A British adventure; A story set during German colonial rule of Tanganyika in 19th Century East Africa. It is about an American engineer who arrives in the Mount Kilimanjaro region to finish building a railroad but he is consistently beset by hostile natives and wild beasts. This film was inspired by the story of the Tsavo maneating lions recounted in the African Bush Adventures by J.A. Hunter and Daniel P. Mannix.
This is a colourful action adventure with some moments of mild suspense and specks of good humour and features wildlife in attractive locations in Moshi, Tanganyika. Robert Taylor plays the indefatigable hero with panache and grace, faced with an assortment of tribulations, including wild animals, cannibals, slave traders. Anne Aubrey plays a rather bland love interest providing no real spark and so it relies on the landscape and exotic culture for diversion. Maltese actor John Dimech ("Lawrence of Arabia") gives delightful support as a young Arab boy. The story is straightforward, depicting indigenous races as unenlightened, merciless or plain greedy, and Anthony Newley is portrayed as an emasculated Brit who regains some self-respect. The romance is underplayed which gives it a monotone feel. All in all, it is a film that progresses to a hectic pace though it has some old-fashioned morals.
