Flame of the Islands

This film is a gem, epitomising the best of 1950's ' trashy films '. It is Camp in its way, and there are scenes of Yvonne de Carlo getting drunk in it worthy of Susan Hayward. The version I saw had lost some of its glowing colours, but better a poor copy than no copy at all. It has everything you want in this kind of ' exotic ' film of the period, when the poor flocked to their local cinemas to see places that only the rich could afford to go to. And often the dream is better than the reality, and in films like this Hollywood excelled peddling such dreams for a low price of admission. Howard Duff and Zachary Scott add to the colour of gamblers doomed to eventual failure, and there is a very camp scene where de Carlo swims to safety with a tall blond hunk, and both sexes would have swooned at such an erotic scene of tropical paradise. Track it down. Unavailable to find on DVD ( prove me wrong ) it should be restored to its glorious, if garish colour, and the 1950's furniture is an antique dealer's dream in itself. A definite 8 for those who need trash cinema as well as cinematic classics. And Yvonne de Carlo was definitely a presence on screen to be fondly remembered or for those who cry, who's she ? to discover.

It is surprising that two Universal Studios stars, "home" stars - Yvonne de Carlo and Howard Duff - of this period played in a Republic Pictures film, precisely in a category of movies which Universal was specialized in.... A Republic Film directed by a "home" Paramount Studios film maker: Edward Ludwig. Who also gave us WAKE OF THE RED WITCH, though, for Republic. Adventure, exotic, colorful, enchanted settings films, romance or noir. It was a Paramount or Universal companies trade mark. More then any other studio. The overall atmosphere seems close to Bruce Humberstone's SOUTH SEA SINNER, produced by Universal Pictures, also an adventure drama taking place in modern period, including more or less noir elements. Edward Ludwig was also a Paramount Pictures film maker, more than Republic Pictures.

Having a Caribean cocktail with the stunning Yvonne De Carlo is always a welcome treat. Watering down a highball glass full of shiftless men (with one exception) who she encounters along the way is a daunting prospect. De Carlo's "Bahama Mama" is the swivel stick that stirs the island economy. She inherits a hefty sum of cash and quickly enlists Zachary Scott to accompany her to the Bahamas where she purchases a resort/casino. All of the female characters seem to be harboring dark secrets. The male characters, however, come off as clueless (Duff doesn't even recall having a past relationship with Miss De Carlo.) or righteously noble (Arness has the hots for De Carlo but would rather see her return to the mainland, before losing her dignity and money chest.) Arness' character is steadfast against the vice of gambling. He's always preaching against the evils of the roulette wheel. Sleazy Kurt Kazner, yet another investor, has eyes for the female lead, too, but also has ties to some unsavory gangsters. Duff's memory returns and he begins to woo the sultry Yvonne, but Duff's mother is an impediment. She dislikes show people (Decarlo is a singer) or anyone else she feels is beneath her son's station in life. Tough courting rules. Along the way, Decarlo sings and dances up a tropical storm. Her three musical numbers slyly comment on the action taking place on the screen. One reggae-riff, while she's in a drunken stupor, is a highlight. Multiple scandals pop up along the way; secrets are revealed. Duff's meddlesome mother is in the center of things. It all leaves you guessing and a bit perplexed. Set during the Christmas season, the exotic scenery and super bright day-glow colors leap (lords a leaping) from the screen. This film was written by the same woman who penned the Christmas classics Beyond Tomorrow and Christmas in Connecticut. Flame of the Islands completes the yuletide trilogy in fine fashion.

I'm sure the cast and crew of Flame Of The Islands was grateful to Herbert J. Yates and Republic Pictures for a nice vacation in the Bahamas which were still a British colony when the film was released. The scenic cinematography of the Bahamas is the best thing that this film has going for it next to Yvonne DeCarlo's beauty. A pair of natural wonders.

As to the film itself it's a muddled cross between an action adventure film and a Back Street soap opera which I had trouble figuring out. Career woman DeCarlo is summoned by the widow Frieda Inescourt and given $100,000.00 in hush money as DeCarlo was Inescourt's late husband's Katharine Hepburn to his Spencer Tracy.

She takes the money and goes to the Bahamas to invest it in a new gambling club with Kurt Kaszner and on general principles one does not go into business with Kaszner and the characters he plays. Along for the ride is Zachary Scott. While in the Bahamas she meets up with both preacher/beachcomber James Arness and society lion Howard Duff and his Barbara O'Neil. Back when she was a teen Duff did her wrong.

One thing that you can rely on is that every male member in this cast was panting hot and heavy for Yvonne. Even the gangsters that Kaszner brought in as silent partners were giving her the once over. Who in this soap opera will Yvonne wind up with. That's for you to find out by watching.

A most subpar soap opera helped by Yvonne DeCarlo and those low cuts items she wears.

Flame of the Islands is usually described as a story of a woman and the men in her life, but the heart of the story is about three women: Rosalind Dee, (Yvonne de Carlo); the woman of whose husband she was supposedly mistress, (Frieda Inescort), and the mother of the boy she had loved as a teenager, (Barbara O'Neil). Rosalind is a good woman corrupted by a desire for revenge over the woman who had destroyed her chance for happiness by separating her from the boy she loved as a teenager, but her revenge, small as it is, redounds on people she has every wish not to hurt. That part of the story is fascinating, and one could wish that the story were used in a more substantial production. Unfortunately, the movie ends with a bit of cheap melodrama not related to that storyline. James Arness plays a lay preacher, and one can't help loving a movie with the line: "OK, boys, stand up. Sing "Jesus Loves Me."

The film has a fine score by Nelson Riddle, incorporating two songs sung by Yvonne de Carlo which are wry commentary on the plot.