#zoltan korda

[carbone14]

Humphrey Bogart dans le rôle du chef de char Sergent Joe Gunn dans le film de guerre Sahara réalisé par Zoltán Korda - 1943

[gatutor]

Noble Johnson-Faith Brook "El libro de la selva" (Jungle book) 1942, de Zoltan Korda.

[citizenscreen]

Director Zoltan Korda (May 3, 1895 – October 13, 1961), pictured with Gregory Peck on set of THE MACOMBER AFFAIR (1947)

[rwpohl]

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[randomrichards]

THE DRUM:

Maharaja killed

His son wanted British soldiers

Pro colonial

[johndpg]

SPANKING ON TV #5

The Drum (1938) d. Zoltan Korda

We’re off to the British Raj this time. 14-year-old drummer boy Bill Holder gets into trouble when he’s caught smoking in the barracks. He’s been warned before, so the Sergeant Major bends him over the end of his bed, turns his kilt back and whacks his bare backside with one of his own drumsticks. Pretty hefty whacks too by the sounds of it!

Publicity stills:

The basic plot of the film is jingoism of the highest order, with the Brits trying to track down smuggled shipments of arms on the Northwest Frontier of India to head-off a full-scale rebellion. When the peace-loving ruler of Tokot, a key kingdom in the region, is assassinated, his son Prince Azim goes into hiding. Somewhere along the way he meets and befriends Bill who teaches him how to play the drums. Later Azim is therefore able to bang out a danger signal that saves the British forces from an ambush.

The film went down well with British audiences of the time, no doubt fondly remembering the days of Empire with a tear in their eye, but caused near riots when shown in Bombay and Madras (as they were then called).

It is unknown exactly when the practice of wearing no undergarments under the kilt began. The earliest reference to the tradition was during Waterloo in 1815, but underpants were certainly forbidden by the time of the Raj in India. Indeed, during the First World War, Scottish regiments were inspected by a senior officer who used a mirror to look under kilts; any soldier found wearing underpants was sent back to take them off! We can be confident, then, that the intention is that poor Bill gets his bare arse spanked by the Sergeant Major.

Prince Azim was played by Sabu, a teenage Indian actor who found success in Hollywood during the 1930s and 40s. He was 14 at the time.

Desmond Tester played Bill. He was 18 but had a reputation for playing younger. Previously he was cast by Alfred Hitchcock in Sabotage (1936) as a short-trousered schoolboy called Stevie even though he was 16. He doesn’t get spanked in that film but he is blown up on a bus after being tricked into carrying a bomb by an enemy agent planning a series of attacks on London. Although somewhat slow by today’s frenetic standards, the film was considered shocking at the time. If only they’d known what was coming.

Here's the link to The Drum. Fast forward 9 mins to see the Sergeant Major going Phil Collins on Bill's backside.

And here's another link to Sabotage. It doesn't end well for Stevie at the 54 min mark.

And finally here's a bonus Black Watch soldier giving everybody an eyeful in Hong Kong in 1997.

[technicolorfamiliar]

Technicolor Familiar Watches Too Many Conrad Veidt Movies Part 2 of ?

(More on what this is all about in Part 1)

Disclaimer: I think I get into more plot spoilers here than I did in my last post, incase that matters to any interested parties reading this.

We're getting into the titles where I mostly went in cold, no expectations or even general ideas of what these movies were about beyond brief descriptions on IMDB or Letterboxd.

Oh and, Disclaimer #2: If the creators/editors/scanners of any images used see their work here, please let me know so I can give you proper credit! 🖤

The Thief of Bagdad, 1940 Dir. Ludwig Berger, Zoltan Korda, Tim Whelan, Michael Powell, William Cameron Menzies ⭐2/5 Watched Oct 24, Max Ehhh, I don't know. A lot of people really love this movie. I did not particularly enjoy really anything about it. Sure, it's a groundbreaking technological marvel that set the standard for a lot of future fantasy films. But the story is messy in a way that couldn't be rectified by Movie Magic. All those directors probably account for some of the problems there, but I haven't done a ton of research into the making of the film (what is it with large scale, big budget movies made around this time all having multiple directors?). And, I have to say, putting white actors in brown face is always a tough sell. The third act was partially saved by Sabu and Rex Ingram, two actors of color, having some extended screen time, but only just barely. And frankly, I think Connie, although absolutely glorious in Technicolor, was largely wasted on this one.

Der Student von Prague (The Student of Prague), 1926 Dir. Henrik Galeen ⭐4/5 Watched Oct 29, Archive.org Poor Balduin. All he wanted was a hot, rich girlfriend and what did he get? His evil double chasing him around Prague like Michael Myers. I really loved the old school mirror effects and filming tricks. The updated score in the version I watched was pretty good, too. The final act was excellent. The suspense, the build up -- it's all so well-crafted. And an excellent bridge between high German Expressionism and dramatic period romance. We love to see Connie as the tormented romantic hero. Especially when he's giving face, he's giving eyes, he's giving shapes. I'm having a hard time finding anything negative to say about this one. My only gripe is that it's just a little long, could have had maybe 20 - 30 minutes chopped off (but which 20 - 30 min I could not say).

