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Darker Than Amber

  • 1970
  • R
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
6.1/10
694
YOUR RATING
Rod Taylor and William Smith in Darker Than Amber (1970)
ActionDramaMysteryThriller

Professional beach bum and 'knight errant' Travis McGee goes up against psychotic body-builder Terry Bartell. McGee pulls out all the stops when he joins a Caribbean cruise to bring the kill... Read allProfessional beach bum and 'knight errant' Travis McGee goes up against psychotic body-builder Terry Bartell. McGee pulls out all the stops when he joins a Caribbean cruise to bring the killer to justice.Professional beach bum and 'knight errant' Travis McGee goes up against psychotic body-builder Terry Bartell. McGee pulls out all the stops when he joins a Caribbean cruise to bring the killer to justice.

  • Director
    • Robert Clouse
  • Writers
    • John D. MacDonald
    • Ed Waters
  • Stars
    • Rod Taylor
    • Theodore Bikel
    • Suzy Kendall
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.1/10
    694
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Robert Clouse
    • Writers
      • John D. MacDonald
      • Ed Waters
    • Stars
      • Rod Taylor
      • Theodore Bikel
      • Suzy Kendall
    • 37User reviews
    • 15Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos40

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    Top cast23

    Edit
    Rod Taylor
    Rod Taylor
    • Travis McGee
    Theodore Bikel
    Theodore Bikel
    • Meyer
    Suzy Kendall
    Suzy Kendall
    • Vangie…
    Ahna Capri
    • Del
    • (as Anna Capri)
    William Smith
    William Smith
    • Terry
    Janet MacLachlan
    Janet MacLachlan
    • Noreen
    Robert Phillips
    Robert Phillips
    • Griff
    Jane Russell
    Jane Russell
    • Alabama Tigress
    James Booth
    James Booth
    • Burk
    Oswaldo Calvo
    • Manuel
    Sherry Faber
    • Nina
    Marcia Knight
    Marcia Knight
    • Landlady
    James H. Frysinger
    • Dewey Powell
    Harry A. Wood
    • Judson
    Jack Nagle
    • Farnsworth
    Judy Wallace
    • Ginny
    Michael DeBeausset
    • Doctor
    Jeff Gillen
    • Morgue Attendant
    • Director
      • Robert Clouse
    • Writers
      • John D. MacDonald
      • Ed Waters
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews37

    6.1694
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    Featured reviews

    8flynn1066

    Darker Than Amber

    I've never read any of the novels by MacDonald so I can't comment on book to film accuracy.On the other hand,I'm a huge fan of both Rod Taylor and William Smith.It took me almost ten years to get my mitts on a copy of this manly movie masterpiece.It's got some foreign subtitles on it but who cares,this movie's climactic brawl lived up to every bit of it's hype.No goofy chop sockey stuff just good old fashioned, beat the living hell outta the other guy moves.Taylor and Smith use every thing but the kitchen sink on each other.It's true that the only movie fights that come close are From Russia With Love (who doesn't love seeing two football hooligans like Connery and Shaw trying to kill each other but I digress) and the final throwdown between Rod Taylor and Peter Carsten in Dark Of The Sun.This movie is a holy grail for manly movie fans but all the way worth it.Let's hope it finds it's way to DVD in it's pure,unedited form soon,hopefully with commentary by Taylor and Smith.
    8bobhay

    Good movie, but hard to see

    This is indeed a good movie--a tidy, well-acted and -directed thriller with a good "take" on Travis McGee by the rock-solid and dependable Rod Taylor. But it is a tough one to get to see in its entirety, as some of the other reviewers have noted. Even the commercial prints have a running time of 91 minutes, and they are obviously and clumsily cut (here's a clue: the background music and sound jump drastically). No doubt this is because the violence is graphic for a film of this vintage, although that doesn't explain why it almost impossible to find a complete 93-minute copy here in the 21st century. I found one through a guy who knew a guy and so on--a Dutch copy with Dutch subtitles--and after 30 years of poking around (I was doing other things, too, during these decades) I finally got to see the whole movie. And it was worth it, as it almost always is to see the entire work, as the director (Clouse's next film was "Enter the Dragon") intended it. Some might think 2 minutes out of a film is no big deal (although they might gripe if you handed them a novel with 2 or 3 percent of its pages torn out) but this is too good a movie to snip. And although there have been bigger, longer, bloodier, more you-name-it fights, no two men on screen have ever looked like they are really, desperately trying to hurt each other as much as Rod Taylor and William Smith in the climactic fight in this movie. If you can find it, watch it. Good luck.
    zorroch

    Only rental copy available is an edited TV version.

