From a bi-lingual publication titled "To capture the doubt. On problems with adapting Joseph Conrad's works" about the writer's associations with film, issued by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute within the framework of the Year of Joseph Conrad.THE WRITER'S FILMOGRAPHY
APOCALYPSE OZ
Short feature film, production: USA, year of production: 2006, director: Ewan Telford, screenplay: Ewan Telford, cinematography: Kev Robertson, producer: Bradley Warden. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
Ewan Telford's short film debut is a synthesis of Heart of Darkness and Wizard of Oz. Dorothy Willard (Alexandra Gizela), a half-Vietnamese, half-American tennage girl, runs away from her uncle and aunt (Amy Lyndon, Don Deforest Paul) and sets out on a journey to find her insane father (M.C. Gainey), a Vietnam war veteran, who is known as the Wizard.
GABRIELLE
aka "Gabrielle - Liebe meines Lebens"
Feature film, production: Germany/France/Italy, year of production: 2005, director: Patrice Chéreau, screenplay: Patrice Chéreau, Anne Louise Trividic, cinematography: Éric Gautier, music: Fabio Vacchi, producer: Joseph Strub, Serge Catoire, Ferdinanda Frangipane. Based on: The Return, 1914.
A steady and ritual-driven marriage of Gabrielle (Isabelle Huppert) and Jean (Pascal Greggory) faces a difficult test. Jean finds a goodbye letter from Gabrielle in which she notifies her husband that she is leaving him for another man (as it turns out, a person despised by Jean). Before he manages to recover from this shock, another one comes - Gabrielle returns. Emotions, long forgotten in their marriage, will accompany the summary of their relationship.
L'OSPITE SEGRETO
aka "Secret Guest"
Feature film, production: Italy (Esse bi - Udine), year of production: 2003, director: Paolo Modugno, screenplay: Andrea Balzola, Rocco Barbaro, cinematography: Marco Carosi, music: Mark Hanna, Sarah Dietrich, producer: Veronica Salvi. Based on: The Secret Sharer, 1910.
Hadi (Ludgero Fortes Dos Santos) runs away from his native country, somewhere in the Third or the Fourth World, and boards a ship commanded by Aliano (Corso Salani). An exceptional relationship is born Between Hadi and the young captain of a naval unit from the First World.
AU BOUT DU ROULEAU
Feature television film, production: France, year of production: 2002, director: Thierry Binisti, screenplay: Xavier Maurel, cinematography: Dominique Bouilleret, music: Luce Mouchelle, Laurent Valero, producer: Pierre Javaux. Based on: The End of the Tether, 1902.
A contemporary version of Conrad's short story. Captain Henri Gallien (Richard Bohringer) has been travelling over the Chinese seas for all his life. When he decides to retire, he learns that his daughter, whom he had not seen for several years, is being held prisoner in France and the only way to free her is to pay 500,000 francs. Captain Gallien agrees to board his ship for the last time and head to the shores of Tan Biet Co owned by the unscrupulous Massy (Jacques Bonnaffé). In spite of his great experience, Gallien, who is gradually losing his sight, commits a number of navigational errors. Because of them, he is deprived of command over the ship in favour of Massy.
APOCALYPSE NOW, REDUX
"Apocalypse Now"
Feature film, production: USA (American Zoetrope), year of production: 2001, director: Francis Ford Coppola, screenplay: John Milius, Francis Ford Coppola, cinematography: Vittorio Storaro, editing: Walter Murch, music: Eleanor Broadwater, Carmine Coppola, Francis Ford Coppola, Shirley Goodman, Dale Hawkins, Leonard Lee, Stan Lewis, Mike Love, Brian Wilson, producer: Francis Ford Coppola, Kim Aubry. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
Apocalypse Now - widely considered to be the best adaptation of Conrad's work - takes the story from Africa to the war-ravished Vietnam. Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) receives orders to liquidate the insane US Army colonel Kurz (Marlon Brando) who is hiding deep in the Cambodian jungle. Kurz, who mutinied against his superiors, founded his own kingdom in the jungle and took the lead of a tribe which fights both against the Americans and the Vietnamese. 22 years after the making of the first version (1979), Coppola revised the footage he had discarded before. The film grew from 153 to 203 minutes. The original Technicolor palette which the film originally employed has been restored as well.
