Ashanti

Richard Fleischer was a very prolific director with a simple style but he was brave enough to enter films in all genres ("The Vikings", "Barabbas", "Compulsion", "Blind Terror", "The Boston Strangler", "Soylent Green", "Tora, Tora, Tora") with very good and acceptable results indeed.

With "Ashanti" he gets a watchable film and a sort of testimonial one dealing with slavery in the XX Century as a pretty female Doctor rendering services for the United Nations among primitive tribes in Africa is kidnapped to be sold in the eastern Arabian markets; her husband goes on a long pursuit of the slave traders to recover her. Shoot in jungle and desert wide-open outdoor locations the film is sort of slow at times but it also has some good moments.

An all star cast is a plus. Michael Caine renders an acceptable performance as the willing husband and model Beverly Johnson does too as his abducted wife. Peter Ustinov steals the show as the fiendish chief slave dealer Suleiman in what is probably the most interesting character in the film. Rex Harrison and William Holden not at the peak of their careers back then make correct appearances in small roles. Omar Shariff and Kabir Bedi are there too.

Not a great film at all but worth a watch in my opinion. It's a 6 out of 10 for me.

The above quote is from Michael Caine, who starred in "Ashanti"...a film he said he only did for money and which was pretty much crap! But is it really that bad or was Caine just using a bit of hyperbole?

After seeing "Ashanti", I could see that it was a far from perfect movie. But I really wonder if Caine's hatred of the movie is possibly more because of the hellish shooting locations as well as his rather unexciting character. After all, being in the desert with temperatures approaching 130 (about 55C) would be absolutely horrible and I am amazed that he agreed to make a movie in such conditions. Plus his character seemed a bit like an observer than an actual participant most of the story.

When the movie begins, Drs. David and Anansa Linderby are working in rural Africa...treating the locals for a variety of medical issues. Unfortunately, when Anansa is out bathing, she's taken prisoner by slave traders and they set off with her and other unfortunates across the continent. Her husband is determined to catch up with the slavers and rescue his wife, though he isn't exactly thinking clearly, as the trek will take him across the Sahara AND when he does find someone crazy enough to do it, it's only him and the guide against the slave traders! And, to make it worse, David is not exactly an action hero...in fact, he's pretty useless when it comes to violence. Can they possibly catch up to them AND what will they do if they do find them?

As I already alluded to, this is NOT a terrible film. It takes on slavery which is STILL a problem despite it receiving very little publicity...and the film does show that this sick industry still exists. This is a major plus. And, the story is modestly entertaining and worth seeing. However, I'll also point out that sometimes the story makes little sense and it is silly seeing Peter Ustinov cast as a Muslim slave trader...he just seemed rather out of place here. Worth seeing but hardly a must-see.

By the way, the best performance in the film was Kabir Bedi as Malik...the man who helps the Doctor. He was exceptional and I'd like to see him in more movies. Sadly, most of the other actors were underwritten.

ASHANTI is a somewhat typical movie from the late 70s/early 80s starring Michael Caine . It's certainly watchable in an undemanding way but no more than that but neither is it bad enough to be virtually disowned by its star .

The story itself is intriguing an Afro-American doctor working for the UN is kidnapped by slave traders and it's up to her English born husband to track down the kidnapped woman . I guess the movie could have concerned itself more as to dispelling or building myths about the present day slave trade but it's not that type of movie and rightly concentrates on action and adventure

One can't help thinking that maybe Caine's dislike of the movie is down to the fact that he's playing a hero and as everyone knows heroes are by their very nature boring . Undoubtedly Malik played by Indian actor Kabir Bedi is the most interesting character while Peter Ustinov as Sulimen gets by far the best lines and scenes like " A father , a father , a father " . Very frequently Caine gives the impression that as soon as the movie is finished and the cheque is in the bank he'll be firing his agent

ASHANTI is a movie that demands very little from and offers little to its audience except to sit back and be enthralled . Film buffs might complain that this is a poor movie considering it was directed by the legendary Richard Fleischer , well maybe but I think the only thing the director can be criticised for is casting an obviously unwell William Holden in a needless cameo

Not as interesting as the original Figueroa's novel, but a well done and entertaining movie anyway, with a beautiful photography by Vittorio Storaro, a nice soundtrack, and an all-star cast. Peter Ustinov is impressive in the role of the slave trader Suleiman, Kabir Bedi is perfect and intense as the lone warrior Malik, Beverly Johnson is very beautiful and acts decently (considering that she is a model, not an actress), and Michael Caine does his job even though with not much enthusiasm. He said that this was his worst movie and he did it only for the money: he probably forgot "The Swarm" or "Jaws 4: the Revenge" (where he courted Captain Brody's widow, chased by a vindictive shark... with said shark roaring out of the water multiple times in the final sequence...), not to mention "Austin Powers Goldmember"... Maybe Caine was envious because in "Ashanti" he had to share the scene with much sexier actors like Kabir Bedi and Omar Sharif... It's true anyway that a more profound approach to the slavery theme, and a bit more insight into the main characters would have helped the story, but the main goal of the movie is obviously to entertain, therefore the potential of the talented cast looks a bit wasted: Rex Harrison and William Holden only make small appearances, nothing memorable, Bedi and Sharif would have both deserved more space and even Caine looks a bit confined in his character; only Ustinov has room and lines enough to express his talent an he really rules the story. Also the supporting actors are all good and right for their roles.

