Harry Black et le tigre

This is definitely one of Stewart Granger's better films following his departure from MGM. Ostensibly about the hunt for a man-eating tiger this is really about two people who, in an ideal world should be together but are not destined to be so. The best scenes by far are those between Granger and Barbara Rush. When they meet again she is married with a son but the chemistry is still there....... The hunt sequences are well-handled and there is a fine score by Clifton Parker. Granger is excellent, Anthony Steel is suitably stolid and I.S.Johar basically plays the same part he was to play in 'North West Frontier' the following year. The film really belongs however to the marvellous Barbara Rush. Both Granger and director Hugo Fregonese were Hollywood 'exiles' who were obliged to seek work in Europe, with decidedly mixed results! Although Granger was disparaging about most of his films he should not have been too unhappy with this one. The next time he was to play a white hunter was in 'The Last Safari' opposite someone named Kaz Garas. The less said about that one the better!

This is one of my favorite movies because it has the most realistic tiger behavior ever depicted in films. Man-eating tigers still exist in Asia--although now much rarer than they were--and it amazes me how well the director was able to show us how a man eating tiger would really have behaved. I worked with tigers and elephants for 25 years in a zoo (and I wholeheartedly approve of zoos now gradually ending the keeping of these animals in captivity)so I can tell you that this film gives you a uniquely realistic view of a man-eating tiger's behavior. The scene where the line of elephants are being ridden to drive the tiger towards the hunters is nice--when you see those elephants' trunks come up into the air they really are smelling their arch enemy a tiger, and they don't know it is a tame movie tiger so that is absolutely real, too. If you want to read about man-eating tigers, get books by Jim Corbett and Kenneth Anderson--they make fascinating reading. If you want to see similar superb depiction of a rogue elephant's real life behavior on film, get a copy of Jungle Princess, starring Dorothy Lamour (1936).

I won't cover the ground concerning the setting and the main conflict. This movie is about the theme, the importance of ethical standards in a man,the ability to make difficult decisions, personal sacrifices, moral choices, and confront danger with courage. Courage doesn't mean the absence of fear, rather the ability to suck it up when necessary.

Not unlike other movies with similar themes, such as, The Mountain, Zulu, The Ghost and The Darkness, Battle Los Angeles, and The Naked Prey, Harry Black and the Tiger deals with the personal traits inherent in the nature of men, and what separates them from adult males.

There's nothing phony in this story. The characters' true selves and motivations are laid bare like raw nerves. The tension is incredible for those who appreciate the essence of the interactions and inner struggles of the characters. If you think this movie moves too slowly, you don't get it.

Needless to say,the star is neither Granger nor Rush, but India : the filming on location is absolutely wonderful ,with an effective sense of space of the wide screen and color, a good use of the natives and an Indian actor as the first supporting actor.

The screenplay blends adventure movie and melodrama with mixed results ;sometimes Granger recalls Gregory Peck in "the snows of Kilimandjaro" (1952):cured by Barbara Rush who plays the role of a married with child Susan Hayward ,he remembers his past during WW2,(Spanish civil war for Peck) , when her husband ,then a coward brother in arm costs him his leg. There are also snatches of 'the lost weekend" (1945)when Rush tries to get Granger out of alcohol hell.

The love affair is bland and not very convincing (the the absence of Jim ,a careerist with bright prospects ,does not help :however ,when the boy tells his daddy that a father's got to be a hero and urges him to follow Harry in his tiger hunt (where he dismally fails and shows his cowardice again) this is a good beginning.

The tiger ,as the film progresses,will become Harry's obsession ,even injured ,crippled and alcoholic , he does not renege on his task : the tiger claimed too many lives and love takes a back seat to this endless hunt.

"The Ghost and the Darkness" (1996) is a true story about hunters who sought to kill murderous lions that killed hundreds of people in Africa. I mention this because "Harry Black and the Tiger" is very similar, though not based on a true story AND is set in India. In this case, a rogue tiger has killed a lot of locals and Harry Black (Stewart Granger) is hired to track the animal down and kill it. However, this turns out to be very difficult and deadlier than anticipated...as well as creating lots of opportunities for flashbacks about Harry during WWII and his abortive romance.

The biggest plus about this movie is that it actually was filmed in India....and it looks very good as a result. It also, fortunately, lacks the awful stock footage you often see in such films and the tiger portions are tense. It also is benefitted from a modestly interesting romance and backstory. Well worth seeing and very well made.