mark.waltz Exotic looking adventure of pearl divers in this south seas working for the ruthless Victor McLaglen and the sinister actions of the visiting captain vs. the noble natives. Much of the film focuses on young lovers Jon hall and Olympe Bradne's love being interrupted by the "cloud color skinned" Frances Farmer, a sensual traveler on McLaglen's ship. The peaceful island sees it's first outbursts of violence as the greedy crew under McLaglen turns their world upside down, reminding me of what the native Americans must have thought by the actions of certain Europeans, "Uh oh, there goes the neighborhood!"About as realistic as a Cecil B. DeMille religious epic when it comes to casting, this has to be viewed outside of standard smarts and taken for the delicious, often campy fluff, it is. Hollywood seemed to view native islanders as happy go lucky, friendly hard workers who welcomed visitors without suspicion, and worked hard enough to keep a fresh supply of fish, tropical fruits and sarong materials so they could spend the bulk of the day making love. Every island spot is another example of paradise and every day brings on a new adventure. Bradne's love for Hall is viewed as a juvenile crush after Farmer arrives, and the island elders all speak in wise clichés that the young take seriously without objection. There's no conflict in their life until the arrival of the evil white man. Yet, in spite of all that silliness, there's a bit of a "Lost Horizon" inside this world, an analogy of a peaceful world being interrupted by the arrival of a ruthless leader. Taking into account what was going on in Europe at the time, I'm sure that movie audiences immediately got the connection. This is wisdom disguised in a fluffy, simplistic manner, and I can see the audiences taken in by the moral of the story as well as the beauty. Nearly 80 years later, that message remains as potent as ever, reminding us too of threats of the loss of natural resources and the obsession of wealth and power. Pearls of wisdom a-plenty in this timeless tale.

Bill ("A Cat's Full Nine") Drake- ¤ I can't express how fortiesishly luscious this is on every level. Any fan of that era who hasn't seen it 'ain't there yet.' Frances Farmer ! How could you describe her? [a curiously unblemished saloon girl in this one, but what the heck?] John Hall ! Victor McLaglen ! These people - who they were in the time in which they lived and worked - bigger & more beautiful than life - a part of that never-never fantasy world - that was so much illusion - once lived and so gone forever - of the forties.

leew-7 Edward Small took director Alfred E. Green's cast and crew - an uncommonly attractive and brilliant assemblage - to the south seas to do the majority of this curiously undersung piece on location. Far less stylized/dated than Goldwyn's THE HURRICANE, it is admittedly riddled with cliches and formula, but packaged in such visual and technical excellence it scarcely matters.There are scenes that will stop the heart. Chiseled adonis Jon Hall and porcelain idol Frances Farmer outlined in profile(s) against the steaming background volcano take the romantic closeup to a level that defies comparison.Edward Small's films typically were strings of frames any one of which was an individual work of art in itself. What can one say but that with this one he outdid even himself, as did workhorse composer Edward Ward on song and score, some years prior to his work on Universal's stunning PHANTOM OF THE OPERA?

none-85 It's a strange movie. Frances Farmer is the main attraction. This is not her ideal role- her patrician blond beauty seems a little out of place here. Although only 27 when she made the movie, she does not look quite as breathtaking as when she made Come and Get It 4 years earlier. Nevertheless, it is one of the few movies one can see Frances in. Jon Hall is an interesting character. I remember him from the 1950s as Ramar of the Jungle. Apparently he never sustained the successes in his early movies.