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Skullduggery

  • 1970
  • PG
  • 1h 45m
IMDb RATING
4.7/10
547
YOUR RATING
Skullduggery (1970)
The missing-link is found on a safari in New Guinea. Is it human or animal?
Play trailer2:07
1 Video
35 Photos
Adventure

A female anthropologist goes on an expedition to a remote location in Papua New Guinea searching for ancient human remains, accompanied by a fortune seeker looking to mine a rare mineral. Th... Read allA female anthropologist goes on an expedition to a remote location in Papua New Guinea searching for ancient human remains, accompanied by a fortune seeker looking to mine a rare mineral. There, they encounter a new species of ape.A female anthropologist goes on an expedition to a remote location in Papua New Guinea searching for ancient human remains, accompanied by a fortune seeker looking to mine a rare mineral. There, they encounter a new species of ape.

  • Directors
    • Gordon Douglas
    • Richard Wilson
  • Writers
    • Nelson Gidding
    • Vercors
  • Stars
    • Burt Reynolds
    • Susan Clark
    • Roger C. Carmel
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    4.7/10
    547
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Gordon Douglas
      • Richard Wilson
    • Writers
      • Nelson Gidding
      • Vercors
    • Stars
      • Burt Reynolds
      • Susan Clark
      • Roger C. Carmel
    • 18User reviews
    • 16Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Theatrical Trailer
    Trailer 2:07
    Theatrical Trailer

    Photos35

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    Top cast32

    Edit
    Burt Reynolds
    Burt Reynolds
    • Douglas Temple
    Susan Clark
    Susan Clark
    • Dr. Sybil Greame
    Roger C. Carmel
    Roger C. Carmel
    • Otto Kreps
    Paul Hubschmid
    Paul Hubschmid
    • Vancruysen
    Chips Rafferty
    Chips Rafferty
    • Father 'Pop' Dillingham
    Alexander Knox
    Alexander Knox
    • Buffington
    Pat Suzuki
    Pat Suzuki
    • Topazia
    Edward Fox
    Edward Fox
    • Bruce Spofford
    Wilfrid Hyde-White
    Wilfrid Hyde-White
    • Eaton
    William Marshall
    William Marshall
    • Attorney General
    Rhys Williams
    Rhys Williams
    • Judge Draper
    Mort Marshall
    Mort Marshall
    • Dr. Figgins
    Michael St. Clair
    • Tee Hee Lawrence
    Booker Bradshaw
    Booker Bradshaw
    • Smoot
    John Kimberley
    • Epstein
    James Henry Eldridge
    • District Officer
    Totty Ames
    • Motel Manager
    James Bacon
    James Bacon
    • Commentator
    • Directors
      • Gordon Douglas
      • Richard Wilson
    • Writers
      • Nelson Gidding
      • Vercors
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews18

    4.7547
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    Featured reviews

    Jeepster67

    Just a poor shadow of the original film

    I must have unknowingly been in the test audience for the original version of this film at a local drive-in theater in 1970. I recently saw the current version on TV again, and was shocked at the mutilation of the original plot. The movie I remember was longer and the missing scenes and dialogue comprised a biting satire of race relations that still resonates in my memory today. The present version of the film has sadly had the best scenes and lines excised out, in the name of avoiding controversy in 1970.

    We have come a long way since then. This film was far more entertaining in it's original form, and deserves re-release in a Special Edition or Director's cut DVD!
    6Ed-Shullivan

    Burt and Susan sparkle together, and the panoramic scenery is beautiful

    The cinematography in Technicolor has always appealed to me and scenes such as the tribal women rowing their four (4) large canoes with the archaelogical safari team and their supplies down the New Guinea river(s) infested with killer native tribes, snakes, and crocodiles, injects the needed adventure and to stamp this movie as a bona fide thriller.

    Burt Reynolds and Susan Clark are excellent choices as the two male and female leads who both have romantic inclinations but for very different reasons. The audience is asked to form their own opinion on what their discovery of the Tropi tribe means to the human race.