    I saw this movie 30 years and the memory of the Climatic fight is still in my memory banks. Probably because I went back to see it with my friends. Nowadays fights scene like this are commonplace, but back then this fights only close comparison was Bond's fight in From russia with love. I rented it about five years ago and was disappointed to find that it was an edited tv version with the best scenes cut. A restored version of this movie is a time capsule of Florida, fighting and Females in the late 60's. And a darn good yarn.
    gerdeen-1

    Confusing at times, but worth watching

    Maybe this movie got chopped up a bit after its original release, as I've read, but it was not a model of clarity to begin with. By sheer chance, I saw it when it was having its world premiere in the summer of 1970, and I couldn't always follow what was going on.

    I was a college student visiting downtown Miami for the first time when I noticed the marquee. I knew nothing about the "Travis McGee" character. The only reason I walked into the theater was because I had never seen a world premiere before.

    I couldn't keep a handle on the plot, and I think that weakened the impact of the ending for me. Still, I was favorably impressed overall, because the action was so gritty and realistic. I especially liked the performances of Rod Taylor and William Smith, who were both well known to me. Their big fight scene was as memorable as everybody says.

    Suzy Kendall, whom I had never heard of before, was easy on a young man's eyes. But her character was undefined. She seemed like a decorative jewel that men were willing to die for, and I never got a sense of her as a real person.

    Since that afternoon so many years ago, I have had the pleasure of reading several Travis McGee novels. I like them very much. If I ever wind up seeing the movie again, maybe I'll understand it better.
    7shepardjessica

    Under-rated Cool Film of the Era!

    This "Tough as nails" John MacDonald novel was filmed at the perfect time in American Film History. Rod Taylor (an Aussie) who starred in many American films (as well as high support in GIANT and others) plays Travis MaGee, the lead, with the beautiful, intelligent and TALENTED Suzy Kendall (who nobody I know ever heard of), even though she was in TO SIR WITH LOVE and had a "Julie Christie" kind of appeal in the Kingdom in the 1960's and 70's AND was married to Dudley Moore (ARTHUR) AFTER Tuesday Weld wss married to him. ANyway, Theo Bikel is great - this is like an old Bogie or John Garfield film from the 40's or 50's about corruption and honest, tough private eyes who AREN'T James Bond or TV private eyes who wait for Inger Stevens to save them.

    Well-done, tough MacDonald story (well cast) and I'm not even sure if it's on Vid OR DVD. Check it out.

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    Related interests

    Bruce Willis in Die Hard (1988)
    Action
    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      After viewing the film for the first time, author John D. MacDonald wrote, "I was so convinced it would be utterly rotten, that I was pleased to find it only semi-rotten."
    • Goofs
      McGee's Rolls Royce, Miss Agnes, is a British car. It even has a European license plate. But since McGee no doubt registered the car in Florida, the plate is out of place.
    • Quotes

      Del: Who the hell are you? What are you trying to do to me?

      Travis McGee: I'm trying to warn you, baby, 'cause you're next on the list.

    • Crazy credits
      The opening credits read "Travis McGee is" and then on a separate card "Rod Taylor". Presumably this is not an error but was meant to be cute.
    • Alternate versions
      Television and video versions censor arm breaking fight scene.
    • Connections
      Referenced in Dusty and Sweets McGee (1971)
    • Soundtracks
      Vangie's Theme
      Written by Chip Taylor and John Carl Parker (as John Parker)

      Sung by Jerry Naylor

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    FAQ16

    • How long is Darker Than Amber?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 28, 1970 (Sweden)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • McGee, der Tiger
    • Filming locations
      • Florida, USA
    • Production companies
      • Cinema Center Films
      • Major Pictures Productions
      • Rodlor
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 36m(96 min)
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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