The Southern Star

The picture is set in West Africa where we find a roguish geologist adventurer ( George Segal ) and his helper ( Johnny Sekka ), there both of whom encounter a hot rock . But the gem is nevertheless ownership a magnate ( Harry Andrews ) whose gorgeous daughter ( Ursula Andress )is enamored the rogue adventurer . The chief ( Ian Hendry ) of his private troops schemes to get the girl and the diamond . Besides , an ex-security chief ( Orson Welles ) equally tries to steal the precious gem .

This amusing film displays action , adventures , humor , rip-roaring and lots of fun . The movie is narrated by means of a continuous pursuit in the jungle and we are seeing several African animals although the most by an excessive use of stock-shots , thus stampeding buffalo , elephants , gnus, lions , snake... and a peculiar thief ostrich . This unknown motion picture obtained limited success in spite of a first-rate cast and result to be immensely agreeable . The tale based on Jules Verne novel is regularly directed by Sidney Hayers . Rating : Average but entertaining . It's a good stuff for young people who enjoy enormously with the extraordinary adventures in the lush jungle.

The Southern Star in question is the world's biggest diamond found in 1912 in French West Africa in a mine owned by Kramer (Andrews), whose daughter Erica (Andress) is engaged to Dan (Segal). The diamond is stolen and the chief suspect Matakit (played engagingly by Johnny Sekka), Dan's klepotomanic African friend, takes off. Dan and Erika take off after Matakit and the diamond. Karl, Kramer's security chief (Hendry), takes off after Dan, Erika Matakit and the diamond, hoping to win Erica in the process. To get to his home Matakit must cross territory controlled by Plankett (Welles), Karl's renegade predecessor. We get to see lots and lots of sixties stock footage of African animals, we get to Andress topless, we get to see Welles ham it up. What we don't get is a good film. If you've nothing better to do for two hours on a wet afternoon you could do worse but you really should have something better to do.

The Southern Star is a very big diamond. Someone steals it. George Segal and Ursula Andress, pursued by Ian Hendry, all hampered by the dipsomaniac homosexual ex-Major Orson Welles, attempt to retrieve it, and have encounters with wildlife, humour and danger along the way.

Typically for a 60s Africa movie, the best things about it are the wildlife shots.

Ostriches cause amusing chaos, cobras are scary, hippos are much less frightening than they look, antelopes leap, lions are fierce - you know the sort of thing.

Orson Welles, as usual, steals every scene he's in, and Harry Andrews's obvious enthusiasm for tribal music is a fairly eye-popping sight. Naturally, we have a lengthy scene in which Ursula Andress swims around naked in the lake for the cheesecake shots.

The main action consists of Hendry and some henchmen tracking Segal and Andress through the jungle and is wholly unabsorbing.

There's nothing objectionable or offensive about this movie, but there's nothing much to recommend it either.

The Southern Star is based on a novel by Jules Verne ,one published under a number of different titles .It is most widely known by the title used in the movie but has also been published as "The Southern Star Mystery" and "The Vanished Diamond".

The setting is French West Africa(changed from South Africa in the novel) and the period is immediately before the outbreak of World War One. The star is a large diamond which goes missing and is found by banjo playing American geologist Dan (George Segal).It is actually the property of business tycoon Kramer (Harry Andrews) whose daughter Erica (Ursula Andress)Dan is in love with .Complicating matters is the fact that Kramer's head of security Karl(Ian Hendry)is also after both the diamond and Erica and has a large force of men to ensure he gets both .In particular he has a sidekick Plankett (Orson Welles) a ,man fond of drilling his troops to records of bugle music .

The greatest asset of the movie is its striking location photography of Senegal which ensures the movie is always good to look at .It is also pretty well acted -although I did wonder how Ursula Andress managed to get her hands on full make up ,including mascara ,in the jungle .Welles in particular seems to be enjoying himself hugely .

the action when it comes is fine and the movie has a lot of humour -which is my big problem with it .I prefer my period adventure straight and details like the banjo playing and bugle records grate on me a tad Its a minor grouse ,nothing more and the movie is an enjoyable romp that may have relatively little to do with Verne but is a pleasant diversion on a wet and windy afternoon

An American comedy adventure; An impoverished Yankee geologist searches for a priceless diamond in Senegal. When his partner and the diamond vanish, the geologist is blamed for the crime, and a hunt ensues. Paint-by-numbers direction, poor dialogue, gratuitous photography of African wildlife in cutaway shots, but the cast make the best of it. George Segal shines. Orson Welles plays it wearily and fey with an upper-class English-London accent. Ian Hendry is impressive as the nasty hunter and Ursula Andress is gorgeous in resourceful support. All in all, the photography is good but the plot is preposterously simplistic.