Mogambo

I would like to share with those of you who might be interested to know that my Father Mr Abiodun Oke Hughes was part of the tribal cast in this film.

I remember growing up with that in mind and though I did a search for the cast tribe here on this site, unfortunately there wasn't one available to me.

So I wanted to do this, so all concerned would know how much we all still have the fondest memories of all his wondrous adventures while he was growing up.

Dad was only just in his 30's when this film was made and when I captured that 5 second shot of him out in the jungle, though it's only for a few seconds it still makes me proud to see it.

It still amazes me to know that my Dad worked along side the most unforgettable stars.

I guess I'm very proud to know the things I do about him. So I'd like to add my Father's memory for those of you out there, not only for my Family but also for my Dad. (may he rest in peace) So here's to you Daddy.

Abiodun Oke Hughes (19-12 to 19-86) We all love and Miss you

Ruth x

This is a strange, but good picture coming from John Ford. It's not about the usual themes he normally tackles, it lacks the usual supporting cast from a Ford film. Yet it is a good piece of movie making.

In a biography of John Ford by his grandson he said that Gable and Ford were friends for years, not particularly close, but friends nonetheless. Whenever they were together Ford and Gable talked about working together. Finally Gable got MGM to get Ford for his next film and it was Mogambo.

I like Mogambo because it was the start of a trend in Hollywood to show some realism when dealing with Africa. To this day there are people in the United States whose knowledge about things African were gained from Tarzan movies. African Queen, King Solomon's Mines, and Mogambo were all shot on location and all show the native Africans in reality. I was a kid at this time and my first bit of education about Africa came from Ramar of the Jungle. This is light years better.

Gable was criticized for reprising a role he did 20 years earlier in Red Dust. The plot line stays the same, but in Red Dust, Gable is the hard-nosed manager of a rubber plantation in Malaya. Gable as Vic Marswell here is a world weary and cynical game hunter and safari guide. Both portrayals are very good and very different.

By all accounts it was not a happy set. The usual problems with location in Africa presented themselves. In addition Frank Sinatra was on the set. He was waiting on word whether he would get the part he sought in From Here To Eternity. At the time he was married to Ava Gardner and there's was one of the most tempestuous marriages in Hollywood history. He was jealous of Gable as he was of all Gardner's leading men. To be just Ava kind of encouraged the jealous. When Harry Cohn gave him the word about From Here To Eternity he left with the gratitude of Ford, Gable, Gardner and everyone else, he'd become a royal pain in the neck.

Ava Gardner was one of the most beautiful women God ever created and a lot of times she could get by with that. But when called on to act she could. As Eloise "honeybear" Kelly she's as cynical in her own way as Gable was. They were a perfect fit. This was the last of three films she and Gable made.

I don't think Grace Kelly is shown to best advantage here. Her British accent was a bit affected. I'm not sure why MGM just didn't cast a British actress like Deborah Kerr in the part. Of course she also was involved with From Here To Eternity if I remember.

Mogambo because of the location shooting and much bigger budget is better than its predecessor Red Dust. For all the unhappiness on the set, the stars and its director did some good work.

Although the original trailer for the film explains that "Mogambo" means "the Greatest," in fact, the word "Mogambo" has no meaning at all . It concerns Victor Marswell (Clark Gable but this lead role was originally intended for Stewart Granger ; Gable also starred in the 1933 original Red Dust by Victor Fleming) runs a big game trapping company in Kenya . Eloise Kelly (glorious charm from Ava Gardner who replaces Jean Harlow , though Deborah Kerr and Lana Turner were sought for the female leads and Maureen O'Hara was the first choice for Honey Bear Kelly) is ditched there , and an immediate attraction happens between them . Victor dallies with the attractive as well as jaded lady Eloise and must let her stay till the next boat arrives . But Victor, initially uninterested, soon succumbs to Eloise's ostentatious charms until the arrival of a marriage , a husband (Donald Sinden) , ill with fevers , and his refined but sensuous wife (Grace Kelly who has Mary Astor's part , though Gene Tierney was first choice for the role of Linda , she dropped out due to emotional problems which were now interfering with her work) . Then , Victor falls to the arms of the sophisticated married woman .