    As with many of the world controversies regarding racism, evolution, slavery, and the industrial revolution, the film Skullduggery will leave you with some questions as to what is fair and what is right when a new discovery such as the Tropi tribe is uncovered.

    Skullduggery (1970) starts off as a combination of adventure with some light humor and a romantic twist thrown in for good measure, but it was not how I expected the film to transpire as I had been impressed by Burt Reynolds performance in the later (1972) film Deliverance. Not to say I was disappointed in the film Skullduggery, as I was not. I really enjoy scenic pictures of far away corners of the world, and the directors Gordon Douglas and Richard Wilson captured the landscape of New Guinea with crisp and clean panoramic views of the green forests, huge mountains, and seedy crocodile infested waters.

    I enjoyed Skullduggery and will most likely watch it again in a few years. This review is somewhat of a personal reminder to confirm a thumbs up review which I give a 6 out of 10 IMDb rating.
    8aromadon

    It's clear some reviewers weren't mature enough for this film....

    This was not a film about "action", nor was it "boring", unless you are the type that requires external stimulation as a substitute for actually thinking. This was a very poignant film about human rights and what, exactly, being human means. As another reviewer said, the climactic ending brought me to tears. This is not a film that should be viewed by a bunch of kids at a sleepover... it will be totally lost and wasted on them. This is a film that should be shown in every political science and philosophy class for discussion. Don't let the pathetic reviews scare you away if you can find this movie... it was the viewer that was lacking, not the film...
    8ppyo

    Skullduggery - En busca del eslabón perdido

    I watched this movie in the early seventies, at my hometown in Mexico. I must have been 14 or 15 at the time. I liked the movie a lot not because of the acting, but because of the subject, which captivated me. The ethical and philosophical question of what constitutes humanity. Maybe the cinematographic quality of the film is not great, but having seen this movie only once and still remembering its impact on me after almost forty years is a tribute to its merits. I remember vividly the shock the climax scene caused in me, and the anger at the injustice done to the poor critters, and their unresolved fate, which undoubtedly would not be a good one if we go by the conventional wisdom of the time. I do believe this movie is much better conceptually than it is generally considered. I hope it will someday be released on DVD. I would certainly buy it.
    5TheFearmakers

    Perplexed Genres

    Between an eclectic television career and hitting big with the big-screen DELIVERANCE, Burt Reynolds appeared in mostly westerns and/or adventure b-movies... two of the latter titled IMPASSE and then SKULLDUGGERY, with Reynolds as one of those cocky fortune hunters, here smitten with classy female scientist Susan Clark while paired with friendly sidekick Roger C. Carmel...

    But right when the expedition into the scenic, potentially perilous mountains of Papua New Guinea begins... with the man and dame sleeping together too quickly to evolve into an AFRICAN QUEEN-style anti-chemistry romance... a group of ape-like/missing-link creatures are discovered, and quickly exploited...

    First in a spontaneous, companion-like fashion by Reynolds, trying to make something of the country's phosphorus that he was initially seeking... then becoming burdened slaves to sophisticated British heavies in what's offbeat enough to derive from European cinema before confusing American audiences, never capturing any particular audience, cult or otherwise, since Burt Reynolds was relatively unknown...

    Although he's more affable and loose than the rudimentary monotone before discovering the value of self-deprecating scoundrels... and the moral dilemma turned third-act courtroom drama about enslaved primal creatures is simply too deep and idealistic for what should be (and what somewhat began as a) traipsing adventure.

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Burt Reynolds claimed "nobody knew how to sell the picture" and that resulted in its failure at the Box Office
    • Goofs
      During a scientific discussion in a court case, the shadow of the microphone is prominently seen on the wall.
    • Quotes

      Douglas Temple: Sybil, I'm going to tell you something I've never told a woman before; your fly is open!

    • Crazy credits
      The Earth in the Universal logo zooms to New Guinea.
    • Connections
      Referenced in Svengoolie: The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (2019)

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    FAQ

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 6, 1970 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Abenteuer in Neuguinea
    • Filming locations
      • Samoa
    • Production company
      • Universal Pictures
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    • Budget
      • $4,500,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 45 minutes
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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