¨Ashanti , land of no mercy¨ is an amusing picture with great loads of action , thrills , violence and adventures . It has a passable direction by Richard Fleischer , a superb casting and spectacular scenarios .The picture begins in the following sentence : ¨ Slavery stills exists today ,thousands of people disappeared in Africa last year . This story is based on fact ¨. The film's "Ashanti" title refers to the name of a proud African tribe who fought the Dutch and British armies during the 18th and 19th Centuries , the descendants survived to form the modern African state of Ghana . It deals with a doctor named David Linder (Michael Caine) along with his wife Anansa Linderby (top-model Beverly Johnson, she also was the only female character in the cast) acting as missionary in a medical mission in Africa . When the wife is kidnapped by a slave trader named Suleiman (Peter Ustinov, publicity for the film stated the part was Ustinov's first out-and-out bad guy role in his then thirty-year-long career) begins a relentless pursuit . From this moment the doctor finds himself alone in a battle to rescue her from a band of slave traders . The chase spans many Middle Estern countries and starts to look bleak for our man . Later on , David is helped by Malik (Kabir Bedi of Sandokan ; though Omar Sharif was originally going to play this type role of desert-guide Malik but had to bow out ; instead, Sharif played the smaller role of Prince Hassan), an expert Arab seeking vendetta . Only two men could rescue her , one driven by love, the other by revenge.

In this weak film there are thriller , suspense , emotion , frenetic action and for that reason is amusing . Apparently, the flick is actually allegedly based on a real true-life story . This adventure movie also contains fantastic elements as when the sorcerer boy kills a nasty and has gorgeous moments when the desert pursuit and there appear slavering children . This movie about modern slave-trading was developed, made and released right on the heels of ¨Roots¨, a popular high-rating television series about historical slavery . On a hand it is an enjoyable adventure film , including usual ingredients : deserts , camels , jungles , oasis , Tuaregs and many other things . On the other hand the valuable cast and promising screenplay are undone by sometimes slow pace . The picture is based on a novel with same title by successful Spanish author , an adventure expert and prolific author called Alberto Vazquez Figueroa who gets numerous cinematographic adaptations such as ¨Manaos¨ , ¨The Iguana¨ , ¨Ocean¨ , ¨Oro Negro¨ and ¨Rottweiler¨ . Publicity for this picture stated that the United Nations had at the time the film was theatrically released a Special Committee on Slavery operating within the UN's Human Rights Division. Factual reports on slavery presented to the UN were a key source when author Alberto Vázquez Figueroa wrote this movie's source 1975 novel "Ebano". The picture was distributed by two studios, Warner Brothers and Columbia Pictures, depending on the territory . Excellent and talented cast as Michael Caine as an unexperienced man who faces off extraordinary dangers , he has said many times that he acted in this film purely for monetary reasons and considers it the worst project , most wretched film he's ever done . In addition , gorgeous supermodel turned actress Beverley Johnson was the first ever African-American model to be featured on the cover of "Vogue" magazine in 1974 . Peter Ustinov goes through familiar role as the villain as well as Omar Sharif . While top-stars are really wasted as Rex Harrison and William Holden as a mercenary , helicopter pilot have little more than cameo characters , this is one of the final feature films for both actors . William Holden accepted a lowly seventh billed role on this picture so he could work on location in his beloved Africa where he owned a safari club . Furthermore , Johnny Sekka , Jean-Luc Bideau and veteran Eric Pohlmann as a swarthy portly man in one of his last acting . Colorful and shimmer cinematography by the Italian Aldo Tonti filmed on location in Israel , Kenya and Sicily, Italy and scenes set in the Sahara Desert in North Africa were actually filmed in the Sinai Desert in Egypt. Director Fleischer and cinematographer Tonti previously worked together on Barrabás . Functional musical score though composed by a TV composer by means of synthesizer .

The motion picture was middling directed by veteran filmmaker Richard Fleischer who replaced Richard C. Sarafian, the film's original director, who dropped out of the production, though the action is in his safe hands . About four years prior to this picture, Richard Fleischer directed another film about slavery called Mandingo. Richard has directed all type of genres , such as classic adventure : ¨Vikings¨ , ¨20.000 leagues under sea¨ , noir cinema : ¨Narrow margin¨, ¨Clay pigeons¨, ¨Trapped¨ and Sci Fi : ¨Fantastic voyage¨ , ¨Soylent Green¨ . However , ¨Ashanti¨ resulted to be a failure at the international Box office , being today better considered .