The Jungle

I can't really criticize this film. It is literally the first film I ever remember seeing and lead to a lifelong love of science fiction and horror films and prehistoric animals. Fortunately, seeing it again years later, it held up fairly well. Rod Cameron plays a big game hunter whose last safari was wiped out by mammoths. No one believes him, including his best friend, played by Cesar Romero, whose brother was among those killed. And Rod Cameron was the only survivor. The film was shot in India and has some good scenery. The acting is on a high level. I don't believe Rod Cameron, Cesar Romero and Marie Winsor ever turned in a bad performance. The mammoths, when they finally arrive are fairly effective. The ending also has an unusual twist, particularly for a 1950's science fiction film. Definitely worth seeing.

Most films about prehistoric animals almost always feature dinosaurs. This is one of the few films I know of that deals with prehistoric mammals. In this film the menace is woolly mammoths that are driving elephants out of the countryside and into villages wrecking havoc and death. While the basic idea is interesting, the film itself is slow going. The American version which is only a little more than an hour long is padded with lots material designed to use up footage. Its seems it takes the party almost forever to encounter the mammoths. The final confrontation is exciting but it takes too long. The only other point of interest is that this is the earliest American/Indian co-production that I am aware of.

Interesting tale of giant mammoth elephants running amok in modern India. Features transparent special effects-elephants dressed in shaggy coats sporting tusk extensions. All this said, we do have a good story and a fine cast at work, and an exciting climax. It's been said that the running time on this one was doubled when it showed in India-courtesy of Robert Lippert, a master at 'padding.' Given a choice, opt for the shorter version.

Indian princess Marie Windsor takes over her father's kingdom as he dies. The principal issue facing her is reports of elephants trampling crops. Advisor Cesar Romero has tried to deal with them by sending a hunting expedition of ten men, including his brother and hunter Rod Cameron. Only Cameron has returned, and he claims they aren't ordinary elephants. They're mammoths. There's scoffing, and Romero, Cameron and Miss Windsor lead an expedition to hunt down the marauding beasts.

It's shot in India. Director William Berke and DP Clyde De Vinna, a long-time specialist in shooting in exotic locations, are the only Hollywood people involved in the shoot. The rest, cast and crew, are local talent, and quite good (even if I don't care for V. Dakshinamoorthy and G. Ramanathan's repetitive score). The images are enhanced by sepia toning, and there are things like a bear fighting a tiger and a mongoose tackling a cobra for people who want a sense Kipling's India. For a rather simple and often cliched story, it shows a great deal of ambition for the Lippert organization.

The Jungle is more of an adventure than a science fiction movie. The only sci-fi part is the Woolly Mammoths living in the present day.

Elephants are attacking villages in a part of India and these attacks are also killing people. An expedition is sent to investigate and one of the members of this, an American hunter blames these elephants are being frightened by Woolly Mammoths, which are suppose to be extinct. Nobody believes him at first, but they do when the Mammoths appear at the end. An earthquake finishes them off.

The Jungle was shot on location in India and has a lot of nice scenery and some good Indian music, including some songs which keep the movie moving along nicely. The Mammoths are actually real elephants with fur coats and long tusks stuck on.

The cast includes Rod Cameron, Cesar Romero (The Lost Continent) and Marie Windsor (Cat-Women of the Moon).

The Jungle is worth seeing, just for the scenery and music. Very enjoyable.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5.