L'Atlantide

This is the third movie version of Pierre Benoit's novel about sexual and drug obsession I have seen, and perhaps my impressions are colored by my understandings of the themes the other versions tried to explore. I see the sexual obsession clearly, with the emasculated men -- including Henry Daniell in a surprisingly lively role -- but the other themes seem lost, Maria Montez' impact muted even by the voluptuous camerawork of Karl Struss.

Perhaps the movie's other themes were lost to the Production Code, which somehow allowed the sexuality to shine through (Miss Montez and co-star Pierre Aumont were married until the lady's death by drowning at age 39), but at least one of the movie's three directors seems to have read the book, and at least one has not. There is at least one large gap in the print I saw, which comes in four minutes under the official running time. And of course, Miss Montez, as fabulous as she looked,was not the world's greatest actres, leaving a lot for Aumont and Dennis O'Keefe to fill in.

Perhaps it would be best to look at this movie and declare it a decent addition to Miss Montez' Arabian fantasy movies, with a couple of attempts to buck the Hays Office for more mature content. Over all, I find it inconsistent, but deserving, perhaps, of some kudos for that attempted maturity.... or, if you wish to look at it in another way, its prurient smuttiness.

French Foreign Legionnaires "André" (Jean-Pierre Aumont) and his friend "Jean" (Dennis O'Keefe) have been missing in the Northern Sahara desert for quite a while before the former man is discovered, disorientated, dehydrated and rambling on that he has killed his pal and that he has spent quite a bit of the time he was missing in the not so underwater kingdom of Atlantis. Turns out this kingdom is ruled by the ruthless queen "Antinea" (Maria Montez) and this exhausted soldier now regales us with tales of his perilous escapades. It's a perfectly watchable little desert adventure propped up by stalwart Henry Daniell and some charming contributions from her leopard "Nissa" - who frequently acts her rather thickly-accented mistress off the screen. The sets - indeed the whole production is on the basic side, but there is still just about enough action, and nastiness from Montez to sustain it. Don't aim too high, and it will kill 1¼ hours for you easily enough.

Before the 3-M's, Marilyn Monroe, Jane Mansfield, and Mamie Van Doren...

There was Maria Montez.

Sultry, Underused Sex-Siren of the 40's.

Here Her Beauty Stands Out Among the Gloomy, Depressing Sets and Story of a Deadly, Timeless, Ancient Remnant of a "Queen".

This Time it's Atlantis.

But in this Ultra-Low Budget Movie there is No Sprawl of the Island Extravagances.

Just a Few Torch-Lit Rooms, Unics, and Dancing Girls.

It's All Heavy Romantic-Fantasy Melodramatics with Montez Mesmerizing any Male that Dares Breathe the Same Air.

The Accents are as Heavy as the Norish Lighting and the Mood.

Maria Montez seems to be Having a Great Time with it All as the Men are Suicidal, Homicidal, and a Mess at Montez's Whim.

Some Iconic B-Actors Show Up, like Dennis O'Keefe and Henry Daniel as a Gay Voice that Can't Stop Commenting on the "Handsome Men".

But it is Montez and the Mood that Makes this Syrupy Delight.

Along with the Prevalence of Phallic Symbols with the Lurid Pulp Magazine Sensibilities.

For Fans of Eroticism and B-Movies, Definitely....

Worth a Watch.

This film is a combination of a subtle adventure and love, mystery and revenge and abandonment in the unforgiving Sahara desert.The mystery queen Antinea, of the lost Atlantis, has a penchant for embalming her lovers and using them as ornamental statues in her gallery, until finally, she met a lover who could resist her charms. It is a real pity that this movie is not available on VHS or DVD.

The setting of this film suggests that it will be similar to the escapist fare which Montez starred in at Universal. She plays the man-hungry Queen Antinea of Atlantis, which is located inside a mountain in the Sahara Desert, into which two officers of the French Foreign Legion stumble. Within this setting, however, the story played out is not an action adventure, but psychological melodrama, involving a femme fatale, obsession, deception, jealousy, murder, guilt, repentance, and fatalism.

There are many noirish resonances: the monochrome photography of the claustrophobic torchlit chambers of the underground kingdom, the obsession of St. Avit (Jean-Pierre Aumont, Montez' real life husband) for the queen, the amoral cynicism of the court librarian Blades (Henry Daniell), and the alienation of all the characters. The nearest thing to normality is the Legion outpost. The film ends with a strong suggestion that nothing has been resolved and that the same sequence of events is about to be replayed.

This was Tallas' first film as director. He had previously been an editor, and indeed edited this film as well as directing, but the film's producer, Seymour Nebenzal, probably had more influence over the mood of the piece. Two years earlier he had produced "The Chase" (which also ended with the suggestion that it was all about to start again), and three years later produced "M" - clearly a man with a taste for the noir. The two uncredited directors also have noir credentials. Arthur Ripley had directed "The Chase" for Nebenzal, and John Brahm had directed "The Locket."

The film suffers from somewhat disjointed narrative flow in parts, although this may be due to damage to the surviving copies. Whatever its faults, it is better than many reviews suggest, and is surely the weirdest amalgam of exotic "eastern" and film noir that you will ever meet.