Escape to Burma (1955)

the leading man is my tpye

The movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

This adventure movie produced by RKO , Radio Picture Inc , deals with a man on the run for a killing he did not commit and he finds refuge and romance in an isolated jungle mansion . As a local prince in British Burma has been murdered , apparently by his prospecting colleague called Jim Brecan (Robert Ryan) . The bereaved daddy wants Brecan's head , no questions asked , but Captain Cardigan (David Farrar) of the colonial Rangoon District Force hopes to encounter him first for a fair trial . As the fugitive in British Burma hides on a teak plantation and find solace in the arms of a rich owner called Gwen Moore (Barbara Stanwick) . Brecan finds certain protection , thanks to a mutual attraction with Gwen and help each other , soon makes him indispensable . In the plantation Jim works as a right-hand man . Later on , they flee and find shelter in a Burmese jungle temple . The jungle , of course, is endangered by some kind of wild life , for this reason they find themselves in a strange atmosphere . There takes places a searing story of sudden love and sudden death in the hot green hell of the Burma jungle.Burma's balmy jungles provide the backstage for a torrid love between Barbara Stanwick and Robert Ryan , in this post-prime Allan Dwan effort . ¨Escape to Burma¨ is a B-adventure movie , a menace melodrama with a wide view of a huge tropical bungalow , exotic scenarios with rage excessively colorful , big bull elephants , an amazing mansion , a love story , chases and many other things . A monsoon , a violent as well as spectacular fighting between Robert Ryan and some bandits , elephants doing pirouette , a likable chimpanzee (though only live in Africa) and an orangutan are among the movie's extra added attractions . Action fans will enjoy the continuous pursuits and confrontations between Robert Ryan and David Farrar . Furthermore, an exciting final climax at the mansion in which the protagonists are besieged by an army . This picture bears remarkable resemblance to ¨Elephant walk¨ (1954) by William Dieterle that contains a similar jungle scenario (Sri Lanka) , elephants and known actors as Elizabeth Taylor , Peter Finch and Dana Andrews . ¨Escape to Burma¨ packs a colorful cinematography print in Technicolor by John Alton who along with Nicholas Musuraca are considered to be two of the best cameraman specialized in Noir cinema . Thrilling as well as evocative musical score by Louis Forbes . This quickie was professionally directed by Allan Dwan , a craftsman working from the silent cinema . He was Gloria Swanson's favorite director and after he began to work for Triangle in 1916 , he also won the respect of Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford , who were , at that time, the most powerful couple in the film business . Dwan directed over 1400 films , including one-reels, between his arrival in the industry (circa 1909) and his final film in 1961 . Among them some good Western as ¨ Restless breed¨, ¨The rivers edge¨, ¨Cattle Queen of Montana¨ and ¨Montana Belle¨ , being ¨Silver Lode¨ is his unqualified masterpiece . ¨Escape to Burma¨ results to be an acceptable and passable picture . Watchable results for this classic adventure movie .

"He's made love to you, hasn't he?" snarls policeman Cardigan to teak plantation owner Gwen Martin. "Women always think they're sure of a man who makes love to them...but they never are." We're in Burma, and the object of Cardigan's anger and Gwen's love is Robert Brecan (Robert Ryan), accused of murdering the son of the Sawbwa. Brecan is on the run and meets Gwen (Barbara Stanwyck) by chance at her isolated plantation. The two fall almost instantly in love. But the Sawbwa wants the killer of his son so he can deal out justice the old-fashioned way...death by a thousand lashes. Cardigan (David Farrar) wants him to stand trial in Rangoon. Brecan, taciturn and tough, says he didn't kill the prince but won't say anything more. Justice finally is done, but only after we deal with a bag of rubies, happy natives, cute baby elephants, amusing chimps, murderous bandits and the plague. The movie has some of the most awful dialogue Stanwyck and Ryan ever had to deal with. "Why would a woman like you want to spend her life in a teak forest?" asks Ryan of Stanwyck. She thinks for a moment. "I like it...I've grown up with the elephants." "Just the same," he tells her, "it's a tough job for a woman." Stanwyck and Ryan had starred together three years earlier in Fritz Lang's Clash by Night. Perhaps they thought they'd get lucky again. Ryan sometimes looks as if he can't wait for the movie to end. Stanwyck, now 48, is an actress you pay attention to, but now she requires careful makeup and lighting. For David Farrar, a fine actor, this was just one of several ridiculous movies he made in Hollywood after he left England in 1951. There, he'd starred in Black Narcissus, The Small Back Room, Gone to Earth and other fineor interesting films. In Hollywood, he was stuck with things like The Black Shield of Falworth, The Sea Chase and Solomon and Sheba, usually in third billing. He called it quits when he was 54 and took up farming in South Africa. If you like jungle adventures, try the novels of Mark Derby, an English author long forgotten. He wrote during the Fifties and most of his stories take place in Southeast Asia. His books are all out of print, but can be found with persistence. Two of my favorites are Sun in the Hunter's Eyes and The Sunlit Ambush.

Allan Dwan seems more interested in filming the elephants than he is in directing his actors.Most of the time,excellent actors such as Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Ryan are left to their own devices:it's obvious in their first meeting and in the intimate scenes.As for the story,if you have not guessed that Ryan is not guilty long before the extravagant "explanation" ,you are very naive.At times,it looks like an Asiatic western,the elephants replacing the horses.It's an interminable chase ,with a stubborn English cop,nasty natives, a meal in the jungle where the heroes eat elephant stuffed with tiger or the reverse and precious stones .

Escape to Burma is just one of a series of adventure features starring the estimable Barbara Stanwyck. However, where this film stands out above many of her other pictures from this period is that the supporting cast can actually act.In fact, the male actors Robert Ryan and David Farrar, are so good in their roles as outlaw and law enforcer that they almost overshadow the matriarch Stanwyck herself. Almost.Escape to Burma is standard Hollywood fare, but entertaining nevertheless; ideal for a rainy day. There are much worse ways to spend 85 minutes.