Tiara Tahiti

London Light prefaced this glossy little trifle largely shot in the South Seas with a stern admonition that this film contains "cultural depictions of its era". Presumably they had in mind Herbert Lom in oriental makeup that makes him looks like Dr No expressing his disdain for White Trash, talk of leper colonies and James Mason's sarcastic reference to his Tahitian girlfriend's forty-six relatives; yet even before the credits roll we're already treated to a bevy of dusky maidens gyrating grass skirts.

John Mills with his hair combed into an outrageous quiff plays a stiff-necked old colonel for whom nemesis comes in the form of Mason who, bless him, once again shows that for all his talent he just couldn't play comedy (witness his attempt at pidgen English).

Lt.Col. Southey (John Mills) is an officer promoted a rank,or,perhaps,two above his abilities - not an uncommon occurrence in wartime - Capt.Aimsley(James Mason) a natural leader and charming rogue a class above Southey in every respect but one.He treats his nominal military superior as he might the ageing family labrador.Popular and charismatic,Capt.Aimsley is everything Col. Southey is not but aspires to be.The scene where,alone in his office,he practises copying Aimsley's accent is brilliantly observed. Unfortunately money is Aimsley's Achilles Heel and his profligacy sees him removed from Southey's command. Some time after the war Aimsley's comfortable exile in Tahiti is rudely interrupted by the arrival of his old adversary now director of a hotel chain looking to expand into the burgeoning South Seas market. What was virtually a two-hander featuring two of Britain's best film actors then,regretfully,broadens out into a not particularly funny or engaging comedy with stereotyped minor characters and a largely superfluous love interest.Some of the exchanges between Mills and Mason shine through the fog of ordinary,but the film loses most of its impetus. James Mason has exactly the right air of supreme self-confidence that the public school man exudes,the sense of being comfortable in his own skin whether in an Officers' Mess or on a South Sea Island. John Mills,probably a Grammar school boy,certainly not quite a gentleman.He may have money and business acumen but he will never be one of "them" no matter how rich and successful he becomes and that rankles. Whenever they are on the screen together "Tiara Tahiti" comes alive. Without them it would be very thin gruel indeed. If you want to see another film with James Mason exiled on an island try to catch the little-known British comedy "A Touch Of Larceny",it's clever,funny and altogether enchanting.John Mills out - acts Alec Guiness's bravura performance in "Tunes of Glory" as Col Barrow,on the face of it rather a cold fish,but with unsuspected sensitivities,not unlike Col Southey

Anyone want a free trip to Tahiti in 1962? James Mason and John Mills did, so they made Tiara Tahiti. It's a silly comic romp, but at least you'll get to see some pretty beaches and scenery.

The movie starts off during WWII. John Mills is the head honcho among his troops, until an unexpected visit from James Mason shakes everything up. James is just so likable, everyone's loyalty shifts. Add in that John used to work for James before the war and still has a chip on his shoulder, and there's a bit of bad blood between them. To get even, John anonymously blows the whistle on James's smuggling racket.

Or is it anonymous? When they're reunited years later after the war, by a chance meeting in Tahiti, what will happen? Does James know his old friend is really his enemy? Is the friendly smile covering up hard feelings, or is he really as happy-go-lucky as he seems to be? If you liked his adorable cleverness in A Touch of Larceny, you've got to catch James in this movie, too. He has lots of fun shirtless, smooching scenes with his Tahitian girlfriend, Rosenda Monteros, to show that even in his fifties, he's still got it!

A personal favourite of mine, but sadly not available on either video or DVD. Two great British actors of the golden age, James Mason (he of the wonderful voice) and John Mills (who virtually won the Second World War single handed) work wonderfully together. Mills is the working boy made good, Mason his former employer's son. Mills finds himself temporarily in command of Mason towards the end of the war and sets in train a course of events which leads to them meeting again after the war in Tahiti. Admire their actors craft, their comic timing, the under-stated nuances of class warfare. A wonderful little gem of a film.

The film begins in post war Germany, where John Mills demonstrates his talent for comedy characters in his role as Clifford Southey, a pompous, insecure caricature of a British Colonel, whose regiment is agitated by the arrival of a former business acquaintance, Captain Brett Aimsley. Aimsley, a charming rogue who's been selling stolen goods on the black market, throws Southey's over-regimented regiment into chaos by holding noisy gatherings involving gambling and lewd jokes - it's quite astonishing to hear the quintessential gentleman Mason's gag about the Frenchman who found happiness! The newcomer's gatherings have destroyed Southey's friendly games of bridge, by stealing away all but the most dedicated bridge players, and understandably, he's not standing for it. He calls Aimsley to his office with the intention of setting him straight, but Aimsley's charm wins him over and the pusillanimous Colonel lets his former friend off the hook, only to rat on him for his black market deals while he's on leave in London. Some years later, Aimsley has moved to Tahiti to escape his court martial. Coincidentally, Southey, who is now the director of a chain of hotels, comes to town to try to stitch up a deal for a new hotel.

Even though there are few laugh-out-loud jokes in this film, its strength lies in the fact that it is consistently entertaining, partly because of the topsy-turvy relationship between Southey and Aimsley, and also because of the constant deflating of Southey's ego. For example, just as Southey was making progress impressing two female tourists with his encyclopedic knowledge of wine, Aimsley arrives and takes away the bottle Southey has just analysed and praised, then says "We can do better than that in Tahiti. I'll get you something drinkable."

Mills' performance is quite hilarious - he creates one of those absurd characters that needs only to walk into a room for one to start laughing. The funniest scenes in the film involve Southey - who is alone apart from us - rehearsing how he is going to confront Aimsley. Despite his basically good moral character, he's one of those characters we love to hate because of his pomposity and his many unreasonable assumptions about Aimsley.

Mason was the perfect choice to play Aimsley, the charming, likable scoundrel. We remain on his side throughout the film because his charm wins us over, just as it won over Southey early in the film. There are adequate performances from Rosenda Monteros as Aimsley's love interest, the charming and flirty Belle and from Herbert Lom as Chong, the hilarious and politically incorrect caricature of a Chinese shopkeeper.

It is the characters that make this film, but the script is equally strong, save for the redundant sub-plot involving an American sailor who tries to steal Belle away from Aimsley. A dramatic twist towards the end of the film adds to what is a mostly engrossing story. We are left wondering until the end whether Southey will ever finally confront Aimsley, or whether the two will return to being friends, as well as whether or not Southey will get his hotel built. A highly enjoyable film with an excellent cast and a clever script.