Kiss of Fire
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Joseph M. Newman
Jack Palance
Barbara Rush
Rex Reason
Martha Hyer
Leslie Bradley
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
In 1700, the beautiful Princess Lucia of Spain, while dining in her Santa Fe, New Mexico, villa with her guardian, the Duke of Montera, and her cousin Felicia, learns that because King Charles II is dying, she must return to the court to assume the throne. Concerned not only about the trek to Monterey, California, a land unfamiliar to their party, as well as the treachery of others who would like to inherit the crown, the Duke of Montera summons a former Spanish soldier called El Tigre to guide and protect them on their journey. The Viceroy of Spain, who wants to see Leopold of Bavaria on the throne, tries to have El Tigre killed, but the dashing rogue outwits the viceroy's men, arriving in Santa Fe to announce his lack of interest in helping the future queen. That night, however, as he watches Lucia worriedly contemplating the days to come, El Tigre falls deeply in love with her, and the next morning, he begins to organize the expedition to Monterey. Unknown to Lucia, the Baron Vega and a nobleman named Acosta support the viceroy and are determined to have her killed before she reaches Spain. Soon after the party sets out, two disloyal soldiers sneak away from camp to deliver a message to the co-conspirators at a nearby fort. El Tigre and his cohort Diego unsuccessfully pursue them, and the next day, the travelers learn that soldiers from the fort were planning to ambush them. Montera whips one of the traitorous soldiers to death, an act that sickens both Lucia and El Tigre. Later Montera proposes to Lucia, but because he bases his case not on love but on the nobility of his blood, she refuses him. Later, Montera is attacked by Comanches and nearly dies, but following Padre Domingo's last rites, he begins to recover. When Paiutes visit their camp, Chief Pahvant tells El Tigre that a contingent of Spanish soldiers is following them. El Tigre asks the Paiutes to see them safely to Monterey, but that hope is dashed when Vega, misunderstanding a Paiute custom, stabs Pahvant. Montera then discovers that Vega is a traitor and kills him in a sword fight. Fearing that their party will be wiped out the next day by either attacking Paiutes or Acosta's soldiers, or both, Lucia abandons propriety and dances with El Tigre, and later, they kiss. During the night, however, El Tigre learns through Paiute drums that the Indians mistakenly think the travelers have joined with Acosta's men. El Tigre's plan to lure the soldiers into battle with the Indians is successful, but Montera uses deceit to escape the battle and spirit Lucia away. She now argues that she wishes to avert the killing and give up the throne, but the duke ignores her, saying, "We both have our duty." El Tigre pursues them to Monterey, where he finds Lucia locked in a stateroom of the French ship on which Montera has secured passage to Spain. The men fight, but as he is about to deliver the lethal blow, El Tigre shows Montera mercy and releases him to Felicia's care. As the ship carries Montera and Felicia back toward Spain, Lucia returns to the California shore with El Tigre, happy to exchange the old world for the new.
Director
Joseph M. Newman
Cast
Jack Palance
Barbara Rush
Rex Reason
Martha Hyer
Leslie Bradley
Alan Reed
Lawrence Dobkin
Joseph Waring
Pat Hogan
Karen Kadler
Steven Geray
Henry Rowland
Bernie Gozier
Dave Kashner
John Mansfield
David Alpert
Charles Horvath
Shooting Star
Robert Hoy
Paul Marion
Crew
Robert Boyle
Leslie I. Carey
Franklin Coen
Richard Collins
William Fritzsche
Russell A. Gausman
Joseph Gershenson
Alexander Golitzen
Marshall Green
Carl Guthrie
Julia Heron
Corson Jowett
Joe Lapis
Samuel Marx
Gordon Mclean
Jay A. Morley Jr.
Arthur H. Nadel
Joan St. Oegger
Foster D. Thompson
Bud Westmore
Film Details
Technical Specs
Quotes
Trivia
Notes
The working title of this film was The Rose and the Flame. Although Rhonda Fleming was originally cast as "Princess Lucia," a November 1954 Hollywood Reporter news item reported that she withdrew from the film due to a scheduling conflict. According to materials contained in the MPAA/PCA files at the AMPAS Library, the picture was shot on location in the Nevada desert. A modern source notes that Mary Tyler Moore appeared as a dance hall girl in the film.
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States 1955
Released in United States 1955
