Which actress stars as Pandora Reynolds in Pandora and the Flying Dutchman?

Ava Gardner stars as Pandora Reynolds in Pandora and the Flying Dutchman.

Gardner plays Pandora Reynolds, an American woman living on the Spanish coast in Albert Lewin’s 1951 romantic fantasy. Her character becomes involved with Hendrik van der Zee, played by James Mason, whose identity is connected to the supernatural legend of the Flying Dutchman.

The film is not a version of Hesiod’s account of the Greek Pandora. Instead, it borrows the name and some thematic associations while combining them with a maritime legend about a cursed voyager. Gardner’s role belongs to mid-century cinema, where her screen image was often associated with glamour, emotional intensity, and dramatic romance. The movie’s use of color and Spanish locations adds to its dreamlike tone. Elizabeth Taylor, Rita Hayworth, and Deborah Kerr were major actresses of the period, but none plays Pandora Reynolds in this film.