The drums of death by the great river
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Drums death at the great river Death Drums Along the River (UK) |
 | |
| Country of production | Great Britain , Germany |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1963 |
| length | 84 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Lawrence Huntington |
| script |
Peter Welbeck , Nicolas Roeg , Kevin Kavanagh , Lawrence Huntington |
| production | Harry Alan Towers |
| music | Sidney Torch |
| camera | Bob Huke |
| cut | Alan Morrison |
| occupation | |
| |
Death Drums on the Great River is a British-German adventure film (English-language title: Death Drums Along the River ), which is based on motifs from the novel Sanders vom Strom (Original title: Sanders of the River ) by Edgar Wallace . The main roles are cast with Richard Todd , Marianne Koch , Albert Lieven , Vivi Bach and Walter Rilla .
In Germany, the film, which the British director Lawrence Huntington directed in South Africa and London in the summer of 1963 , was marketed as the 17th contribution and the first color film in the Edgar Wallace series .
action
Police inspector Sanders is supposed to ensure peace and order in the African colony of Gondra, which lives only from growing peanuts. When the diamond smuggler Bongola stabs a police officer in the docks of Gondra and escapes, Sanders takes up the chase, only to discover that the smuggled diamonds made their way through the clinic of the world-famous doctor Dr. Take tailor. During his research on the ship "Zaire" he met the doctor Dr. Inge Jung, who is just starting her service in Dr. Tailor to compete. As a result of an act of sabotage, the ship's machines fail, so that Sanders and the young doctor have to spend the night on the riverbank. In the clinic, Dr. Jung then made the acquaintance of Dr. Weiß, the servile assistant of the clinic director, and meets the pretty young nurse Marlene. Dr. Schneider explains to Sanders that he can identify the knife with which the policeman was killed. It belongs to Bongola, who lives in the nearby village of Fundaba. The men go there together and hear the drums from afar, which experience has shown heralding the death of a villager. The funeral is already in full swing when they reach their destination. Sanders interrupts the ceremony and, under dramatic circumstances, opens the coffin that is said to contain Bongola's body, but finds it empty.
That same night, Sanders Bongola sets a trap. But when he tries to arrest him, he suddenly collapses, hit by a gunshot. His killer escapes. Sanders returns to Gondra and continues his research. At the same time, the situation in Dr. To Schneider, who is terminally ill. So it happened that Inge expressed her worries to Dr. Entrusted to White. Marlene, on the other hand, that Dr. White is coveted, has fallen in love with the American writer Hunter and he with her. Hunter has also discovered that there is a large diamond mine on the premises where the hospital is located. Before he can make his knowledge public, he too is murdered. Marlene discovers his body and is sent downriver by Inge to Sanders for help.
But Sanders has now discovered the secret of the diamond mine and is already on the way up the river. The Australian businessman Pearson, who has been suspected by Sanders from the beginning without anyone being able to prove anything, threatens Marlene, who is able to escape. Shortly afterwards he also threatened Dr. Cutter. As it turns out, the real villain is called Dr. Knows who only hired Pearson as the middleman to sell the diamonds. The doctor went even further in his greed and wanted Dr. Murder tailors to be the sole owner of the diamond mine. Sanders arrives just in time to intervene. However, White manages to shoot Pearson and flee with his boat, where he leads Dr. Takes young hostage. Of course, Sanders is in pursuit. The doctor manages to escape. But white falls victim to a crocodile without Sanders being able to intervene. Marlene is drawn back to Europe, while Inge Jung wants to start a new life in Africa, to which Sanders has played a not insignificant role.
Production and Background
It is a Towers production distributed by Constantin Film .
