures like this (K.S.)
The script was fabulous in the way it adhered to the boy's adventure novel genre of the late 19th Century. Teach is believable, very believable. He's bad but not all bad… (H.T.)
Overall this story is very good with lots of interesting, multi-dimensional characters… this is a fun adventure, a movie I would love to see (tjcobb)
Pirates, cannibalism, severed heads, rotting corpses. Just what you want to watch while munching on your popcorn. Or maybe a sick bag would be appropriate. A much more realistic look at pirates than we're used to… (I.G.)
I didn’t want the story to end. Edward and Jacob are nicely drawn characters. Secondary characters also have unique voices, expanding the pirate brotherhood. The story is fascinating and a wonderful concept (Blackbeard - the lost early years). Two mugs up! (Grendel)