Which 1951 film starring Ava Gardner combines the Pandora myth with the legend of the Flying Dutchman?

Pandora and the Flying Dutchman is the 1951 film starring Ava Gardner that combines both legends.

Directed by Albert Lewin, the film is a romantic fantasy set largely in a Spanish coastal town. Ava Gardner plays Pandora Reynolds, an American woman whose story becomes connected with the cursed Dutchman, played by James Mason. The film uses the mythological name as part of a modern, atmospheric narrative rather than presenting a direct retelling of Hesiod.

The Flying Dutchman is a separate maritime legend about a captain condemned to sail eternally. Lewin’s film brings that legend together with themes associated with Pandora, including fatal curiosity, desire, and the possibility of release from a curse.

The title can be confused with films that feature Gardner without the Pandora connection, such as The Barefoot Contessa. The exact 1951 title is Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, and it was written and directed by Albert Lewin.