Süd Pazifik (1958)

Süd Pazifik: Directed by Joshua Logan. With Rossano Brazzi, Mitzi Gaynor, John Kerr, Ray Walston. On a South Pacific island during World War II, love blooms between a young nurse and a secretive Frenchman who’s being courted for a dangerous military mission.

“When are folks going to give u0026#39;South Pacificu0026#39; an even break? Itu0026#39;s a wonderful film. A great big, colourful, emotional wallow, filled with romance, song, splendor, humor, and expert acting. Sure the colour filters are somewhat jarring. Blame it on the awful prints now (and it seems, forever) in circulation. Back in June 1958 the Films and Filming reviewer put it this way, u0026quot;Logan has hit on the ingenious idea of using colour rather in the way that a composer underscores a films drama with music. As the emotions of his characters find their expression in music, so the cold clear tones of reality dissolve into the warm yellow and red hues of fantasy. I found this a wholly acceptable compromise, and many of the effects (indeed the whole level of the Todd-AO photography) were outstandingly good.u0026quot; Works for me to – and goodness knows Iu0026#39;ve seen them often enough. It also worked for the millions of cinemagoers who flocked to see the film – over and over again. Mind you, had Logan decided to supervise all aspects of the cutting etc., instead of trotting off to direct u0026#39;Blue Denim,u0026#39; Fox might, possibly, have been persuaded to remove the filters before release? Perhaps, with film preservation on so many agendas these days, some of this colour-filter-exasperation could be channeled in that direction.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNow, regarding all this rubbish about u0026#39;South Pacificu0026#39; being a financial and critical disaster? How? In Great Britain, where it had a four-and-a-half year run at the Dominion Theater in London, it recouped three times its negative cost before going into general release. It ran for three-and-a-half years in Sydney and Copenhagen. For over two years in NYC. It even broke box office records in Salt Lake for goodness sake. And this is just the tip of the successful iceberg. The critics? Sure there were dissenters, there always are, for any film. Most, however, echoed the headline which ran in Londonu0026#39;s Daily Mirror, u0026#39;South Pacific is just terrific.u0026#39;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhich brings me to my final irritation, the casting of Mitzi Gaynor as Nellie Forbush. The delicious Mitzi is bloody marvelous in u0026#39;South Pacific.u0026#39; She gives a beautifully multi-layered performance filled with truth and honesty. Her Nellie is real, human, and natural. In scene after scene this immensely talented actress subtly conveys, with humor and great sensitivity, her characteru0026#39;s ever-changing moods. And, again, from NYCu0026#39;s Daily News to Londonu0026#39;s Daily Express, by way of Picturegoer and Films in Review, the majority of critcs agreed that, u0026quot;Mitzi doesnu0026#39;t leave a palm-leaf on the trees when she goes into action.u0026quot;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026#39;South Pacific?u0026#39; It really is terrific.”