SWEPT FROM THE SEA
"Amy Foster", "Balayé par la mer" (Canada)
Feature film, production: Canada/Great Britain/USA (Tapson Steel Films/Phoenix Pictures), year of production: 1997, director: Beeban Kidron, screenplay: Tim Willocks, cinematography: Dick Pope, music: John Barry, producer: Beeban Kidron, Charles Steel, Polly Tapson. Based on: Amy Foster, 1901, pub. 1903.
The film is set in Cornwall at the end of the 19th century. We learn about the events from a discussion held between doctor James Kennedy (Ian McKellen) and Miss Swaffer (Kathy Bates), who are curious about the reason of his contempt for the servant Amy Foster (Rachel Weisz). Being an illegitimate child, Amy was sent away by her parents to live as a servant with the doctor. Rejected by everyone, the secretive girl helps a young Ukrainian shipwreck survivor Yanko Gooralo (Vincent Perez) - the only person to survive a crash of a ship headed for America. The doctor, amazed by Yanko's unusual skill in chess, teaches the boy English. After some time, he starts to treat him as his son. But when Yanko falls in love with Amy, he is opposed to their relationship. The puritan society, full of hypocrisy, prejudice and dislike, refuses to acknowledge their marriage, which will eventually end in tragedy.
NOSTROMO
aka "Nostromo - Der Schatz in den Bergen" (Niemcy)
Mini television series (The Mine, The Rifles, The Island, The Lighthouse), production: Germany/Italy/Spain/Great Britain/USA (A PIXIT Production for BBC/RAI; TVE; WGBH), year of production: 1997, director: Alastair Reid, screenplay: John Hale, cinematography: Franco Di Giacomo, music: Ennio Morricone, producer: Fernando Ghia, Michael Waering. Based on: Nostromo (1904).
Charles Gould (Colin Firth) inherits a disused silver mine from his father in a fictive South African country called Costaguana. Charles and his wife Emilia (Serena Scott Thomas) arrive in Sulaco from where he fled after his father had been killed by Bento's rebels. Now he intends to reopen the silver mine and is assisted in this effort (up to the moment of its overthrowing) by the local powers. The rebel army led by general Montero (Salvatore Basile) wants to seize the mine. Charles Gould entrusts the silver to Nostromo (Claudio Amendola) and a journalist Martin Decoud (Lothaire Bluteau). The ship is damaged during the cruise. Nostromo and his companion bury the silver on a desert island. Nostromo decides to bring some help, but during his absence Decoud, convinced that he had been abandoned on the island, drowns himself using silver ingots as ballast. When Nostromo returns to the island, he is afraid of being accused of 'stealing' the silver. In a fit of anger directed against Gould, he decides to keep the remaining part of the cargo. While shipping it in secret, he is accidentally shot and dies.
THE SECRET AGENT
aka "Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent"
Feature film, production: Great Britain/USA (Fox Searchlight Pictures and Capitol Films), year of production: 1996, director: Christopher Hampton, screenplay: Christopher Hampton, cinematography: Denis Lenoir, music: Philip Glass, producer: Norma Heyman. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
London in the 80s of the 19th century is a haven for political refugees, immigrants and members of illegal organisations of all sorts. Adolph Verloc (Bob Hoskins) lives in Soho with his wife Winnnie (Patricia Arquette) and her mentally ill brother Stevie (Christian Bale). Verloc runs a small shop that turns in the evenings into a meeting place for anarchists. Actually, the shop is a cover for its patron's another occupation as a double agent. He provides information to the London police and works for the Russian embassy. One day, he is foced to carry out an assault on the nearby Royal Observatory in Greenwich.