This lusty remake deals with classic loving triangle set in Africa and combines love , drama , thrills , action and adventure . Interesting script by John Lee Mahin who reworks his 1932 screenplay for ¨Red Dust¨ . Here we are seeing several African animals though the most turn out to be taken from an excessive utilization of stock-shots , thus : Gnus, Elephants, Impalas , Wild Boar , Gazelle Thomson , lions , Buffalos and Gorillas especially . The film was really censored in some countries , as the censors in Spain did not allow adultery to be shown on the screen. For that reason, MGM changed the relationship of the characters of Linda Nordley (Grace Kelly) and Donald Nordley (Donald Sinden) from wife and husband to sister and brother in the dubbed version released in Spain . However, they did not delete a scene in which both share a bed together. Nice acting by Clark Gable who repeats his character from 1932 , he becomes involved with the new wife of one of his employers . Clark Gable was unimpressed by the script and was wary of reprising his Red Dust (1932) role after 21 years . He only agreed to make the movie after Across the wide Missouri (1951) and Lone Star (1952) both flopped at the box office . Clark Gable and Grace Kelly began an affair on the set that lasted for several months . After filming had ended, they resumed the affair while Kelly was filming The country girl (1954). Ava Gardner steals the show , she is frankly wonderful in the role of the woman with a past . During filming Ava Gardner flew to London to have an abortion after she became pregnant with Frank Sinatra's child . Secondary cast is quite good such as Donald Sinden , Eric Pohlmann , Laurence Naismith and Denis O'Dea .

Marvelously shot by two excellent cameramen , Robert Surtees and Freddie Young . Being filmed on location in Mount Kenya, Mount Kilimanjaro, Kenya , Okalataka, Democratic Republic Of Congo , Tanganjika, Tanzania , Serengeti Plain, Tanzania ,Hell's Gate National Park, Kenya , Kagera River ,Uganda ,Thika, Kenya . Despite the high budget, most of the movie was actually filmed in the MGM studio in Hollywood, and especially in MGM British Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK . Lavishly produced by the great producer Sam Zimbalist , he came up with the title by altering the name of the Mocambo, a famous Hollywood nightclub . The motion picture was compellingly directed by John Ford , though he did not get along with Clark Gable during filming, and at one point walked off the set in protest at Ford's treatment of Ava Gardner . It's not great John Ford film but results to be worthwhile and enticing .

Some stunning Technicolor photography of African footage and beautiful AVA GARDNER are the sole reasons for watching John Ford's MOGAMBO, a remake of "Red Dust" that starred Jean Harlow twenty years before this was made.

Harlow's co-star, CLARK GABLE, is back reprising his role as the great white hunter (what happened to STEWART GRANGER???), but Gable has mellowed quite a bit and looks a bit too tired to be the love interest of both AVA GARDNER and GRACE KELLY--which is what the plot really boils down to. However, he is more than able to tame both of them.

GRACE KELLY still has the affected way of reciting her lines in a prim and princess-like way and is the less interesting of the two females. AVA GARDNER, on the other hand, livens up the story with her sarcastic one-liners and her ability to size up any situation and call a spade a spade. She's honest, frank and completely charming in her own way and walks off with every scene she's in, fully deserving her sole Oscar nomination.

But if you're looking for a real good story, MOGAMBO is not it. It has all the realism of a picture postcard despite the fact that much of it was filmed in colorful Africa. But the use of stock footage is also apparent as are shots of Gable and others before a process screen.

Fans of the stars should enjoy this one, but be warned--it's not without some serious flaws, mostly due to a weak script.

Clark Gable, Ava Gardner and Grace Kelly all in one adventure film out of Africa. What's not to like. Gable plays Victor Marswell, a great white hunter of the African big game, Marswell (Gable) who has not one, but two beautiful actresses pining over him. Even some near seventy (70) years later after its original release date (1953), this film holds up quite well. Both the story line and the scenery are epic, but it is the playful romance between this threesome that holds the audience's attention. Who will end up at the end of this adventure film embracing?

Well worth a watch, or even twice (I did).

I give it a 7 out of 10 IMDB rating.