所罗门王宝藏

The second highest grossing film of 1950 in USA, trailing only behind Cecil B. DeMille’s SAMSON AND DELILAH (1949), KING SOLOMON’S MINES, for what it is worth, is a supernal Technicolor spectacle that brings to the forefront the biosphere of the African continent and unveils the mystique of its indigenous mankind tribes (namely, the Kipsigi Tribe and the Watussi Tribe in Kenya Colony),Taking oceanic liberty with H. Rider Haggard’s popular source novel - for example, the female protagonist is purely the scenarist’s invention - Compton Bennett and Andrew Marton’s film (allegedly the latter replaced the former due to some internal discontent among the crew) hews subserviently to Hollywood’s romanticizing trope as if the exotic land itself isn’t a fecund enough soil to keep audience rapt, who are mad keen to spectate a faraway Continent opening up to them for the first time, could they care less of the burning passion between British safari guide Allan Quatermain (Granger) and his demure client Elizabeth Curtis (Kerr), a married British lady looking for her missing husband, presumably lost in his quest for the titular treasure.That said, Granger and Kerr actually contribute more than what they are allotted to - i.e. the tedious battle of sexes under the backdrop of a terra incognita, their chemistry is torridly felt (and infamously consummated offscreen). Even saddled with a risibly inexplicable hairdo makeover, Kerr’s Ms. Curtis is ravishing to behold, showered in the polychromatic glamor, and a swarthy, husky Granger is well togged up as a proto-Indiana Jones type, not batting an eyelid in the face of whatever adversity, who also diligently utters Kipsigi language as if it is his second nature.Save for the opening elephant-hunting stunt, which looks callously cruel to today’s optics, KING SOLOMON’S MINES downplays the colonialism influence and largely portrays the white people as rubberneckers rather than interlopers of the tribal affairs, although the major upheaval they witness is the overthrow of a current king by an eligible challenger, which betrays an occidental perception towards the primordial civilization and also works as an implicit harbinger of what will happen once the outside world encroaches upon their territory.For the continent’s fauna and flora, the film really breaks a sweat to capture them on camera, so are the tribal dances and close-up portraiture of tribespeople’s individual distinction. The stampede sequences are noticeably manipulated into wholeness by post-production. The ensuing thrill is inevitably dented notwithstanding, the crew’s Herculean undertaking and technique bravura remains grandly meritorious and awe-inspiring.In all fairness, KING SOLOMON’S MINES is less a treasure hunting escapade than a broad travelogue about a foreign land, it contains enough footage to pique your curiosity, but, like most commodities from the Hollywood assembly line, however exquisite it looks, it is lensed through an exoticized, mythicized “white gaze”. There is a mental resistance to truly knowing these strangely donned and extraordinarily looking human beings, any attempt of a deeper communication between two different races is snuffed on the drawing board, why is that? This could be today’s food for thought.referential entries: John Ford’s MOGAMBO (1953, 6.2/10); Steven Spielberg’s INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM (1984, 7.2/10); James Gray’s THE LOST CITY OF Z (2016, 7.7/10).

Title: King Solomon’s MinesYear: 1950Genre: Adventure, Action, RomanceCountry: USALanguage: English, ZuluDirectors: Compton Bennett, Andrew MartonScreenwriter: Helen DeutschBased on the novel by H. Rider HaggardMusic: Mischa SpolianskyCinematography: Robert SurteesEditors: Conrad A. Nervig, Ralph E. WintersCast:Deborah KerrStewart GrangerRichard CarlsonKimursiSiriaqueHugo HaasLowell GilmoreBazigaSekaryongoRating: 6.8/10

1950年，一部电影在美国票房榜上高居第二，却只拿下豆瓣6.9的评分——《所罗门王宝藏》。它拿了奥斯卡最佳摄影奖，金球奖也给了最佳摄影，可如果你冲着获奖名头去看，大概率会昏昏欲睡。先亮数据：本片是1950年美国票房亚军（仅次于《仙履奇缘》），却只有1136人在豆瓣上评价——这本身就说明问题：年代久远、知名度低，连当代观众补番的兴趣都寥寥。实际上整部电影前半小时都在交代人物，地图争夺战拖沓得像上世纪拍电视剧，中间一段沙漠跋涉拍成了风光纪录片，唯一刺激的也就是最后宝藏洞穴的机关戏，但那时候我已经快睡着了。实景拍摄确实牛逼。剧组真的跑了非洲，狮子、大象、荒野都是真家伙，视觉冲击力放在今天也不逊色。可问题是，冒险片的核心是紧张感，不是风光片。导演在动作场面上的调度像个新手——追击戏全靠快镜头晃，一点剪辑节奏都没有。斯图尔特·格兰杰演的艾伦·夸特曼，本该是机智勇敢的向导，结果全程面瘫，唯一贡献就是和黛博拉·蔻儿眉来眼去。而黛博拉·蔻儿呢？全程尖叫和等男人救，女性角色写得比《金刚》里的安还工具人。最致命的是改编逻辑。原著小说里的政治隐喻和种族冲突全被砍了，变成了简单的“坏人抢地图——好人赢”套路。夸夸尼国王塔拉前面铺垫得像个枭雄，最后被一笔带过，俄国沙皇更是打了个酱油就消失。你甚至搞不清谁是头号反派——反正都是脸谱化的“野蛮”或“邪恶”。所以这部片今天看，就是一部绑着奥斯卡摄影金牌的过时冒险片。如果你对非洲原始风光和黄金道具感兴趣，可以拉进度条看几个镜头；否则，别浪费时间。1950年观众没得挑，现在我们有《夺宝奇兵》——那才是寻宝片该有的样子。