The communist uprising in Malaysia following WWII lasted for many, many years and many people were killed. Yet, oddly, it's seldom the subject of films--as if it never took place.
The film begins at the end of WWII---as a MODERN helicopter brings word of the Japanese surrender. Jump forward a decade and two comrades in the struggle against the Japanese have gone on very different paths. One (William Holden) is now a hugely successful plantation owner. The other (Tetsurô Tanba) is now a communist revolutionary--leading the revolt against the interim British government. As for Holden, he's pretty apolitical but his girlfriend (Capucine) is appalled by the stupidity of the British government--she is sympathetic towards the revolutionaries. When she is captured and accused of smuggling weapons for the communists, Holden is finally compelled to take sides.
The film is pretty good, but there is another character that was a bit uneven and a bit annoying. Susanna York plays the daughter of the new governor. She appears a bit kooky and flighty for much of the film--even though everything is deadly serious. Only later in the film does she show her pluck--but this is only after she COMPLETELY inexplicably surrenders herself to the revolutionaries. Had her character been written better, the film could have earned an 8. As is, it's still pretty good and worth a look.
The film begins at the end of WWII---as a MODERN helicopter brings word of the Japanese surrender. Jump forward a decade and two comrades in the struggle against the Japanese have gone on very different paths. One (William Holden) is now a hugely successful plantation owner. The other (Tetsurô Tanba) is now a communist revolutionary--leading the revolt against the interim British government. As for Holden, he's pretty apolitical but his girlfriend (Capucine) is appalled by the stupidity of the British government--she is sympathetic towards the revolutionaries. When she is captured and accused of smuggling weapons for the communists, Holden is finally compelled to take sides.
The film is pretty good, but there is another character that was a bit uneven and a bit annoying. Susanna York plays the daughter of the new governor. She appears a bit kooky and flighty for much of the film--even though everything is deadly serious. Only later in the film does she show her pluck--but this is only after she COMPLETELY inexplicably surrenders herself to the revolutionaries. Had her character been written better, the film could have earned an 8. As is, it's still pretty good and worth a look.