The Passing of the Third Floor Back, 1935 Dir. Berthold Viertel ⭐4/5 Watched Nov 1, Archive.org This film... it's timeless, actually. I may be a grumpy old so-and-so, but stories where one kind and gentle character comes in and leaves a lasting influence on a bunch of deeply flawed or even outright awful people always get me. For some reason, this is the first of Connie's films from the 1930s on my watch list. Not sure what took me so long, but I was really pleasantly taken aback by his delicately nuanced and subdued performance here. His measured gestures and restraint are so great in this film, and so appropriate for the character. I really appreciate the way the Stranger takes time to consider and see the folks at the boarding house in a way they're clearly not seeing each other. I also love that there's not a lot of exposition or explanation like there usually is in similar pictures: Why is the Stranger there? Who/what is he? Where did he come from? The audience kind of gets an answer at the end, but ultimately nothing more than what we're given matters and wouldn't affect the story anyway.

The Last Performance, 1929 Dir. Paul Fejos ⭐4/5 Watched Nov 4, Youtube Gooped and gagged! Somehow we go from adding a fourth to Erik's polycule to MURDER? I'm so mad so much footage (and a voiceover??) was lost. Can we please talk about the big bisexual energy Connie has in this movie, maybe more than any other film on my list so far? From how he physically handles his costars to how he's styled with the heavy makeup, the tails, the dressing gown, it was a lot to take in, and I am living for it. I'm realizing that, as a performer, he really is a master technician, somehow without anything he's doing on screen coming off as inauthentic or too studied, without "showing the work." Erik's face journey when he kisses Julie's hand and wishes her all the best with Mark is worth watching the whole movie for.

Dark Journey, 1937 Dir. Victor Saville ⭐3/5 Watched Nov 12, Youtube Please believe me when I say I really tried very hard to pay attention to the plot of this movie. But it was extremely difficult as I nearly swallowed my tongue because of how stupidly attractive Connie is as Von Marwitz. He's charming, intense, vulnerable. He really has the range, darling. He's kind of using his lower vocal register a bit which apparently does things to me. (Sorry for all the parentheses in this post, but I was shocked years ago when I saw Casablanca and heard that voice come out of that person. It… it does not go. He's like a early 20th century German Jeremy Irons and I guess I half expected him to sound like that too.) Also, I wasn't into monocles before. I am now. So I have to apologize, I know I said I was going to keep the thirst posts to a minimum but can you blame me? Really? But uh, the movie itself? The story is fine, the script is just ok. There's lots of eye candy with the production design. Vivienne Leigh is doing Vivienne Leigh. And she got that man, so good for her I guess.

Part 3 is going to be all over the place in terms of genre and tone, so we'll see how that goes as I piece together all the stuff I wrote.

[70s80sandbeyond]

The Korda brothers ( Sir Alexander, Vincent, and Zoltan) at the premiere of An Ideal Husband at the Carlton Haymarket in London, 1947

[lostgoonie1980]

301. Sahara - Em Busca da Sobrevivência (Sahara, 1943), dir. Zoltan Korda

[hopefulkidshark]

The Thief of Bagdad

T 1940 ‧ Fantasy/Adventure ‧ 1h 46m

The Thief of Bagdad is a 1940 British Technicolor historical fantasy film, produced by Alexander Korda and directed by Michael Powell, Ludwig Berger and Tim Whelan, with additional contributions by William Cameron Menzies and Korda brothers Vincent and Zoltán. The film stars teen actor Sabu, Conrad Veidt, John Justin, and June Duprez. It was released in the US and the UK by United Artists.

Although produced by Alexander Korda's company London Films in London, the film was completed in California due to the outbreak of World War II.

PLOT

A young thief faces amazing monsters to return Bagdad's deposed king to the throne.

Release date: April 11, 1946 (France)

Directors: Ludwig Berger, Tim Whelan, Zoltan Korda, Michael Powell, William Cameron Menzies

Screenplay: Miklós Rózsa, Miles Malleson, Lajos Bíró

Awards: Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, MORE

Adapted from: The Thief of Bagdad

Distributed by: United Artists

Starring

Conrad Veidt Sabu June Duprez John Justin Rex Ingram Mary Morris

The Thief of Bagdad (1940 film) - Wikipedia

The Thief of Bagdad (1940)

[1001framesofmind]

Is this Johannesburg?

Stephen Kumalo is traveling to Johannesburg in search of his son and sister. He is an umfundisi, a village pastor, in South Africa. He has no idea of the shocks awaiting him in the city…

Receiving critical acclaim for its powerful message and performances, Cry, the Beloved Country (1951) was one of the first Hollywood films to address apartheid and the social/economic disparities between blacks and whites in South Africa.

🎞film: Cry, the Beloved Country (1951) 🎬director: Zoltan Korda 🟣🟣🟣⚪️⚪️

[lastchancevillagegreen]

A Woman's Vengeance (1948) d. Zoltan Korda (poster from Italy)

Thank heaven the title doesn't give way who the real killer is.

[gatutor]

Cartel película "El libro de la selva" (The jungle book) 1942, de Zoltan Korda.

[citizenscreen]

Charles Boyer, director Zoltan Korda and Ann Blyth behind the scenes of A WOMAN’S VENGEANCE (1947)

[qudachuk]

Zoltan Korda’s 1951 adaptation of Alan Paton’s crusading novel is filled with passion and moral fortitudeZoltan Korda’s thrilling movie version of Alan Paton’s novel was first released in 1951, when South Africa’s racist apartheid policy was only three years...

[randomrichards]

THE JUNGLE BOOK (1942):

Mogli falls in love

Deals with bigotry and greed

Lost city treasure