Whether its the heat that Jeff Chandler lets off or the poison darts, this is quite an intense island adventure complete with sarong wearing half caste young girl (Suzane Bal), an evil island king (Anthony Quinn) and unruly natives with poisoned darts. No Dorothy Lamour or Maria Montez in sight, this starts off on the mainland where Chandler proves himself tough enough to stand up to pretty much anything. That gives his boss (John Sutton) the confidence to put him on a job in the south seas where he finds more than he bargained for. Unintentional flirting with the south seas beauty makes King Quinn mighty jealous, and this leads to a war between Quinn, his natives and Chandler and his crew, which includes his newly arrived boss and his horny girlfriend (Marilyn Maxwell), adding more fuel to this fiery rectangle.
Hokey but enjoyable, the sexuality of this film is quite intense, with Chandler and Quinn equally seductive, even if Quinn is obviously ruthless in his determination. Maxwell is your typical blonde B girl, not at all faithful to boyfriend Sutton, something dealt with surprisingly at the end. It's inconsequential fluff, but all the more entertaining for the way it draws you in even when silly and camp. A young Scatman Crothers stands out as one of the crew. The presence of one slang using native adds stereotypical humor, amusing but fortunately not overplayed. I am curious about the troubled worker in the opening scene who uses a steam shovel to toss heavy debris on the workers below, cut out of the story and not given much explanation other than "he's at it again."
Hokey but enjoyable, the sexuality of this film is quite intense, with Chandler and Quinn equally seductive, even if Quinn is obviously ruthless in his determination. Maxwell is your typical blonde B girl, not at all faithful to boyfriend Sutton, something dealt with surprisingly at the end. It's inconsequential fluff, but all the more entertaining for the way it draws you in even when silly and camp. A young Scatman Crothers stands out as one of the crew. The presence of one slang using native adds stereotypical humor, amusing but fortunately not overplayed. I am curious about the troubled worker in the opening scene who uses a steam shovel to toss heavy debris on the workers below, cut out of the story and not given much explanation other than "he's at it again."