Foster on Film

King Solomon’s Mines (1937) 
King Solomon’s Mines (1950) 
King Solomon’s Mines (1985) 

Allan Quartermain, the great white hunter, finds himself, against his better judgment, as the guide for a rescue party into “uncharted” Africa. Their destination is the diamond mines of King Solomon, an old wives’ tale. Along the way they pick up an unusual native with plans of his own.

King Solomon’s Mines is one of those grand adventure tales. I can’t say when I saw the 1950s film, but it was probably around the time I learned to talk. There’s a secret world and a brave, if a bit grouchy, hero. There’s a beautiful girl who at times is unreasonable but more often than not is correct. There’s breathtaking landscapes and exotic foreigners, and it’s all about as romantic as it gets. At least that’s how it seemed to a child. I wonder how much of my conception of what adventure is was formed by this movie.

I never read H. Rider Haggard’s novel, though I read others of his works and enjoyed them well enough, particularly She. He wrote pulp adventure novels that were fun for an afternoon. How meaningful they were is a matter of opinion. But this is a story of vast landscapes and beautiful animals and an epic quest, which is exactly the sort of things movies excel at.

1937

The first film version came in 1937, though I didn’t see it till more than forty years after seeing the ‘50s version. It was filled with some of the best character actor of the time. Allan Quartermain was played by Cedric Hardwicke. He leads a party consisting of Kathy O’Brien (Anna Lee), an Irish girl searching for her father, Cmdr. John Good (Roland Young), a stiff-upper-lip Brit looking for adventure, Sir Henry Curtis (John Loder), the romantic hero who likes Kathy, and Umbopa (Paul Roberson), the unusual native.

As pure adventure, it works quite well. It is less sweeping than what was to come and it’s hard to accept that they could accomplish their mission, or survive (they do very little planning nor worry much about supplies). The males fit the stiff upper lip Brit cliché; Good’s response to his eminent death via volcano: “I don’t want to depress you any further, but I believe there is going to be an eruption.” That makes it a bit silly, but pleasant, as just having fun is the goal, not getting the audience worried or emotionally attached.

While it does have the old “Colonialism was Great” feel, for a 1937 film about Africa, it doesn’t go overboard with the “savages” bit, although of note, they allowed shots of topless women in the scenes in Africa with locals (with stand-ins for the white leads who stayed in England). Apparently “native” breasts weren’t indecent in the way white women’s were. The only really odd racial issue is with regard to Umbopa. Roberson was a musical star and had performed in Showboat, so he was given very non-African songs to sing that were obvious echoes of Old Man River. It is hard not to think of Blazing Saddles and the chain gang singing I Get A Kick Out of You. To make the racial situation more confusing, Paul Roberson was given top billing.

With the existence of a young romantic lead, Quartermain’s part is reduced and it becomes an ensemble picture, with each of the five having their moment. Since each actor is memorable and each character is fun, that works out.

It is an old fashioned film. As long as you don’t mind that, it’s a good time.

1950

For the 1950 remake, they went a very different way. It was jammed packed with real images of Africa, the type that American audiences weren’t used to and hadn’t been attempted in twenty years. The cast and crew would suffer for their art in hot unpleasant conditions as dysentery and malaria swept through them. The animals would be real, and the natives would be played by actual African tribesmen, mostly Masaai, but also Watutsi; it was the first time members of the Watutsi had allowed themselves to be filmed.

This time, Allan Quatermain (Stewart Granger)—minus the first “r” in his name—is a rough, disillusioned widower, sick of the obnoxious rich white men who come to shoot animals that are better than they are. He’s hired by Elizabeth Curtis (Deborah Kerr) and her brother (Richard Carlson) for what he sees as a suicide mission, but one that would pay enough to take care of his son back in England. The job is to find Elizabeth’s missing husband that went searching for treasure in uncharted country. Along the way they encounter animals of all sorts, beautiful and dangerous countries, unknown tribes, and a strange native who joins them.

Granger was known as a man’s-man type, and they sacked the first director in favor of Andrew Marton who was as keen on real danger as Granger. Kerr was agreeable to join in the mutual insanity and they jumped into situations that would have modern insurance agents committing suicide. Is it this aspect that makes the film feel so real, or the tribesmen? It doesn’t hurt that the only music is tribal drums, which are mesmerizing. It’s a strangely satisfying mix of utter fantasy and utter realism.

