Simply Perfect

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Unique & Great Movie if you like Burt Lancaster at his athletic finest...I did...OK, flimsy/iffy plot & but realistic to many of us who've never gotten to the South Pacific...Beautiful photography...In line with the masses' attitudes towards South Pacific natives at the time...They were still exotic...Although, this movie was filmed during thermo-nuclear tests in the South Pacific, especially by France & America...It shows the vast gap between two cultures & their inevitable clash...1st world capitalism greed versus 4th world innocents in their belief in the value of an absurd commodity...Whatever works to whoever's favor, as Burt's character proves...As his majesty, O'Keefe is humbled?, as he acquires his maiden (a beautiful, young, English turned native chick)...I like this movie...If you really think about it, given Burt Lancaster's life long & uncompromising liberal stance, then this movie is right up his alley as a statement during the McCarthy era political times...As a reality check in many ways, to those who might use the ultimate weapon of destruction, and the hell with anyone else who might be only able to kneel naked before their particular God...Long live Burt with his great physique as a younger man, and his forward looking political views which will last forever...Just like his unique films...

Right on the heels of his first Academy Award nominated performance in From Here To Eternity came this film which was a return to the more traditional roles Burt Lancaster did in his early years. Besides the charismatic actor's presence, His Majesty O'Keefe boasts some splendid location photography in the Fiji Islands. And most of you thought it was Marlon Brando who discovered the South Seas in that remake of Mutiny on the Bounty.The year is 1870 and Captain O'Keefe (Lancaster) is set adrift by his mutinous crew in the same manner John Wayne was in Wake of the Red Witch. But he manages to be rescued on the island of Yap by the natives and given shelter by German missionary Andre Morrell.Lancaster's not a man to pass an opportunity up when he sees all the unpicked coconuts around which will yield the valuable copra. The trick is to get the natives to work for it. Before long Lancaster is mixing in the political situation on Yap among the various tribal chiefs and in the European politics where all kinds of powers are making their presence felt in the South Pacific.In fact the South Seas were undergoing colonization then much like Africa and Asia. By the end of the 19th century even before the Spanish American War when we took over Spain's colonies there, we were among many powers like the British, Germans, French, Spanish, and the Japanese who were expanding into the Pacific.Because he leads a rescue of the island from out and out slavers led by Charles Horvath, Lancaster is proclaimed a King of Yap. But the crown carries responsibilities and people who resent him having it.Lancaster playing a larger than life role and the splendid location cinematography of Fiji make His Majesty O'Keefe fine viewing and it holds up well today. A must for Burt Lancaster's many fans.

This film is not Lancaster's best but is enjoyable if you enjoy watching him in his athletic prime. Beautifully shot, it captures the exciting times of adventure on the high seas and island exploration. The plot is fairly insubstantial and there's nothing new here but at just over 90 minutes, the story never drags. Definitely worth a look if you're a fan of Burt's.

Aside from some good old studio stand-bys, like Benson Fong and Philip Ahn (A Korean usually cast as some other Asian), this film has few of the faces that hung around the screens of Hollywood. But, Lancaster teamed up with the lovely Joan Rice from the UK to give us a wonderful tale of adventure in the South Seas. This time, it takes us to the Solomons to the island of Yap, who worship the stone Fey, spirits who reside in stone wheels cut and transported nearly a thousand miles. O'Keefe winds up becoming their king but with profit in mind. He wants to exploit the copra market but the Yap Islanders won't work. So, he hits on the plan to bring their Fey back and this is the beginning. The Solomons were part of the old German trust Islands and there actually was a man named O'Keefe who slipped in by marrying a local girl. But, the Germans, unlike in the movie, eventually kicked him out until they were kicked out after the first world war and then the Island went to the Japanese who were kicked out after the second world war and then...well, you get the idea. I loved this film when I saw it as a kid. No, it's far from perfect but it is a charming story with lots of action and Burt was at his best. But, those beautiful green eyes of Joan Rice were a delight as well. It's too bad we saw so little of her afterwards. Also, there's a lovely song from this film, based in part on Rachmaninov's rhapsody, called Sweet Emerald Isle. Check it out.