La princesse du Nil

More fabulous adventure than the tales of the Arabian Nights , more exciting than the travels of Marco Polo, more spectacular than the splendors of Kubla Khan. This wonderful Oriental adventure deals with the princess Shamar, Debra Paget , the flame that ignited Egypt . And well starred by those sensational new stars , Debra Paget and Jeffrey Hunter . It is set 1249 Egyt, where the son of the caliph of Baghdad , Jeffrey Hunter, arrives in order to keep peace and order, along the way he helps the beautiful princess to rid the Bedouin invaders led by Michael Rennie .Meanwhile , Shamar takes a double identity , both as a wealthy princess and disguising as an expert dancer, dancing at market place.

This is a typical oriental movie produced by 20th Century Fox with intrigue , fights , sword-crosses and colorful scenarios, though mostly shot in studios . The two sensational new young stars give passable interpretations. Debra Paget is marvelous as the gorgeous princess striving to gain her aims, to rid the Bedouin conquerors, as she practices her intriguing skills, both at the slums and at the royal court . Paget starred a lot of adventure movies for 20th Century Fox , outstanding her exotic beauty and dancing skills, such as : Bird of paradise, Anne of the Indians, Prince Valiant, Demetrius and the Gladiators, Omar Khayyam and the exceptional dyptic : Tiger of Snapur and The Indian tomb by Fritz Lang . While her partenaire Jeffrey Hunter as a brave hero is fine, but inferior to Paget. Support is frankly well , such as Michael Rennie, Jack Elam , Michael Ansara, Edgar Barrier as Shaman, Dona Drake and uncredited Lee Van Cleef.

It packs a colorful and brilliant cinematography in Technicolor by Lloyd Ahern Sr. , adding fastuous production design, though some of the sets were used from Demetrius and the gladiators. As well as an evocative and thrilling musical score by Lionel Newman. The motion picture was professionally directed by Harmon Jones. He was a producer , production manager, editor and filmmaker. As Harmon directed all kinds of genres, drama, thriller, Noir, Western, comedy . . such as : Wolf Larsen, The beast of Budapest, Gorilla at large, Target Zero, Canyon river, City of bad men, A day of fury , The silver whip , The pride of St Louis, As young as you feel, Bloodhounds of Broadway . He also directed several episodes from known TV series such as : Land of giants, Death valley, Voyage to the bottom of the sea, The Virginian , Perry Mason, Gunslinger, Daniel Boone , Iron horse, The Monroe, The Zorro, among others. Rating : acceptable and passable. Well worth watching. The flick will appeal to Debra Paget and Jeffrey Hunter fans

Even the Maria Montez/Jon Hall technicolored baubles of the '40s are eclipsed by "Princess of the Nile," Fox's entry in Hollywood's mid-'50s obsession with things Egyptian (see "Land of the Pharoahs," "Valley of the Kings," etc.) Pure, unadulterated, mindless hokum, lavishly produced (low-budgeted, actually, but using sets and costumes left over from "The Robe," this Technicolored spectacle looks like it cost millions). 71 minutes of eye-candy (the plot, having something to do with nefarious derrings-do in ancient Egypt, is beside the point) offers the cinematographer and audiences the delectable sight of Debra Paget wearing an assortment of see-thru veils, most of which hit the ground when she shakes and shimmies thru a slave-girl production number unparalleled in film history. Female moviegoers were not shortchanged: Fox's handsomest young contract player, Jeffrey Hunter, is as photogenic as Ms. Paget, while Michael Rennie lurks around in the background, stirring up evil doings in the land of the pyramids. For those who might think Paget & Hunter can't act and were only hired for their physical attributes, check out their subtle, overlooked, heartbreaking work together a few years later in "White Feather" (another Fox production that has sadly vanished into the realm of "lost films"). "Princess of the Nile" still stands in a class by itself as a cheerfully mindless, breathlessly fast-paced, dazzling testament to the glories of 3-strip Technicolor--and the seductive charms of Ms. Paget (all of 20 at the time). Put this one-of-a-kind kitsch classic at the top of your "guilty pleasures" list, and enjoy. Satisfaction guaranteed!

For the most part, I only enjoy the kind of movie that allows one to escape the current time into the future or past. This movie is pure escapism. The dancing starts almost immediately, and Debra Paget in her "purple harem" bikini dress simply has no equal in film in my opinion. Her dancing, while sultry, is surpassed by her dance in Fritz Lang's Tiger of Eschnapur, available on DVD, where she played the temple dancer Seetha.

One problem with the movie is the closed setting. There are few outdoor scenes shot, and they as well as other scenes are a bit claustrophobic. The same locations are used over and over again, but with some interesting secret passages and waterways. Her secret double identity is totally unbelievable with beauty of that magnitude. Debra even wields a sabre and holds 2 enemy soldiers at bay on a staircase, she could do it all.

What does work is Debra Paget as a princess. With her beauty, she certainly would be the center of attention anywhere at any time in history. This movie, when hopefully it becomes available on DVD, will be a must buy. Overall, taken with a bit of humor, I loved it.

I first saw this movie as a Saturday

Matinee, at the Crest Theater in Portland,

OR. I adored it -- it had the

incomparable Debra Paget doing her

patented hip-wiggling Exotic Maiden role,

evil villains, secret passages, secret

identities, 50's-style exotic scenery and

costumes -- the works. I'd love to have

it on video, but as a hootch-cootchy

adventure flick it's not likely to be

available soon, if at all. What a shame!

This is one of my favorite films for many reasons. To begin, there are standout performances from lovely Debra Paget as a princess/dancing girl, from Michael Rennie as the villain, handsome young Jeffrey Hunter investigating crime in her city/state and others. The film is an unusually colorful adventure, and we even see the princess rehearsing the dance she later performs (for once). She manages to skewer Hunter before she learns he is on her side; also the photography, the costumes by Travilla, Lionel Newman's music and the film's style are unusually fine. Add to this rousing action, intelligent characterization and fine direction by veteran Harmon Jones of a Gerald Drayson Adams' script set in 1249 AD, and you have the ingredients of an enjoyable Grecianized Near-Eastern. But there is much to praise about the unusual and well--developed storyline here, as there is much more to praise other than the film's swift pace, well-managed physical action sequences and superior technical aspects. Classically-trained actors such as Michael Ansara, Edgar Barrier, Wally Cassell, Jack Elam and Dona Drake are not commonly found in one "B" film together; nor are there fascinating sets, a variety of locales and a mystery of the quality that is supplied here. One way of assessing a film is, "If I were guaranteed to live through the experience, would I choose to undergo these events and perform these actions?" Since my answer is a resounding "yes" in this case, this film remains one of my choices as a favorite and very-underrated cinematic work. Could it be that US critics' all-too-frequent disdain for females as warriors and thinkers that as in so many other cases has caused closed minds to misprize this estimable film's obvious anti-tyranny and pro-entertainment qualities?