East of Sudan
East of Sudan is a 1964 British adventure film directed by Nathan Juran and featuring Anthony Quayle, Sylvia Syms and Derek Fowlds.
| East of Sudan | |
|---|---|
 Original cinema poster | |
| Directed by | Nathan H. Juran |
| Produced by | Nathan Juran Charles H. Schneer (uncredited) |
| Written by | Jud Kinberg |
| Starring | Anthony Quayle Jenny Agutter Sylvia Syms |
| Music by | Laurie Johnson |
| Cinematography | Wilkie Cooper |
| Edited by | Ernest Hosler |
Production company | Ameran Films |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 85 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Plot
In late 1884, during the height of the Mahdist insurrection in the Sudan, Mahdist forces attack Barash, a British outpost, located 200 mi (320 km) upriver from Khartoum.
Four people escape in a riverboat: Private Richard Baker, a British soldier; Murchison, an inexperienced army subaltern; Asua, the daughter of the local Emir; and Asua's British governess, Margaret Woodville. They hope to reach Khartoum.
Over the course of the journey, the group face danger on the Nile and its banks. Facing off against nature, Arab slavers and a beleaguered African tribe the slavers prey on, they are saved by King Gondoko's son Kimrasi, who then joins them as they head for Khartoum.
Soldiers Murchison and Baker frequently clash, while Baker and Margaret fall in love.
Once past Khartoum, they find a battle between the Mahdists and the British in progress, and the men join the fight. Murchison's knowledge of the nearby Mahdist held fort enables them to blow up the arsenal and save the day. Murchison is commended for bravery, and while Baker is arrested for desertion, Margaret confirms her love for him.
Cast
- Anthony Quayle as Private Richard Baker
- Sylvia Syms as Miss Margaret Woodville
- Derek Fowlds as Murchison
- Jenny Agutter as Asua
- Johnny Sekka as Kimrasi
- Derek Blomfield as Second Major
Production
Producer Charles Schneer made it after a series of fantasies with Ray Harryhausen. This and Siege of the Saxons were made over 15 days using stock footage. "Columbia had a lot of unused footage in their library", said the producer. "If 10 percent or less of a film made in the United Kingdom was comprised of stock footage, you received a government subsidy. I decided that would be a good commercial opportunity, so I made both pictures that way. I took the big action sequences out of Columbia's library." The action sequences of East of Sudan used stock footage from Beyond Mombassa,[1] Odongo and Safari (all 1956), and The Four Feathers (1939).[2][3]
Anthony Quayle and Sylvia Syms were signed in February 1964. It was Quayle's first film since Lawrence of Arabia,[4] and the film debut of Jenny Agutter,[3] then aged eleven.
Reception
The film was released in the US on a double bill with First Men in the Moon (1964), also directed by Juran.[5]
The Monthly Film Bulletin called it "shamelessly unoriginal hokum with Anthony Quayle as a poor man's Stewart Granger and Sylvia Syms as a ditto Deborah Kerr, some laboured tongue-in-cheek humour and an inordinate amount of stockpile animal footage. Nathan Juran could direct this sort of thing blindfolded and for once would appear to have done so."[6]
References
- Swires, Steve (March 1990). "Merchant of the Magicks Part Three". Starlog. p. 65.
- Crosby Day of The Sentinel Staff (26 August 1990). "High Adventure In The Sudan". Orlando Sentinel (3 STAR ed.). Orlando, Florida. p. 4.
- Swires, Steve (May 1989). "Nathan Juran: The Fantasy Voyages of Jerry the Giant Killer Part Two". Starlog Magazine. No. 142. p. 58.
- "East of Sudan". The Christian Science Monitor. 13 February 1964. p. 4.
- "Moon Shot Successful in Feature". Los Angeles Times. 19 November 1964. p. D13.
- "East Of Sudan". Monthly Film Bulletin. 31 (360). London. 1 January 1964. p. 134.
External links
- East of Sudan at IMDb
- East of Sudan at BFI
- East of Sudan at Colonial Film
- East of Sudan at Letterbox DVD
- East of Sudan at the TCM Movie Database