Jungle Moon Men

With a title like that I just had to see this! But the connection between the moon and the little people with blow-pipes led by Billy Curtis is only vaguely alluded to. It's actually the sun that figures more prominently in the plot, since it represents the great god Ra, from whose lethal rays wicked high priestess Oma has eternally to shelter from in the murkily lit temple over which she rules.

Jean Byron cuts an impressive figure in the usual lady explorer's pith helmet and tight black britches as archaeologist Ellen Marsten - author of 'The Historical Basis of African Civilisation' - and proves remarkably bloodthirsty when let loose on the local wildlife with a bow & arrow, but is subsequently reduced to little more than an onlooker (I wonder what she called the book on which she based her adventures here?) Helen (sic) Stanton, too, as Oma Who Must Be Obeyed, has the makings of a formidable villainess, but is otherwise little used; not helped by an ugly blonde wig and boring dress which between them look as if they had both been lying about in wardrobe at Columbia since the 40's.

Most of the film is set out of doors in the sunshine, which keeps the film pleasant to watch, until we enter Oma's temple, which cameraman Henry Freulich renders suitably noirishly atmospheric. However as a whole, the film felt far longer than 70 minutes.

This is another Jungle adventure starring Johnny Weismuller but isn't either a Tarzan or Jungle Jim adventure. Rather confusingly he plays himself in this film. Quite why that is I don't know but essentially he is the same character in all his movies.

The plot is the usual greedy white bad guys seeking an ill gotten fortune in a jungle setting featuring some decidedly unrealistic natives. The Moon Men of the films title are dwarfs dressed up laughably unconvincingly to look like a jungle tribe. Almost certainly the least scary tribe ever committed to celluloid.

Jungle Moon Men ticks every cliché in the Tarzan book but fails miserably to compare to the superior and much earlier Weismuller/O'Sullivan Tarzan films. The support acting is also sadly lacking.

However despite it's numerous faults, I did somehow enjoy this film. Maybe it falls into the so bad it's good category, maybe it's just because I like Weismuller.

Johnny Weissmuller plays himself - or a sort of Victor Mature version of himself - as he does his "Allan Quartermain" impersonation guiding the rather determined "Ellen" (Jean Bryon) through the middle jungle in search of a long-lost companion. Deeper and deeper they go, the wildlife gets more and more menacing, the adventure more perilous, the insects more deadly - and this is all without leaving California! Anyway, their quest takes them to an hidden kingdom populated by the even more rare African branch of the oompa-loompa family and where the High Priestess of Ra "Oma" (Helene Stanton) has been happily minding her own business for centuries. In best "She" tradition, though, she falls in love and, well we just know that won't bode well. It's not a terrible film, it's just devoid of any originality as we plod through some library footage of rhinos, tigers, lions etc., en route to a denouement that made the short-ish seventy minute run-time seem quite considerably longer. That might have been down to the largely charm-free Weissmuller who should have just stuck to his loincloth and his vine-swinging yodelling, and to the rather uninspired and verbose writing. Pretty poor, sorry.

I quite don't understand why the producers did not use the Jungle Jim's name or character, and why using Johnny Weissmuller's name in the credits. I don't get it at all. But it's not important. This little movie is pretty entertaining, fun, agreeable to watch. Nothing special though. The same kind of quality as any other JUNGLE JIM adventure. You have here all the usual clichés: evil White mercenaries and a natives tribe fighting for their land and spirit. For jungle adventures movies seekers, this one is worth catching. Weissmuller shows in this feature his limits, Tarzan is far, far. So far.

No matter what you expect "jungle moon men" to be, you'll likely be disappointed. Your imagination is probably better than that of the filmmakers. Johnny Weissmuller is playing a character named Johnny Weissmuller here, but twenty years as Tarzan and Jungle Jim doesn't seem to have taught him much about acting. At least Jean Byron as an intrepid author and Helene Stanton as some kind of high priestess are both attractive. That gives you a little something worth paying attention to in this dismal flick.