Smuggler's Island (1951)

In 1950s Macao, an American expat diver is hired by a mysterious woman to retrieve a sunken cargo that eventually attracts unwanted attention from a crooked banker, corrupt authorities and local pirates.

Director:

Edward Ludwig

Writers:

Leonard Lee (screenplay), Herb Margolis (story) (as Herbert H. Margolis)

Stars:

Jeff Chandler, Evelyn Keyes, Philip Friend

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jeff Chandler	...	Steve Kent
Evelyn Keyes	...	Vivian Craig
Philip Friend	...	Allan Craig
Marvin Miller	...	Bok-Ying
'Ducky' Louie	...	Kai Lun
David Bauer	...	Lorca (as David Wolfe)
Jay Novello	...	Espinosa
H.T. Tsiang	...	Chang

Storyline

An independent ocean-diver, U.S. Navy veteran Steve Kent (Jeff Chandler), with headquarters in Macoa, is hired by Vivian Craig (Evelyn Keyes), who agrees to bail him out of jail and save his small sloop from being returned to a mortgage-holding banker if he, in return,will dive for some sunken gold. He does so, and also falls in love with Vivian, despite the fact she is married to a double-crossing Allan Craig (Philip Friend). He also discovers the gold bars are $200,000 worth of smuggled gold. A sloop loaded with firecrackers, to conceal the precious cargo of gold and a big-bank explosion are only a part of Kent's problems.

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Plot Keywords:

strained husband wife relationship | damsel in distress | pirate ship | shouting fire in the hole | u.s. navy veteran | 

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Taglines:

PIRATE PORT of the CHINA SEAS! (original posters)

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Genres:

Adventure | Crime | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

User Reviews

A B-movie without the usual B-movie charm

This sounds good, or at least "fun." Jeff Chandler's lured by a beautiful blonde to dive for treasure in a movie called "Smuggler's Island." One imagines scenes of a sun-bronzed Chandler venturing into the atoll of a Pacific lagoon to snatch some fabulous pearl guarded by a hungry shark.

Alas, the reality is much drabber. The action takes place in and around Macao but the look is definitely "Universal back-lot" and Chandler's brief and unexciting dive is done not with scuba gear but rather in one of those bulky, cumbersome diving suits. Thus Chandler doesn't even get to display any "beefcake," though he manages to keep unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt. This shows a bit of chest-hair which was shaved off for his next movie, "Iron Man," in which he played a boxer.

Evelyn Keyes doesn't have much leading-lady allure and one finds it hard to believe Chandler would "fall" for her so quickly. None of the film's villains has the necessary "style" and the climactic chase to Hong Kong lacks tension. In fact, there's not a single thrill in the entire movie.

The result is a lifeless movie peopled by dull characters involved in a plot which holds little interest. No one has his or her heart in this project and, oh, does it show.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 July 1951 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

Piraten von Macao

Filming Locations:

Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal International Pictures (UI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1