Won in the Clouds

"Won in the Clouds" is a rather amazing film, as it packs in a ton of stuff into 52 minutes. In fact, it's a bit like a movie serial crammed into one small package.

When the film begins, you hear about a bunch of natives dying because of an outbreak of some disease. It's supposed to either be in South Africa or Rhodesia...they aren't specific. But what IS obvious is that it wasn't made there because the film talks about these natives speaking Swahili...and they don't speak that language in either country. That language is common to the Tanzania/Uganda/Kenya area and it looks like someone forgot to do their homework. Having spent quite a bit of time in South Africa, I noticed this right away...but most viewers from Western countries probably won't care.

The story is about some crooks running a diamond mine for some rich guy living in Cape Town. The rich guy realizes that something is up at the mine and sends his son to investigate. However, instead of being a typical mine owner's son, he's a bit of an action hero--and soon makes an INSANE leap from a car to an airplane to head to the mine! This isn't the only completely loony airplane stunt and the film is filled with angry natives, disease, backstabbing and punches. It's not exactly high art, but it is non-stop and entertaining!

I really can't take reviews like Martin Hafer's who reviews as if he never saw the movie. No where in the film do they claim this is South Africa or Rhodesia. Nor do they say natives are dying of some unspecific disease.

Further there isn't really anything polically incorrect about the movie. This guy is a clown.

Anyway, the print I screened was pretty bad. I have a feeling it was taped off a film that was projected into a video camera. It detracts fromt the movie, but surprsingly, for a movie with no stars I know and a pretty low budget, it's fairly decent



When the film begins, you hear about a bunch of natives dying because of an outbreak of some disease. It's supposed to either be in South Africa or Rhodesia...they aren't specific. But what IS obvious is that it wasn't made there because the film talks about these natives speaking Swahili...and they don't speak that language in either country. That language is common to the Tanzania/Uganda/Kenya area and it looks like someone forgot to do their homework. Having spent quite a bit of time in South Africa, I noticed this right away...but most viewers from Western countries probably won't care.

The story is about some crooks running a diamond mine for some rich guy living in Cape Town. The rich guy realizes that something is up at the mine and sends his son to investigate. However, instead of being a typical mine owner's son, he's a bit of an action hero--and soon makes an INSANE leap from a car to an airplane to head to the mine! This isn't the only completely loony airplane stunt and the film is filled with angry natives, disease, backstabbing and punches. It's not exactly high art, but it is non-stop and entertaining!

A lightning pace and some highly impressive aerial stunt work are undone by flat characterisation and the storyline's lack of coherence in this silent action flick. Al Wilson might have been an ace in the sky, but he wasn't much of a presence in front of the camera. At least sidekick Frank Rice's method of disembarking from a plane raises a smile.