The Naked Jungle
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Movie Reviews of The Naked Jungle
Movie Review: Get you antenna off me you damn, dirty ants!
Summary: 4 Stars
I once had an unpleasant experience with some fire ants in Florida many years ago, involving my ill-fated decision to take a rest under the shade of a palm tree, only to discover I had sat squarely on a bunch of the red devils, and they seemed none to happy about that (I guess I can't really blame them, as I would probably be upset being squashed by a comparatively giant bottom myself). The lesson learned there was watch where you sit. Watching producer George Pal's The Naked Jungle (1954) brought back memories of my less than enjoyable experience, as soon I begin rubbing at welts long since gone. Wonderfully directed by Byron Haskin (Treasure Island, The War of the Worlds), The Naked Jungle stars an excellent Charlton Heston (Ben Hur, Touch of Evil), Eleanor Parker (Scaramouche), William (TV's Frank Canon, P.I.) Conrad and a whole lotta ants (imagine a column of voracious ants two miles long and twenty miles wide...we're gonna need the industrial size Raid)...or, Marabunta, as they're often referred to within the movie.
The film, which takes place deep in the South American jungle, begins with a rather refined looking lady completely out of place on a funky river barge traveling deep in the heart of the jungle. The woman's name is Joanna Leiningen (Parker), and she's on her way to meet her husband, Christopher Leiningen (Heston), at his expansive cocoa plantation. They've never met before, as Christopher, who's spent the last fifteen years or so building his plantation so deep in the jungle has not had time to find a wife, so he arranged for his brother, who was stateside, to find an appropriate woman to which he could marry by proxy and then she would eventually travel to the plantation and set up residence. The newlyweds finally meet, and things don't go very well as Christopher, who's lived in the jungle for awhile (perhaps too long) has misgivings about his new wife, as certain details about her past are revealed. Joanna, a strong-willed woman, chaffs against Christopher's somewhat chauvinistic expectations, but does try to find her place, as she believes the choice to enter into this arrangement was right, but now seems for naught as Christopher decides she should return to the states, that is until it's learned that the Marabunta (normally content to dwell within their mounds, but every once in awhile, like 20 years or so, they organize and ravage the surrounding countryside) are cutting a swath through the jungle, with Christopher's plantation directly in their path, restricting any travel whatsoever, and problems of martial incompatibility become small potatoes against the approaching horde devouring everything they come upon, vegetation, animals, humans (death by hundreds of thousands of tiny, little bites? Seems a particularly nasty way to go...), etc.
I really enjoyed this film. The characters were well written, and are presented in an intelligent, engaging manner. The level of development of the characters of Christopher and Joanna was interesting and fills out pretty much the first half of the film. The second half is mostly comprised of the arrival of the ants, and the feeble efforts to stop this seemingly unstoppable force, first protecting the plantation, but soon for their own survival. Heston is excellent as Christopher, a man dedicated to realizing his dream, wrenching it (respectfully) from the living jungle, and the unquestioned master of his world, forced to contend with someone who isn't meant to be controlled (Joanna) and a menace that can't be controlled (the ants). He's basically a good man, but given his inexperience with women, his isolation from the outside world, and his accustomed complete authority over most all things within his domain, he's completely unprepared for a woman the likes of Joanna, even though it may be the thing he needs most. I thought Eleanor Parker did extremely well (and she certainly ain't bad to look at). Before this film, I was unfamiliar with her work, but she presented a wonderful character in Joanna, a stubborn woman with a past who believes she's found her purpose, even if it means living isolated from everything she knew, working to change the seemingly simplistic and maybe even unrealistic attitudes of her new husband (apparently he was looking for a trophy wife, but got a whole lot more than he bargained for with Joanna). It was really wonderful to see these two clash within character, and I really can't imagine anyone else in their roles after seeing the film. The threat of the ants was done very well, and appeared very realistic, especially through the use of matte paintings depicting the destruction caused as they scoured the landscape. It's hard to visualize something as small as an ant causing so much damage, but when you see billions of them swarming over everything and anything, it certainly seems possible. Haskin's direction really kept my interest throughout the film, and he was certainly helped by having highly professional and experienced actors involved in the project. All in all, an excellent feature with a climatic and satisfying conclusion.
The film on this DVD is presented in the full screen format, which, I believe is as it was originally released, and then later changed to wide screen (the wide screen format became more popular as the 50's wore on, as theaters transitioned to accommodate it). The picture is clear and sharp and the audio is very good, but there are absolutely no special features included in this release, not even the usual theatrical trailer. Perhaps we'll see a special edition released at a later date, as it seems more and more (much to my annoyance) studios release a barebones version first, and then later release a `special edition', allowing them to increase their profits, that is if those of us who bought the original see fit to purchase the product again with the enticements of more features, essentially making us believe the `upgrade' is worth buying. Oh well...
Cookieman108
Movie Review: Eleanor Parker in colour-soaked jungle adventure
Summary: 4 Stars
I watched this movie last night, and all I can say is....WOW! This is a top adventure starring one of my favourite actresses, Eleanor Parker, teamed with Charlton Heston (and based on a story by Carl Stephenson). If you love movies like "King Solomon's Mines", "Mogambo" and especially "Elephant Walk", you'll adore THE NAKED JUNGLE.
