This serial is like a tightly wound spring, delivering a visceral roller-coaster ride of thrills. It is masterful pure story-telling made without artifice or self-consciousness. Each of the fifteen Chapter titles is an attention grabber and provide unadulterated enjoyment.
Oscar nominated writer Don McGuire (for "Tootsie" 1982), amply demonstrates his acting credentials as the eponymous action hero Congo Bill, wearing his emblematic pith helmet. His steely determination and resolve sees him through many tight scrapes and adventures!
Cleo Moore's feminine pulchritude is beautifully displayed in a small tight fitting dress which highlights her classic hour-glass figure. She plays the White Queen, called Lureen (from the Latin meaning "wreathed with laurel"...quite a prescient name for a Queen!). There is a constant frisson of excitement between Lureen and Congo Bill which adds to the viewer's enjoyment.
Stirring music from Mischa Bakaleinikoff heightens the tension of the film. It is a pity serials are no longer made for todays audiences. The cinema serial of our yesterdays borrows from the great tradition of certain nineteenth century writers. The inimitable Charles Dickens and fellow luminary William Makepiece Thackeray's novels were serialized as monthly "Chapters" in periodicals of the day. Serials like Congo Bill hail from noble antecedents.
A menacing and terrifying gorilla features prominently in several of the episodes providing thrills particularly to younger members of the audience. Watch this serial and you will be rewarded with white knuckle twists and turns!
