Most critics respond warmly to Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, with praise clustering around Jack Cardiff’s Technicolor cinematography and Ava Gardner’s screen presence. The photography wins approval even from reviewers who dislike the film, while admirers find its romance alluring and its blend of myth and atmosphere effective. Gardner’s magnetism is a recurring point of praise, alongside appreciation of her pairing with James Mason and the ease of her dialogue delivery.
The spread is wide, however, with reservations about lingering scenery and heavy sentimentality becoming outright objections among the dissenters. Variety finds the mood persistently sombre and depressing, and Gardner less distinctive, though it praises Mason and Cardiff. The Independent admires the visual allure but considers the story increasingly absurd. The main division is over how much the romantic mood sustains the film when the storytelling slows or strains belief.