Istanbul

After reading some moderately positive reviews here I approached watching Istanbul with some optimism. I remembered fondly Errol Flynn's late-career turn as "Mike Campbell" in the film version of Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises". Although too old for the part, he put in a fantastic performance and was the only actor in that film who truly "got" his character from that great novel. Sadly here he is listless throughout whether fighting or romancing or anything. Cornell Borchers plays the love interest done up as Ingrid Bergman but with little of the charisma. As an aside Peggy Knudsen ("Mona Mars" from "The Big Sleep") plays the distaff side of a crass American tourist couple. The roles are played in the manner of Ralph and Alice from "The Honeymooners" and it jars greatly to a modern taste showing yet again that the past is a foreign country. The plot involving lost love and diamond smuggling is ho-hum and the overall entertainment value is passable only.

This must seem like a very superficial second hand plagiarism of "Casablanca" to many, but there is actually much more to it than that, if you bother to look deeper into the story, another fascinating study in a case of amnesia with a lot of question marks, many of which you have to figure out for yourself.

Errol Flynn comes back to Istanbul after five years and remembers the turbulence of his last visit, in which he was involved in some diamond smuggling. He had a great and promising love affair, when everything was brutally interrupted by unforeseen circumstances, and he couldn't come back for five years. On his return he meets again his great love, but she is another person, and he has some trouble in understanding the situation, especially since she is now happily married, or at least so it seems. There is very much in this intrigue of seeming appearances while much more isn't easily told.

The superficial impression and unavoidable associations to "Casablanca" are especially exacerbated by Stephanie's almost irritating likeness with Ingrid Bergman, but there is no Humphrey Bogart here. Instead you have an unusually sober Errol Flynn with almost a stone face, covering up stormy feelings with some difficulty, which must trouble him all the way. But the finale is a wonder of almost metaphysical turnings of a totally unexpected nature, and that's where you have to complete the picture by your own thinking; because Errol Flynn's sober face is never more stony than when he has given up all.

By no means a masterpiece, and far from Errol Flynn's best, Istanbul still has much going for it. The locations and beautiful technicolour cinematography, bring us back to a time long since past. Errol Flynn does show moments of his past glory, and is OK as Jim Brennan, a pilot who's past comes back to haunt him. The picture is actually a remake of 1947's "Singapore", and the story seems awfully contrived and cliche' by today's standards. Also many of the supporting cast seem to be simply "going through the motions" in this picture. Many people have also compared it to one of the all time greats, CASABLANCA. While watching the film, I could see many of the similarities, but hey, Casablanca has inspired countless imitators, so take that for what it's worth. In closing, if you are a fan of Flynn, or old fashioned love stories, you might want to give this film a look. Otherwise, I'd recommend Casablanca, or The Maltese Falcon, as a good introduction to some of Hollywood's classics....

I think I may have seen one early B&W Errol Flynn film many years ago but not even sure, so I thought I'd check Istanbul out. The film looks nice enough and there are a couple of interesting location shots. Of course, in a film going to a distant land, there is the requisite boorish American couple. Nat King Cole appears and his character sings and interacts with the leads, which is a pleasant touch for sure. The overall story is fine but the script lets us down. The lead is expelled from Turkey for five years for suspected diamond theft/smuggling and when he returns five years later the authorities think he still has the diamonds on him, which of course he does, but why? Most of the performances are just fine. But the worst offense with Istanbul is the very end, literally, the last 60 seconds are so corny and poorly done. Despite the several missteps, it's still mildly pleasant viewing if you're curious to perhaps check it out.

Nat King Cole was one of the greatest singers of all time. This is coming from a guy who generally prefers hard rock to most other music. His voice was so smooth and his style so perfect, you can't help but think he'd have been an even bigger star had he been born at a different time. While he made a few appearances here and there, this is one of the few chances to hear him sing one of his best songs (unlike in "Cat Ballou"). So, whether "Istanbul" is a good film or not, it's well worth watching just to hear and see Cole sing "When I Fall in Love"...a truly beautiful song from a beautiful man.

As to the film, it's one of Errol Flynn's last films. It's not a super-cheapo production like many of his later movies (a few of which are truly embarrassing to watch today) but is more an international film with lovely sets, location shoots and Flynn STILL looking fit and handsome...probably his last film where he didn't look awful due to the ravages of alcoholism. He really looks pretty good for a man in his late 40s. Sadly, he'd be dead at 50...bloated and a shadow of his former self.

Much of the movie is a flashback. As James Brennan (Flynn) nears Istanbul on an airliner, he thinks back to what occurred five years earlier. Back then, he fell in love with Stephanie Bauer (Cornell Borchers) but got pulled into a diamond smuggling affair as well. The end result was that Stephanie apparently died and Brennan left Turkey.

Once Brennan's plane arrives, however, things get weird. Soon he sees Stephanie...his old dead fiancé! But she's alive and now falls herself Karen Fielding. What is going on here?! He also is soon approached by various scum-bags (including Werner Klemperer) and the intrigue begins all over again! See the film and see what Brennan learns about this crazy, mixed up mess!

Along with "The Sun Also Rises", this is the last nice looking and cinematic film. It's in lovely Technicolor, has very good acting, music and enough gloss to make it worth seeing. Thankfully this is not an awful mess like his final film, "Cuban Rebel Girls"--and remembering him for films like "Istanbul" is what I'd much rather do. My only gripe about this one, and it's minor, is the amnesia angle--a plot device best left out of most films. Otherwise, I strongly suggest you see this film if you can...it's worth it.