Green Mansions (1959)

A young man in the jungles of Venezuela meets a strange girl of the forest and falls in love with her.

Director:

Mel Ferrer

Writers:

Dorothy Kingsley (screenplay), William Henry Hudson (novel)

Stars:

Audrey Hepburn, Anthony Perkins, Lee J. Cobb

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Audrey Hepburn	...	Rima
Anthony Perkins	...	Abel
Lee J. Cobb	...	Nuflo
Sessue Hayakawa	...	Runi
Henry Silva	...	Kua-Ko
Nehemiah Persoff	...	Don Panta
Michael Pate	...	Priest
Estelle Hemsley	...	Cla-Cla

Storyline

A young Venezuelan idealist flees his native land to escape a revolution. Hoping to find peace, he goes to the mountains and the forests of the Amazon. There he encounters Rima, the Bird Girl, an orphan living a life of nature. It is all an admirable romance telling a tale of "quest, love, and violence."

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Plot Keywords:

amazon | waterfall | fight | color in title | witch | 

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Taglines:

...the forbidden forests beyond the Amazon

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 September 1959 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

A Flor Que Não Morreu

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the 1970s, the character of Rima was revived for a comic book. In 1980 she was included in the Superfriends episode "Return of Atlantis".

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Goofs

While walking through the forest looking for her grandfather, Rima's hair changes from being in front of to behind her shoulders between shots.

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Connections

Referenced in Forecast (1945)

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Soundtracks

"Song of Green Mansions"
Music by Bronislau Kaper
Lyrics by Paul Francis Webster

User Reviews

Bizarre Yet Interesting

I have heard people harp on and on about how bad this movie is and how Anthony Perkins and Audrey Hepburn were sooooo miscast! While the film is certainly no 'Psycho' or 'Roman Holiday', it is a lot better than people give it credit for. Everyone seems to come down pretty hard on Perkins especially, because he seems out of place or isn't 'rugged enough' for the role. Those people probably are the people who want to see him as Norman Bates and nothing else. I think his performance was just fine. He has this sensitivity and this almost childlike innocence, and sense of adventure that i think is ideal. He is no John Wayne, he is like an adventurous young child. But that innocence is perfect for the scenes he has with Hepburn. and while he is not the traditional leading man, it makes him all the more interesting. I think if the male lead was too good looking it would just be phony looking. Audrey Hepburn's trademark gentleness is ideal for this part. My only complaint about her is the fact that her hair and her make-up are flawless no matter what, but it really isn't her fault. Originally cast was Pier Angeli, who although a good actress lacked the same kind of gentleness that Hepburn had. If anyone looks silly here it's Lee J. Cobb. He looks more like a cross between Santa Claus, and a hillbilly, more than a South American. As for the film itself, it started off really well, but got kind of bizarre as it went on. After the scene were the three leads, leave Rima's (Hepburn) home i started to lose my interest. And when it came time for big emotional outbursts the actors fail to deliver. One of Hepburn's emotional outbursts comes out of nowhere, and is so phony i can't even explain. She wasn't so great at being angry i guess. However the intimate scenes between Perkins and Hepburn are moving. and i think this was the first time Hepburn took on a 'sexy' role like this. This is not her worst movie, i think it's actually better than 'Charade,' which i thought was overrated. The film has it's flaws but those flaws do not just lie in the performances as most people say.