This review is full of spoilers, but I knew the ending before seeing it, and it still affected me.
Although this is really one heckuva dumb film, I found it entertaining in many ways. Hence the rating of 7. I've seen quite a few Hedy Lamarr films, and have a pretty good handle on her style and the breadth of her talent, but nothing prepared me for this. She plays Tondalayo, a native girl in Africa (half Egyptian and half Arab), who seduces and destroys men at a rubber plantation in the jungle. Like many native female types of the time, she speaks in pigeon English (me go, me stay, etc.), that is fairly ridiculous, particularly if you understand how intelligent Hedy Lamarr really was. Her eyes and teeth literally glow through the dark makeup that covered her body. And in spite of how insane the whole idea of this casting was, she came across as hot, potent and sexual, something she hadn't done for me in any of the other films I've seen her in.
As seductive as she tried to be in Technicolor in "Samson and Delilah," the calculated coldness of her character and clunky dialog didn't amount to much. On the other hand, "White Cargo" was shot in b&w, and Tandalayo only appears in night scenes, allowing shadow and light to play across Lamarr's face in interesting ways. She was more beautiful in this than in anything else I've seen her in. Something about the darker skin set off her bone structure in a way her normally porcelain skin tones never did. At least for me. A scene where she dances to a phonograph record is full of sexual fire. Her playful and sensuous moves were quite titillating, so much so that apparently the studio shied away from using as much footage of her as originally intended, cutting away to Richard Carlson watching her with lustful glee. This film was even more jungle sweaty than Clark Gable and Jean Harlow in "Red Dust," ten years before. This time the male leads were played by Walter Pidgeon and Carlson, but in a much different story than "Red Dust."
I've never seen Pidgeon this intense. He plays Witzel, the man in charge of the camp, a hot head with a short fuse. Being stuck in the jungle for years, broken down by the heat and difficulty dealing with natives, certain phrases by newcomers like, "Are the natives friendly?" set him off. His temper exploded so often, it became annoying. On the other hand, it added to the discomfort these characters felt in the situation they found themselves.
Carlson plays Langford, who has arrived to replace a foreman who has been reduced to a drunken sot. Witzel warns Langford that exactly the same thing will become of him before the end of his four year contract. And he warns Langford about Tondalayo. Witzel was seduced by Tondalayo at one time but lived to tell the tale. Within five months, however, Langford has succumbed to both the jungle, drink, and Tondalayo, who seduces him behind Witzel's back. Soon it becomes clear that Langford is on the road to ruin, but he hates Witzel so much because of his animosity towards Tondalayo, he figures out a way of allowing Tondalayo into the camp without her being chased away. Langford marries her.
Tondalayo finds this loads of fun at first, but all she really wants is power and "trinkets." When she comes to understand her wedding vow of "til death do us part," she plots her strategy. Langford succumbs to drink, and her interest in him wanes. He loses his power. What Tondalayo really desires is control over the man in charge, and Witzel is that man. She goes after him for a second try. He almost falls for her seduction, but soon finds that she has been poisoning Langford. She has taken "til death do us part" literally.
In one extremely intense scene, Witzel finds Tondalayo administering what he finds to be poison to an unconscious Langford, grabs the bottle and forces the liquid down her own throat. It's really hard to watch this scene, and both Pidgeon and Lamarr play it well. Tondalayo runs off to collapse and die in the jungle. Still unconscious, Langford is sent on the next boat back to America. As they carry him off to the boat, Witzel calls him "white cargo." Hence the title.
What I find appealing about films like "White Cargo" beyond the exotic setting, is the opportunity for atmosphere and raw, intense drama that takes place in "another world." It's likely that the reason these films aren't made anymore is because science fiction and alien planets have taken the place of jungles and plantations. But science fiction is just too far removed from reality. "Avatar" is probably the closest thing we have these days to something resembling "Red Dust" or "White Cargo." There were a few last gasps of these sorts of films in the 1950s and 60s like Audrey Hepburn in "Green Mansion," or the Marlon Brando "Mutiny on the Bounty." Both films bombed. Even Disney's "Pocahontas," an exotic love story that takes place in a jungle, did poorly compared to its previous hits. Like musicals, exotic adventures stories of these types necessarily had to be transformed into something more contemporary.
"White Cargo" is not a great film by any means, but not all entertaining films need be masterpieces. The story moves with intensity, is well paced, the cinematography exquisitely moody, and there is a beautiful score by Bronislau Kaper, which was one of his first jungle movies. Coincidentally, he went on to do "Green Mansions" and "Mutiny on the Bounty." The main reason to see "White Cargo," however, is Hedy Lamarr. She never did anything like it again.
