La croce di diamanti

I don't know if I can call myself an admirer of Errol Flynn's work, but it would be a mistake not to recognize his merit as one of the most remarkable and outstanding actors of his time. As the heartthrob of several adventure films, he continues to mark the collective memory as a pirate, adventurer and heartbreaker. It is still easy to find, on specialty TV channels, several of his films such as "Captain Blood", "Against All Flags", "Robin Hood" or "Don Juan"..., but this is not one of those iconic films that almost every we've already seen... quite the opposite.

I'm certainly not the best person to assess the reasons why "Mara Maru" fell by the wayside and became an obscure film in the lives of everyone involved. What I do know, and I can say, is that Errol Flynn was already in clear degradation due to his problems with alcohol and that, during the film, I felt the actor was quite uncommitted to the role. Another problem is the story of the film, with a far-fetched script where, in the wake of a crime that is never quite clarified (although the film, between the lines, indicates the murderer), everyone sets off on a brief treasure hunt that turns out not to be the focus of action. What really makes the film work is the dramatic relationship between characters, in addition to the protagonist's struggle with himself, torn between good and evil.

In fact, Flynn plays a frankly unsympathetic character in this film, we could even consider him an antihero, in part. He is a rude man, who is not necessarily mean, but he often acts in the worst possible way. A division that helps to understand why he became the lover of the friend's wife with whom he had a business partnership, and that explains the greed with which he craves treasure and his difficulty in giving up gain, after a certain point. The actor is good, but I've seen him in better shape in other works. Raymond Burr, Richard Webb and Paul Picerni make a very pleasant contribution, each in his own way. Ruth Roman stands out less... the actress is good and does what she can, but she was given very poor material and the character's character is unpleasant, indecisive to the point of seeming bipolar and quite one-dimensional.

Gordon Douglas does a decent job of directing, although at times I feel that the film lacks the resolution of some loose ends. The film is not always happy with the construction and handling of suspense, and there is some predictability in the action scenes, but these are flaws that I felt were of little relevance. The cinematography is quite satisfying, and the scenes at sea or underwater are particularly well done. The sets and costumes are good, and the whole Manila environment looks good enough, albeit with perhaps few visible references to the eastern universe. The soundtrack, signed by Max Steiner, is quite good.

There are some movies that simply qualify as afternoon entertainment. Mara Maru fits the bill as an adventurous romp with a cast led by Erroll Flynn and Raymond Burr.

Although this is not Flynn's best performance I would argue with those who have written demeaning his work. There are definitely moments throughout the movie where you see the sparkle of Robin Hood coming through.

It is always challenging to determine whether to blame the directing or the acting when actors look stiff or over exaggerate. Mara Maru has examples of both.

All that being said, I found myself following the intrigue, attempting to predict what would happen next, and actually enjoying a Sunday afternoon movie in the air conditioning.

I read one review that mentioned it would have been a much better movie in color and I would agree because the sea scenes in black and white just can't carry the same quality as a color film.

So, If you are looking to hunt down a treasure like the characters in this movie please understand that this is not a diamond in the rough but perhaps it's a gemstone that will make your day.

Or maybe it was a crappy Garfield movie.

Point is, it's the typical low-budget B&W Warner Brothers affair where characters sit around in bars or living rooms talking about what they had done or plan to do, but very little action happens on-screen.

I will go to my grave insisting that Flynn was vastly under-estimated, trapped by his semi-literate movie-going fans eager to see him waving his sword around while wearing fancy get-up. Even in mediocre movies like this one, where he was probably forced to do it because the government had succeeded in putting Garfield in his grave and Bogart probably had more trouble than Flynn staying sober, Flynn is invested in his role and fully inhabits his character.

Raymond Burr turns in another stellar performance. He was the pre-eminent bad guy of 50s film, wasn't he? He must have had one h3ck of an agent to spin that resume into nice guy lawyer Perry Mason on TV.

Ruth Roman's bra is the gratuitous love interest. Paul Picerni plays Bela Lugosi's accent. Dan Seymour for some reason is a police lieutenant in The Phillipines. Maybe they don't mind fat ham over there.

I was tired of it by the time everyone set sail for the treasure. But I stuck with it because this is Errol Flynn's turn as the TCM Star of the Month and I am determined to watch all of them - from the classics, through the over-looked gems, to the routine, and all the way to the dogs.

Gregory Mason (Errol Flynn) is a salvage diver in post-war Manila. His business partner and war buddy Andy Callahan is a drunk. Andy's wife Stella is tired of it. Andy claims to have a treasure and cuts him out as a partner. Gregory's properties get ransacked. Andy turns up dead and Gregory is the main suspect. Soon, rich local Brock Benedict (Raymond Burr) wants to hire him to look for the treasure.

I had hoped for better as the movie moves pass the first act. It seems ready to get going but something is holding it back. Raymond Burr has a threatening presence but his character is rarely that threatening. There is some bad Filipino acting. While I applaud the inclusiveness, it's not enough to get just anybody. The last act has some fun action but it comes and it goes. The storm is great backdrop but it only works in the tank. The underwater work needs more tension. There are great moments but the sequencing is a little wrong. Manuelo stumbling to the church is actually a great visual scene. It might be better to leave that being the ending. At times, the movie struggles with its melodramatic B-movie sensibilities.

In 1952, Errol Flynn still looked passably good. He was one of the handsomest men in the movies, after all, and though he was an alcoholic, his face hadn't been completely destroyed yet. And he was trim. In the earlier "Cry Wolf" he was quite bloated.

The story concerns a salvage diver working in the Philippines, Gregory Mason, who finds his partner Callahan (Richard Webb) drunk in a bar and talking about treasure. Later he's found dead, and Mason is accused.

A private detective is able to clear him of the murder. Mason is hired by a man named Brock Benedict (Raymond Burr) to find a briefcase lost during a voyage. It supposedly contains diamonds. The late Callahan knew where the ship went down.

Mason takes the job, but is warned by another salvager not to work with Benedict, but with him instead. Mason ignores him. To his surprise, Callahan's widow Stella (Ruth Roman) who is in love with Mason, and vice versa, is on the salvage voyage as well.

Stella is certain that Benedict, once he gets the briefcase, is going to kill Mason. She urges him to end the voyage by saying a typhoon is coming and it can't be risked. Mason refuses and says he can take care of himself.

Mason is later faced with a moral dilemma.

Some exciting scenes. One rather annoying thing was that Flynn wore this helmet-like thing over his head, and he looked out at the ocean through a window built into it. Well, they used the same shot of him looking into the sea through the window over and over, and it was obviously the same shot. I don't know much about deep sea diving, but what he was wearing looked like a heavy suit of armor. I would think that would work against you.

All the actors were up to the task, Burr always playing an effective villain in those days; and Flynn gives a strong performance, as does Ruth Roman.

Ben Mankiewicz described Flynn as one of the most popular stars in the world, which is true, but he wasn't there as long as many of his contemporaries. By the late '40s Warners was giving him lower budget, black and white films, with the exception of That Forsyte Woman. He had a good ten years.

TCM, in an effort to make it seem as if the stars at MGM, RKO, and Warners were the true stars and the people at 20th Century Fox, etc. did some acting on the side, won't tell you that Flynn does not appear in the top 200 box office stars of all time. Still, it was a wonderful career for a handsome, athletic actor of great charm.

Maru Maru is entertaining and pretty good.