A Ilha do Desejo

A bit of preposterousness set in the South Seas with beautiful Technicolor scenery. Linda Darnell, incredibly lovely, does what she can with the lackluster script. This was Tab Hunter's first film, he was discovered working on a ranch and had no prior experience acting and it definitely shows but he tries and looks great even saddled with the unfortunate nickname Chicken. He tells some interesting stories about the making of the film in his autobiography and Linda's kindness to him as a raw beginner, the book is worth checking out if you have the chance. The movie is fine for a rainy Saturday morning just don't expect art.

Handsome blond Tab Hunter (as Michael "Mike" Dugan) and desirably beautiful nurse Linda Darnell (as Elizabeth "Lizzie" Smythe) are shipwrecked in the Pacific Ocean during a World War II bombing. They bicker about his being too boyish a "pride of the Marines," and which of the two is top commander. She's a lieutenant. He's a corporal, but pulls rank as the duo's captain. They find a skeleton on "Saturday Island" (known in the US as "Island of Desire") and read the diary of "Grimshaw"…

In a flashback to 1930, John Laurie (as Grimshaw) loses native lover Sheila Chong (as Tukua) and is attacked by a sea serpent…

Back in the present, Mr. Hunter finds himself increasingly aroused by his island mate, but Ms. Darnell plays very hard to get. She calls herself an "old maid," but still looks mighty attractive. Hunter is a young Adonis. As soon as things heat up for the couple, a plane crash lands British pilot Donald Gray (as William "Bill" Peck) on the island. He loses his left arm to the crash, but his heart to Darnell. This is more interesting as a story about loyalty than it is about sex, but it's too awkwardly played.

**** Saturday Island (3/14/52) Stuart Heisler ~ Tab Hunter, Linda Darnell, Donald Gray, John Laurie

I first saw this movie when it came out in 1952 and for years have looked for it for my collection. It is sad that Hollywood has not tried to save this film and others like it. Tab Hunter was exciting to young women at that time because he was young and had a great body. Ms. Darnell was a sexy nurse that Tab (a young U. S. Marine) saves after their ship is torpedoed by the Japanese. They make it to a lush tropical island where a budding romance begins. The scenes are beautiful and so are the suggestive scenes of their attraction for each other. Their romance is interrupted when Mr. Laurie crashes his plane in the water off their island and is rescued by Tab. Darnell and Laurie are closer in age and their love grows. I loved this movie and hope that someday technology will allow the distribution on DVD this film.

I enjoyed this 1952 movie. It never tried to be anything but what it was. Shipwreck, stranded on an island, beautiful Linda Darnell and handsome young Tab Hunter in his first film. The star never looked better and the story was not difficult to understand. Enter Donald Gray as the other part of the triangle and you have conflict amongst the natives.

Linda Darnell, every inch a movie star, graced the screen with her alluring and dark looks. She never gives you the idea of anything else but what she is. True better films came her way, but listen, just watching the glamor of the star system was enough in those days. See her in LETTER TO THREE WIVES or UNFAITHFULLY YOURS, ANNA AND THE KING OF SIAM, even that clinker FOREVER AMBER for more meaty roles. But sometimes it's refreshing to see that stars as themselves in romantic and sometimes far fetched plots. Remember in the 40s and 50s the studios ruled the films and the stars. It was their mission to expose their glamor and popularity. How many films did it take for Elizabeth Taylor to turn into a decent actress?

Tab Hunter took a lot of slack for this film from the critics. But the studios had other thoughts in mind and thankfully they took him under their wings and turned him into a top teen aged heart throb. He too learned his craft along the way. Watch him in GUNMAN'S WALK, BATTLE CRY, THE AROUSERS and LUST IN THE DUST. He again was just a pleasure to watch on the screen with his blonde hair good looks and well toned physique.

It was the time of the stars. It was their films, their popularity and faithful fans that kept the movies alive in those days. Now days it's the violence and spectacle that hold court in films. Sadly, the days of glamor have long gone. And the stars with them.

Darnell and Hunter are stranded on a deserted island where they spend most of the time arguing.. The characters are so incompatible that any believable romance is out of the question. You must be satisfied just watching the stars to watch this. The good thing is Darnell on the beach looks great in technicolor .The bad thing is the Tab Hunter role is badly written and badly acted he sounds more like a brat on vacation than a marines corporal who has to deal with an emergency situation. The character is pretty annoying ,spends most of the time arguing with the Darnell character who is a female officer,like he was arguing with his older sister. It was Hunters first starring role,they took a chance having him star next to an established star like Darnell,the results are mixed,he looks all-american boyish but the choice to have him star with a mature actress fails miserably..The movie actually spends more time showcasing Hunters half naked physique than it bothers with Darnell. So,basicaly this movie is for hardcore Tab HUnter fans,even more than Darnell fans.