Although this is really one heckuva dumb film, I found it entertaining in many ways. Hence the rating of 7. I've seen quite a few Hedy Lamarr films, and have a pretty good handle on her style and the breadth of her talent, but nothing prepared me for this. She plays Tondalayo, a native girl in Africa (half Egyptian and half Arab), who seduces and destroys men at a rubber plantation in the jungle. Like many native female types of the time, she speaks in pigeon English (me go, me stay, etc.), that is fairly ridiculous, particularly if you understand how intelligent Hedy Lamarr really was. Her eyes and teeth literally glow through the dark makeup that covered her body. And in spite of how insane the whole idea of this casting was, she came across as hot, potent and sexual, something she hadn't done for me in any of the other films I've seen her in.
As seductive as she tried to be in Technicolor in "Samson and Delilah," the calculated coldness of her character and clunky dialog didn't amount to much. On the other hand, "White Cargo" was shot in b&w, and Tandalayo only appears in night scenes, allowing shadow and light to play across Lamarr's face in interesting ways. She was more beautiful in this than in anything else I've seen her in. Something about the darker skin set off her bone structure in a way her normally porcelain skin tones never did. At least for me. A scene where she dances to a phonograph record is full of sexual fire. Her playful and sensuous moves were quite titillating, so much so that apparently the studio shied away from using as much footage of her as originally intended, cutting away to Richard Carlson watching her with lustful glee. This film was even more jungle sweaty than Clark Gable and Jean Harlow in "Red Dust," ten years before. This time the male leads were played by Walter Pidgeon and Carlson, but in a much different story than "Red Dust."
I've never seen Pidgeon this intense. He plays Witzel, the man in charge of the camp, a hot head with a short fuse. Being stuck in the jungle for years, broken down by the heat and difficulty dealing with natives, certain phrases by newcomers like, "Are the natives friendly?" set him off. His temper exploded so often, it became annoying. On the other hand, it added to the discomfort these characters felt in the situation they found themselves.
Carlson plays Langford, who has arrived to replace a foreman who has been reduced to a drunken sot. Witzel warns Langford that exactly the same thing will become of him before the end of his four year contract. And he warns Langford about Tondalayo. Witzel was seduced by Tondalayo at one time but lived to tell the tale. Within five months, however, Langford has succumbed to both the jungle, drink, and Tondalayo, who seduces him behind Witzel's back. Soon it becomes clear that Langford is on the road to ruin, but he hates Witzel so much because of his animosity towards Tondalayo, he figures out a way of allowing Tondalayo into the camp without her being chased away. Langford marries her.
Tondalayo finds this loads of fun at first, but all she really wants is power and "trinkets." When she comes to understand her wedding vow of "til death do us part," she plots her strategy. Langford succumbs to drink, and her interest in him wanes. He loses his power. What Tondalayo really desires is control over the man in charge, and Witzel is that man. She goes after him for a second try. He almost falls for her seduction, but soon finds that she has been poisoning Langford. She has taken "til death do us part" literally.
In one extremely intense scene, Witzel finds Tondalayo administering what he finds to be poison to an unconscious Langford, grabs the bottle and forces the liquid down her own throat. It's really hard to watch this scene, and both Pidgeon and Lamarr play it well. Tondalayo runs off to collapse and die in the jungle. Still unconscious, Langford is sent on the next boat back to America. As they carry him off to the boat, Witzel calls him "white cargo." Hence the title.
What I find appealing about films like "White Cargo" beyond the exotic setting, is the opportunity for atmosphere and raw, intense drama that takes place in "another world." It's likely that the reason these films aren't made anymore is because science fiction and alien planets have taken the place of jungles and plantations. But science fiction is just too far removed from reality. "Avatar" is probably the closest thing we have these days to something resembling "Red Dust" or "White Cargo." There were a few last gasps of these sorts of films in the 1950s and 60s like Audrey Hepburn in "Green Mansion," or the Marlon Brando "Mutiny on the Bounty." Both films bombed. Even Disney's "Pocahontas," an exotic love story that takes place in a jungle, did poorly compared to its previous hits. Like musicals, exotic adventures stories of these types necessarily had to be transformed into something more contemporary.
"White Cargo" is not a great film by any means, but not all entertaining films need be masterpieces. The story moves with intensity, is well paced, the cinematography exquisitely moody, and there is a beautiful score by Bronislau Kaper, which was one of his first jungle movies. Coincidentally, he went on to do "Green Mansions" and "Mutiny on the Bounty." The main reason to see "White Cargo," however, is Hedy Lamarr. She never did anything like it again.