Jungle Bride

Jungle Bride (1933)

*** (out of 4)

Doris Evans (Anita Page) and her reporter/boyfriend John (Kenneth Thomson) are on board a ship hoping to clear her brother who has been found guilty of murder. Doris believes that the real killer was a man named Gordon Wayne (Charles Starrett) who just happens to be on the same boat. When the boat crashes, as luck would have it, the three end up on an island with a deep jungle where they must try and survive together. I love watching "B" movies and I love watching pre-codes so this here was the perfect mixture of the two and I was really surprised at how entertained I was. Sure, the thought of an entire ship going down and these three connected people (plus a fourth guy) all end up surviving and then floating to the same island is very far-fetched but once on the island we're treated to all sorts of goodies that would be outlawed in a few years by the Hayes Office. The story itself might be far-fetched but I thought the island/adventure stuff was pretty good. I'm really not sure what island they're on but they've got the beach in front of them and a few steps away there's this uncharted jungle full of lions, monkeys, rhinos and countless other animals that the humans must eventually deal with. In one of the highlights of the film Gordon must go up against a lion and while it's easy to tell when the trainer is fighting with the lion it's still a pretty exciting scene. The pre-code elements deal with some sexual talk but the real highlight comes with the outfit worn by Page. It's a black dress that hangs quite loose on her and it's especially loose around her cleavage, which is constantly swinging for the viewer's delight. In one scene she has her back towards the camera as she takes her shirt off and doesn't this little swing, which causes her boob to pretty much swing to her side and in full view. You don't see anything too graphic but the scene is certainly something that should be in Pre-code Heaven. As far as the performances go I thought the three leads and Eddie Borden as the fourth survivor were pretty good. Page comes off incredibly sexual in her part and I thought the chemistry between her and Starrett was very real. Thomson makes for the perfect jerk and Borden adds some nice comic touches. JUNGLE BRIDE isn't that well-known, which is a shame considering how good the cast is and how nice certain sexual tones are flowing here. The movie is far from a masterpiece but if you enjoy cheap but enjoyable films then this here is just for you.

Enjoyable precode movie whose only intention is to entertain its audience. Nicely filmed on the actual seacoast and in a jungle setting with good atmospherics. The music is mostly just Charles Starrett's laid back guitar strumming while singing or humming catchy tunes. Starrett is a tall good looking hunk and his laid back leading man style is perfect for this romantic little shipwreck movie.

The star Anita Page exudes screen presence and appeal as a strong, determined woman who knows what she wants. She is gorgeous in the precode style of the early 1930's. The well-endowed Ms. Page is a Harlow-esque bombshell and, as far as shipwrecked babes rank, I would say that not even Ginger or Mary Ann could be ranked any higher than her.

"Jungle Bride" is made simply and inexpensively but is nonetheless well-made, a romantic shipwreck film with two stars who have a lot of chemistry. It will hold your attention in a charming way and it even ends charmingly with the simple, breezy notation of "Fin". This is not an old fashioned movie in spirit, and it manages to retain a quality of timelessness.

After her brother is charged with murder, a young woman and her fiancé follow the man she suspects of being the killer on a ship bound for South America. However, it sinks and they are stranded on an island where the complications begin.

Very average pre-code drama with a real stagey feel to it but short at just over an hour long. Stars one time silent golden girl Anita Page along with Charles Starrett as the man pursued.

Doris (Anita Page) thinks that Gordon (Charles Starrett) is responsible for a crime for which her brother is serving time in prison. With the help of a newspaper reporter, they are bringing Gordon back to the States for a trial but their plans are interrupted when they are shipwrecked on an island off the African coast. Now that is an odd island...and seems to have all manor of African wildlife...hippos, lions, chimps and many more animals you really would not expect to see together there. What also is unexpected is Gordon...over time, he seems like a very decent sort and Doris' resolve to bring him back to stand trial seems to wane. What's next? And, do the couple stand a chance at happiness together??

Like too many movies of the era, this one is liberally peppered with stock footage of animals that is obviously stock footage and doesn't fit well into the movie. Surprisingly, there's a scene where Gordon have a knife fight with a lion and it really appears as if they filmed it with a real, live lion. I did find it hilarious, however, that Gordon rather easily killed the adult male lion...and only came away with some very minor scratches! Even the most macho man alive could never hope to fair so well against a lion!!

As for the acting, much of it is pretty bad BUT somehow tiny Chadwick Productions was able to secure the services of Anita Page (a top actress of the late 20s and early 30s) and Starrett...who wasn't yet a big star but who was a star nonetheless. It made for an odd blend of good and bad seeing them acting with B-movie quality (at best) actors.

Overall, the story is pretty good but the use of stock footage is clumsy (particularly the ship near the end of the film) and the story, at times, cheap and ordinary...at best.

A group taking a cruise is marooned on the coast. A few surviviors band together, after washing up somewhere in africa. No filming locations are currently listed, but it's probably on a beach in los angeles, with some exotic animal noises thrown in. Lots of stock footage, of wild animals. An engaged couple, john and doris, and an accused murderer, who may or may not be out of trouble, now that they are shipwrecked and clear of society. At twelve minutes, with horrible edits, poor film quality, and momentary lack of subtitles, we can't hear what is being said by the crew. It sounds like someone changed course, and the ship struck something in the water. Was it espionage by the crook and the ship's crew, to help the criminal escape prosecution? Just amazing how their clothes still look washed and pressed the entire time, even after sinking and and washing up on a sandy beach. Of course they show the chimpanzees right away, when they wake up on shore, so we know the chimpanzees will be up to no good! The old saying is, once you have shown the gun, it must be used at some later point! Doris falls for the wanted man, and seems to lose interest in john. Can anyone prove that wayne is innocent so he and doris can finally be together? As poor quality film, and unlikely as all this is, it's still kind of fun to watch these old exotic adventures in "far away" lands. Directed by harry hoyt and al kelley. It's okay. Probably will never be restored, since it's coming up on 100 years old!