Very Cool!!!

Truly Dreadful Film

People are voting emotionally.

Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

With everybody talking ever so slowly and in monotone speech, this is creakier than the soil above an open volcano. Cheaply made and rushed for the weekend matinee crowd, this has not stood the test of time well. Getting past stereotypes of Arabs and African natives, and even taking into account that the film is of the fantasy/adventure genre, this is difficult to get into and stay interested in. Even with some intentional stupid elements (Otto Hoffman in drag looking like a combination of Old Mother Riley and Whistler's Grandmother; a silly looking ape man mumbling everything but "Ooga Booga!"), this is nearly sleep inducing, not only to its idiotic plotting, but a tinny soundtrack practically music-less.American explorer Walter Miller is accused of murder and escapes from Ranjapur to the wilds of Africa where in 20 something chapters, he faces various challenges while trying to find the real killer and locate secret diamond fields among the blue clay, fighting wild animals, eluding his enemies and protecting Nora Lane, a young lady searching for her missing brother. How the outlandish old lady becomes involved in hiking across jungle and desert terrain is better left unexplained. This only had interest for me for the presence of Boris Karloff as the main villain, a stereotypical Arab, whose slow drawl and deep voice influences Miller when he disguises himself as an Arab. Badly read narration at the beginning of each episode doesn't even help recap how the previous chapter ended, since they each end jarringly and don't give really good cliffhangers in the first place. I'd like to find the edited feature length version which would get rid of all the fat and trim it down to a respectable length.

The longest chapter of course is the first at 32½ minutes. But there is still a considerable variance in the two-reel chapters which range all the way from 21 minutes (6) to 16 minutes (10). Total running time: 248 minutes. U.S. release: March 1931. U.K. release: June 1931. Cut-down feature version (not released in the U.S.): BIMI.SYNOPSIS: The complex story-line involves a lot of folderol about a letter written by a dying Rajah (Miller) which exonerates a young American (also Miller) of his murder and accuses his plotting half- brother (Auer) and his accomplice (Santschi) instead. Matters are complicated by a young man's (Nye) discovery of a diamond mine which an Arab sheik (Karloff) covets. The sheik is joined by the free-booting accomplice (who brings along his obedient ape-man, McLaglen), a vamp (Christie), an animal trader (Potel), and a secret service agent (Lalande).NOTES: Locations outside Yuma, Arizona (desert scenes) and Bronson Canyon, North Hollywood. Interiors shot at Tec-Art Studios, Los Angeles. This was Mascot's third of 23 all-talking serials and was originally to star Harry Carey and Edwina Booth who both became unavailable when called back to M-G-M for re-takes on "Trader Horn".COMMENT: Although it's obvious right from the start that Martha Lalande is no old lady, we know she couldn't possibly be the man in dark glasses because both characters are on screen at the same time in at least two chapters. It does strain credulity a bit when it finally turns out...Never mind! Realism was never a Mascot virtue. Not that it matters when just about each episode — particularly numbers one through five — is so chock-a-block full of high-budget excitement. Six is the economy chapter. And there is a noticeable lessening of both pictorial splendors and thrills thereafter. But still plenty of derring-do, nonetheless.Miller makes an agile hero, but lacks the confidence he was later to assume as a serial heavy. His impersonations are little short of ridiculous, but we like him. Nora Lane, of course, makes a splendid heroine; whilst Santschi plays the villainous Harris to a "T". The big disappointment is Karloff, who acts his Mustapha as a try-out for the duplicitous rajah in some Amateur presentation of "The Green Goddess".Another letdown — though for the opposite reason — is provided by Dorothy Christie, that glorious vamp who is killed off at the end of Chapter Two. Let's hope she received an urgent call from M-G-M. Much as we like Miss Lane, the serial is the sorrier for Christie's absence.Direction is smooth, photography atmospheric.

Robert Grant is an American in the east who bears an uncanny resemblance to a Raja. When the Raja is killed by a tiger he was hunting Grant is forced to take his place so that the Raja's cousin won't seize the throne before the rightful heir can ascend. Unfortunately for Grant his friend Harris sells him out to the evil cousin because Grant refused to hold onto the throne and rape the country of all its wealth. What follows is a long chase as Grant tries to prove his innocence while disguised as an Arab (he's jailed for murder but escapes) and help the only one who knows who he really is find her brother who is being held captive until he relays the location of a diamond mine.Its a complex story that has more chapter breaks then cliffhangers. Shot partially silent this is a good looking serial that is an odd mix of locations that are nowhere near each other (Africa, India, the desert...). Despite not having a music score the film moves along reasonably well, even if the plot does tend to fold back on itself. The cast is pretty good with Boris Karloff one of the baddies looking for the diamond mine. Not the best, nor the worst but worth a look if you're in a forgiving mode, besides where else can you see an ape-man as a henchmen? It should be pointed out that the serial is what many would call racially insensitive. The portrayal of Arabs is mostly as villains and the black natives is of savages with bones through their noses.If you are offended by such portrayals, which were very much of the time this was made, look elsewhere.