Producer Harry Alan Towers also wrote the screenplay for his first of three Edgar Wallace films under the pseudonym Peter Welbeck . The film's exterior shots were shot on location in Durban and what is now the iSimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa . The interior recordings took place at Bray Studios in London . In addition to the actors listed, eleven South African actors and an entire Zulu village with dark-skinned people and their real chiefs, medicine men and warriors armed with Assegais , dark-skinned dancers and even a dead person who was about to be buried according to the sacred rites of the natives took part. The highlight of the first week of shooting was the shooting in the Zulu village, which was about 40 miles from Durban in the Valley of a Thousand Hills and is known for its wild beauty.
The short stories in the book Sanders vom Strom were first used in 1935 as a template for the British film Bosambo (original title: Sanders of the River ) , which appeared in Germany in 1950, with Leslie Banks and Paul Robeson in the leading roles. In 1964/65 Towers produced another Edgar Wallace film based on the Africa novel: Sanders and the Ship of Death . Artur Brauner's Edgar Wallace film The Devil Came From Akasava (1969/70) was also based on motifs from this novel.
Cinema release and DVD
The film, produced by Harry Alan Towers in Techniscope and Technicolor , was shown in German cinemas on December 20, 1963. In the UK it started on March 27, 1966.
In Colombia the film was released on August 12, 1965 under the title Tombores de muerte , in Spain under the title Inquietante suceso en Gondra , in Greece under the title O aetos tou megalou potamou , in Italy under the title Tamburi sul grande fiume and in the USA under the title Sanders .
The Drums of Death at the Great River was released on August 15, 2014 by Alive AG as part of its "Film Jewels" series on DVD.
Reviews
"Like many of his predecessors, director Lawrence Huntington is only able to get the African scene under control with great effort, although he does his best to resist the temptations of cultural films."
“Color adaptation of an Africa novel by Edgar Wallace with beautiful nature shots. Only exciting in parts. "
“This English Wallace film is a clever mix of a crime thriller and an African adventure. Lawrence Huntington staged the mysterious diamond murder game in an African bush hospital in a typically English style, almost documentary, but exciting enough. As a police inspector Saunders [sic!] Richard Todd proves himself sympathetic. At his side Marianne Koch, Walter Rilla, Albert Lieven, Bill Brewer and - once completely different - Vivi Bach. "
"Wallace knew Africa better than his directors."
“The film [...] delivers solid tension dramaturgy. (Rating: average) "
"Quite exciting in parts, with beautiful nature shots."
German version
The German actors Albert Lieven , Walter Rilla and Marianne Koch synchronized themselves and can be heard with their own voices. Other voice actors were:
| role | actor | Voice actor |
|---|---|---|
| Sanders | Richard Todd | Holger Hagen |
| Marlene | Vivi Bach | Ursula Herwig |
| Pearson | Bill Brewer | Erik Jelde |
| Hunter | Robert Arden | Horst Naumann |
| Hamilton | Jeremy Lloyd | Horst Sachtleben |
literature
- Edgar Wallace: Sanders from the river (Original title: Sanders of the River ). German by Richard Küas. Goldmann, Munich 1981, ISBN 3-442-06435-X .
- Joachim Kramp , Jürgen Wehnert: The Edgar Wallace Lexicon. Life, work, films. It is impossible not to be captivated by Edgar Wallace! Verlag Schwarzkopf & Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-89602-508-2 .
- Joachim Kramp : Hello! This is Edgar Wallace speaking. The story of the legendary German crime film series from 1959–1972 . 3. Edition. Verlag Schwarzkopf and Schwarzkopf, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-89602-645-3 .
Web links
- Death Drums Along the River in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Death Drums at the Great River Movie Poster
- The drums of death by the great river . New film program, No. 3371
Individual evidence
- ^ Illustrated film Kurier No. 3: Death Drums on the Great River , United Publishing Companies Franke & Co. KG, Munich, p. 5
- ↑ Valley of 1000 Hills Image at touring-afrika.de
- ↑ Death drums at the great river DVD of the series "Jewels of Film History" at jpc.de
- ↑ Death drums on the great river. In: Abendblatt.de. Hamburger Abendblatt , February 12, 1964, accessed on May 27, 2018 .
- ↑ Death drums on the great river. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
