'The Legend of Zorro': An older, tamer hero saves the world

It's been seven years since Antonio Banderas donned the black mask and reared back on his horse Tornado, silhouetted against a setting sun; seven years since he cut and thrust with Catherine Zeta-Jones, wooed her and won her. "The Mask Of Zorro" may not have knocked Douglas Fairbanks out of the swashbucklers' pantheon, but darned if it wasn't a sexy, fun adventure that was light on its feet in every way.

Sony Pictures 'The Legend of Zorro' B- The verdict: A little older, a little less sexy, a little more complicated: Zorro imitates life. Director: Martin Campbell Starring: Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Rufus Sewell, Nick Chinlund, Julio Oscar Mechoso Run time: 130 minutes Release date: Oct. 28, 2005 Rating: PG for sequences of violence/peril and action, language and a couple of suggestive moments. See showtimes Swashbuckling slideshow Take a preview of "The Legend of Zorro" with these scenes from the movie. On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime Rate 'The Legend of Zorro'   Go see it   Make it a matinee   Wait to rent   Don't bother Voter Limit: Once per Hour View Poll Results

Now, in "The Legend of Zorro," they're an old married couple — Zorro and, um, Zorrette — but a pretty hot old married couple, he with his hair hanging insouciantly down in his face, she all heaving-bosomy in a series of corseted gowns. They have a cute and spunky young son, Joaquin, a heckuva hacienda, and a problem that's really just something ginned up to launch the sequel: She wants him to quit being Zorro and be a family man. He wants to keep dashing off and saving everyone. (She never even tries that "more than one way to be a swordsman" line to keep him home, which might have worked on a lesser folk hero.)

"Legend" takes this premise and rather laboriously builds a much larger contraption than is warranted by the B-movie origins of it all. A Zorro movie needs to have lots of swordfights, some tongue-in-cheek dialogue, and an old-fashioned Saturday serial approach. Above all, it should feel like it was tossed off effortlessly, like a shot of tequila.

"Legend" achieves that in places (some of the fight sequences have the nimbleness and sense of humor we associate with Jackie Chan), but it sometimes feels as if it's working harder than it needs to, huffing and puffing like the train in the big climax — the one loaded with nitroglycerin and lots of people fighting each other. Does the bad guy have to be trying to enslave the whole darn world, like some megalomaniac in a bad James Bond flick? Do there have to be spies and secret underground headquarters and purple piles of exposition? Couldn't Zorro just run up against some evil cowboys with rotten teeth? Not in today's Hollywood, he can't.

"Legend" is also rather de-sexed compared with "Mask," a PG instead of a PG-13. That will suit families fine, as there isn't much here to offend, and kids will groove on little Adrian Alonso as Joaquin, who doesn't know that dad is Zorro but who is developing a few moves of his own. We need more adventure flicks that play like grown-up movies and can still be enjoyed by kids, like this one.

But anyone hoping for a replay of that big duel between Banderas and Zeta-Jones in the original, full of smoldering looks and strategic thrusting, well, just sheathe that sword, cause it ain't happening here.