Vier Federn (1939)
18KVier Federn: Directed by Zoltan Korda. With John Clements, Ralph Richardson, C. Aubrey Smith, June Duprez. A timid British Army officer has quit and burns his last day summons to a war in Egypt. Calling him a coward, his girl friend and 3 officer friends give him a white feather. In redemption, he shadows his friends in war to save their lives.
“This is one of the best from the now happily recovered u0026amp; preserved great Korda collection(for some years blocked by much litigation)when the huge Denham Studios were on a roll,having arisen from the embers of an earlier fire. Under the sheer dedication of the hungarian Kordas, they simply couldnu0026#39;t fail until in the middle of what must be their most popular hit, The Thief of Baghdad,they were forced to move to the US by the outbreak of WW2. Each brother has left much to posterity. Alex, the entrepreneur was subsequently knighted for his contribution to British films. In a fascinating but poignant BBC documentary of the 70s,on the great studiou0026#39;s rise u0026amp; fall, Elizabeth Bergner {another European import) referred to him as u0026quot;a pranksteru0026quot;. This vividly technicolored remake is splendid adventure, its Sudan locations compare well with those of Lawrence of Arabia and as in u0026quot;Thiefu0026quot; the object of my attention had to be the beautiful, husky young June Duprez. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs in Stanley Bakeru0026#39;s u0026quot;ZULUu0026quot; these giant black warriors are fearsomely portrayed with the scenes inside the primitive prison where the u0026quot;dumbu0026quot; spy Harry Faversham eventually finds himself are quite grim. And as another reviewer has commented, crusty Sir Aubrey as ever is the perfect u0026amp; amusing retired tactician at the start u0026amp; finish. A glare from under those bushy eyebrows was always enough! Great entertainment.”
