H Rider Haggard was a visionary author. He wrote a series of Africa-based fantasy and adventure novels which took his Victorian audience into the most exotic places - even when those places were real (and they weren't always!) they were totally outside the experience of the reader.
This 1950 film adaptation of one of those novels has the same sort of impact on its pre-TV cinema audience. Although it takes a number of liberties with Haggard's source material, it delivers action, adventure, colour, and exotic locations to an audience which was, for the most part unfamiliar with the African locations used here.
Watching it now, 60 years later, it still entertains although it now comes over as rather on the quaint side. The TV generations are now only too familiar with locations all over the globe, so what was once eye-catchingly different is now somewhat familiar (although still quite eye-catching).
Where this film is still unusual is in its use of Masai in acting roles.
This 1950 film adaptation of one of those novels has the same sort of impact on its pre-TV cinema audience. Although it takes a number of liberties with Haggard's source material, it delivers action, adventure, colour, and exotic locations to an audience which was, for the most part unfamiliar with the African locations used here.
Watching it now, 60 years later, it still entertains although it now comes over as rather on the quaint side. The TV generations are now only too familiar with locations all over the globe, so what was once eye-catchingly different is now somewhat familiar (although still quite eye-catching).
Where this film is still unusual is in its use of Masai in acting roles.