The story follows mail-order bride Joanna (Eleanor Parker) as she travels deep into the jungle to meet prospective husband Christopher Leiningen (Charlton Heston), a successful plantation baron, grown embittered by too many years of solitude. Their marriage is stormy from the outset; headstrong Joanna constantly clashes with her belligerent spouse, but they soon have bigger problems on their hands. A terrifying army of soldier ants, on their twenty-year migration, are steadily approaching, leaving a trail of death and destruction in their wake.
With more than a passing nod to the similarly-themed "Elephant Walk" (also produced by Paramount around the same period), THE NAKED JUNGLE is part costume drama, part adventure epic and all-entertainment. The supporting cast even includes Abraham Sofaer (who plays a role not too dissimilar from the one he fills in "Elephant Walk").
Female co-stars who could successfully balance themselves opposite the imposing Charlton Heston were often very difficult to find, but Eleanor Parker is and was the perfect choice for Joanna. One of the rare actresses who was every bit as talented as she was stunningly-beautiful (as evidenced from her Academy Award-nominated performances in "Caged!", "Detective Story" and "Interrupted Melody"), Ms Parker provides a performance with equal parts heart and humanity. Her scenes with Heston are a complete joy. Costume designer Edith Head dresses Parker in some lovely late-Victorian clothes.
Filmed in glorious Technicolor, THE NAKED JUNGLE explodes off the screen with colour and high-adventure to spare. Sadly, the DVD offers no extras. (Single-sided, single-layer disc).
Movie Review: Totally entertaining adventure film
Summary: 4 Stars
This is that typical kind of entertaining 1950s adventure film for all the family, of the kind "they don't make anymore". So if you liked "Elephant Walk" (1954) or "King Solomon's Mines" (1950), this one's most definitely for you!
What stands out, IMO, besides the special effects (good for 1954) and scenes dealing the Marabunta invasion, is the great chemistry between sultry, elegant, appealing Eleanor Parker (Joanna Leiningen), at her prettiest and most ladylike, but at the same time, full of passion, ardour and desire to love a real man...and there he is, Charlton Heston (Leiningen), at the peak of his macho-man magnetism with the ladies (my mother told me that she absolutelly swooned over him around the time he made this film). He conveys very well the character's contradictions between his insecurities as man and his desire for this wondrous woman (Parker), chosen to be his wife by his brother.
The first part of the film has plenty of scenes that fully display, elegantly in 1950s style, the sexual tension between the characters played by both leads. They make one of the handsomest couples ever paired. William Conrad (of "Jake and the Fatman" fame) is good as the friendly comissioner. Abraham Sofaer plays a similar role than in "Elephant Walk", but this time more sympathetic towards the heroine.
Some footage must have been filmed on location, but almost all of the scenes involving the leading players were obviously filmed in Paramount's backlot.
Good entertainment! The DVD has no extras though. The print's quality is very good!
Movie Review: "Forty square miles of agonising death!"
Summary: 4 Stars
The Naked Jungle's reputation rests on its last couple of reels, when plantation owner Charlton Heston battles the Marabunta, the twenty-mile long, two-mile wide army of billions of soldier ants ("forty square miles of agonizing death!") heading straight for the empire he carved out of the jungle with his bare hands. Well, his and the local natives bare hands. Of course, you have to get through an hour of soap opera first as the arrogant and virginal Chuck ("They have a word for men who go to the native villages at night. No one ever used that word about me") is more than a tad miffed to discover that after shipping new furniture and a new piano out to the jungle that he's been sent a second-hand mail-order bride in Eleanor Parker, despite her admonitions that "If you knew anything about music, you'd know that a good piano always sounds better if it's been played!" But then you have to expect that sort of thing when you marry by proxy (we learn that William Conrad, who played the Heston role in the earlier radio version of the original story, stood in for Parker!). Still, at least Ranald Macdougal and blacklisted Ben Maddow have fun with the script with exchanges like "I've been trying not to irritate you." "I noticed that. I find it irritating." It would have been good to have less of the matrimonials and more of the Marabunta, but the picture is great fun for both the right and wrong reasons and I can't say I felt short-changed revisiting it.
Sadly, no extras.
Movie Review: GUILTY PLEASURE
Summary: 4 Stars
The Naked Jungle is a movie I can remember watching in a movie theater when I was much younger and have seen several times on television since. The set decoration still carries a campy flavor of the back lot but the action sequences make up for that. I believe this was Charlton Heston's first leading role and you can see that his acting style remained the same for much of his career. The Warlord and Will Penny are two of his films I think most viewers overlook and The Warlord is almost never on television---Netflix does not even carry it.
I think from reading past reviews that some people have missed the point about Leinengen's resistance to his mail-order bride---he asked for a virgin bride because his character was a virgin, himself. And his character never did anything to damage his reputation as the strong, masterful man who subdued the Brazilian jungle--how could he go to his marriage bed knowing less than his bride....thought that was a hoot for Heston to have to play a shrinking violet--of course he is all bombastic but his wife, played by Elenor Powell very well, realized why he is trying to kick her our and woos him all the more strongly because of it. If a man could live in the jungle and not become a savage, then that was the man for her---undoubtedly that is one reason he managed to outwit and outfight the marribunta and save his plantation....