What is odd about the 1950 version is how absolutely compelling it is while avoiding the typical action beats. This is an adventure film, not an action/adventure film. It isn’t about fights or sudden moments of excitement, but a constant feeling of wonder and a nearly constant tense undertone. They distilled the glory of discovery and put it on film.

It won the Oscar for cinematography (and received a Best Picture nom) and it deserved it. Not only is King Solomon’s Mines gorgeous, but it was shot in the most difficult of circumstances.

Considering its roots in colonialist fiction, it is amazing how this version manages to avoid racism, with a viewpoint that is progressive for modern times. The tribes are treated with respect and African society is looked at as a step up from that of the white interlopers. No doubt having actual tribesmen play the men of the tribes they encounter had a lot to do with this. The film is also sympathetic to animal welfare concerns.

This is THE adventure film, the icon of the genre. It has never been done as well. It wraps you up and doesn’t let go. It is pure cinema.

It has been criticized for being filled with clichés, and it is, but then this is where the clichés came from, or at least from the book and the 1937 version.

Similar films followed, the most famous being Mogambo and White Witch Doctor, both in 1953. White Witch Doctor gives us Robert Mitchum sleepwalking his way to find gold with Susan Hayward as the widowed love interest in tow. Mogambo gives us a decade-too-old Clark Gable as the great white hunter. It comes off slightly better than Mogambo only because its focus is on the love triangle involving Ave Gardner and an overly stiff Grace Kelly, which isn’t good, but doesn’t involve anything truly silly. Both used poorly integrated stock footage and obvious sets, and in the worst case, a man in a gorilla costume. They also lacked the depth of character. The racism intrinsic to the sub-genre that King Solomon’s Mines managed to avoid is clearly visible.

1985

It feels a bit silly to include the third theatrical film with the title King Solomon’s Mines in this write up as it is a very different entity. But it is connected. With this 1985 film, we’ve come full circle. The book, and the earlier movies, inspired Raiders of the Lost Ark, and now Raiders inspired this film. It is one of several Raiders rip-offs of the time, this one made by the low-budget company, Cannon. Nothing says quality like being known for Chuck Norris films. And low-budget it is. Everything looks cheap. Compositing is noticeable and painted backdrops look painted. It’s as far from the real African vistas of the previous version as you can get.

Allen Quatermain (Richard Chamberlain)—though still generally pronounced in the film as “Quartermain”—is a stand in for Indiana Jones. He dresses like Indy, fights like Indy, and makes quips like Indy. He is not leading an expedition, but helping Jesse Huston (Sharon Stone) find her father who has been kidnapped by Germans. Yes, Germans, as the time period has been moved forward roughly forty years. The antagonists are no longer the environment, wild animals, and tribesmen, but a German colonel (Herbert Lom), a Turkish criminal (John Rhys-Davis), and all the wacky situations Jesse gets Quatermain into. There’s a minor supernatural element added at the end, because Raiders had one.

This manages to be both the most sexist and racist of the three. Suddenly 1937 is looking pretty enlightened. Jesse’s only purpose is to be cute, while acting stupidly and childishly. She causes problem after problem and is very surly when it is suggested she not do whatever dumb thing she is about to do. This isn’t surprising as she is reminiscent of Willie from Temple of Doom. Well, at least she is cute.

The complex tribesmen of the earlier versions have been replaced by two-dimensional cannibals. Well, those and the magical, flying Negroes, who don’t speak, but are magical, so… I got nothin’.

OK, so it is socially regressive and artistically bankrupt, but it isn’t unpleasant. It isn’t a substantially worse viewing experiences than sitting through Temple of Doom. It is silly, but knows it is. Saying this is dumb and over-acted is like saying The Power Rangers is  dumb and over-acted. Nobody cares. I’d have been disappointed if I’d paid theater prices for it, as I was with Temple of Doom, but for free on TV, it is OK as background. But it isn’t the stuff of cinema history.

Cinema history is the point of this piece. There are loads of these great white hunter films. From the silent age to the ‘60s they were everywhere, and have trickled along ever since (Sean Connery even does another take on Allan Quatermain in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen). They greatly influenced adventure films (just how many Tarzan movies are there?) and several generations’ views of Africa. But only one is truly great. Only one avoids the pitfalls and gives us a beautiful adventure story that isn’t embarrassing. 1950s King Solomon’s Mines may sit with lesser films, but it is something different.