Tanganyika

It is obviously a film of its time, and if one accepts that it has excellent acting, an excellent director in Andre de Toth, and despite no doubt filmed in a studio for many scenes this Africa of a sort of mythical age of 1903 it has a lot to please viewers. Van Heflin rescues Howard Duff from an arrow shot, and Duff's brother played by Jeff Morrow is a murderer being hunted by Heflin. Ruth Roman is there for the ride and even the monkeys enjoy her company. Roman is always good in any film she is in, and this is no exception. No spoilers but due to Toth this is in my opinion a first rate adventure film. Not to my knowledge easily found it is certainly well worth looking for. The Technicolour adds to the pleasure.

A movie with many cute animals, crocodiles, hippos, elephants, monkeys, hyenas, a leopard, donkeys. It's some kind of Tarzan, without screams and leaps from liana to liana. A big mistake at 12:35 "Tigers smell these animals two leagues away". None of the filmmakers were good with geography and zoology, there have never been tigers in Africa, except maybe when they made the film, But, it was shot in Hollywood, so... Van Heflin was a decent actor in everything I saw, even here. But I've seen him in movies much better than this. Ruth Roman's best role was in Alfred Hitchcock's famous "Strangers on a Train" (1951).

The story is set in East Africa in 1903. A fellow by the name of McCracken is stirring up one of the Tanzanian tribes...and sending them off to do his evil bidding. John Gale (Van Heflin) is out looking for him when he comes upon a woman and her kids who are in danger. Naturally he takes them with him on his trek. Along the way, they come upon a guy who is a McCracken but the man keeps this to himself...as he doesn't want them to know who he is. So what's next? See the film and find out for yourself.

Van Helfin is fine in the lead, as you'd expect from this solid actor. The story itself is modestly entertaining and the story is also chock full of stock footage...and fortunately most of it fits very well into this African story made in Hollywood. Not great but worth seeing.

Very few Americans were in Kenya Colony in East Africa in 1903. So in casting the film Tanganyika Universal Studios cast not one of the major white roles in the film with anyone from the United Kingdom. It used to be that to explain an American presence and accent to say that they were Canadian. In fact Ruth Roman is mentioned as having taught school in Toronto. So I guess all the others Van Heflin, Howard Duff, and Jeff Morrow must have been Canadian too.

In a plot that could have been from an American western, colonist Van Heflin is leading a safari that is an unofficial posse going after Jeff Morrow an escaped murderer who's been stirring up the natives though we never really learn why. On the way he meets up with Ruth Roman who is fending off an attack and she comes along with her young niece and nephew Noreen Corocoran and Gregory Marshall. Heflin also finds Howard Duff along the trail with a spear in him. Another rescue and some mending by Duff and there all on the trail of Morrow. Both Duff and Roman just want to get to some city like Nairobi but Heflin won't deviate from his objective.

Just your average western set in Africa. One thing that intrigued me though. No mention is made of African location shooting. So if that was the case it was a remarkable job by Universal making it seem really in Africa.

Fans of the principal cast members will like Tanganyika.

Budd Boetticher could have made the same, I am sure. This is a pretty good aventure, thriller yarn from universal Pictures, starring a Van Heflin in great shape, the same for Howard Duff and Jeff Morrow. As good African adventure film as wasJoseph Peyney's CONGO CROSSING. Colourful, action maybe not packed, but enough to entertain and keep a good feeling from this movie. I am also lucky to have a good copy from a US tv channel made in the eighties. Ruth Roman is also shining in this movie with her charm. Not the most known from director De Toth, such a shame. Solid story too, tense, bringing interesting links between characters.