VICTORY
Feature film, production: Great Britain/France/Germany (UGC; Image, Recorded Picture Company; Studio Babelsberg; Telescope Films), year of production: 1995, director: Mark Peploe, screenplay: Mark Peploe, Fred Seidel, cinematography: Bruno de Keyzer, music: Richard Hartley, producer: Simon Bosanquet. Based on: Victory, 1915.
Axel Heyst (William Dafoe) lives on a desert island in the East Indies. He is forced to take a trip to the port during which he stays in a hotel owned by a German named Schomberg (Jean Yanne). Each night a woman's band plays in the hotel, and its director is determined to sell one of the girls, Alma (Irène Jacob), to Schomberg. Heyst listens to her plea and takes her to the island, thus rescuing her from a life of debauchery. Soon Schomberg points out Heyst's island to a certain Mr. Jones (Sam Neil) claiming it to be a place where he can find a fortune. Jones and his partners follow the runaways.
BOOKMARK: HEART OF DARKNESS
Television film, production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1995, director: Adam Low, cinematography: Dewald Aukema, Lawrence Gardner, sound: Robin Harris, producer: Jeremy Harding, narrator: Alfred Molina. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
The text of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness is accompanied by footage from contemporary London and coasts of Zaire.
HEART OF DARKNESS
Feature film, production: USA (TNT), year of production: 1994, director: Nicolas Roeg, screenplay: Benedict Fitzgerald, cinematography: Anthony B. Richmond, music: Stanley Myers, producer: Robert W. Christiansen, Luc Roeg, Rick Rosenberg. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
Captain Charles Marlow (Tim Roth) who works for an English trade company sets out for Africa where he barters for ivory with the local tribes. During his journey up the Congo River he reaches a trading station hidden in the African jungle and its insane owner Kurtz (John Malkovich) who had established himself there in his gloomy kingdom.
WINDIGO
Feature film, production: Canada, year of production: 1994, director: Robert Morin, screenplay: Robert Morin, cinematography: James Gray, Jean-Pierre St-Louis, music: Bertrand Chénier, producer: Nicole Robert. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
A reporter (Jean Fontaine) attempts to describe the Native Americans' struggle for the independence of Aki territory in a far-out area of Canada. Eddy Laroche (Donald Morin), who leads the uprising, refuses to negotiate if the talks will not be recorded by television cameras. The negotiators, government representatives and the TV crew all need to board a ship in order to reach Laroche and his land.
THE RETURN
aka "Powrót" (Poland)
Feature film, short television film, production: Poland (MT Art Prod.; TVP Channel II), year of production: 1993, director: Marian Terlecki, assistant director: Jarosław Pudlis, screenplay: Jakub Ossowski, cinematography: Krzysztof Kalukin, music: Ryszard Łada, sound: Ryszard Krupa, editing: Krzysztof Kalukin, production management: Ryszard Malinowski, cast: Joanna Kreft, Jacek Mikołajczak, Tomasz Bednarek, Dariusz Brzuskiewicz, Małgorzata Biniek, Jacek Godek, Małgorzata Grajcar, Dorota Mikołajczak, Henryk Motyl. Based on: The Return, 1898.
The 30-minute television film The Return by Marian Terlecki is his feature film debut. Terlecki realized several television documentaries; he is also the producer of the Złotopolscy series and the film Prymas. Trzy lata z tysiąca. (The Primate).
POUR DEMAIN
Feature television film, production: France, year of production: 1992, director: Fabrice Cazeneuve, screenplay: Fabrice Cazeneuve, Dominique Fabre, cinematography: Pierre Novion, music: Michel Portal, producer: Hubert Niogret, Henry Lange. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
A fishermen's village somewhere at the end of the world and as if out of time. A place where the sea casts ashore bodies of suicides and fishermen's wives live full of anger and hopelessness. Corneille (Michel Bouquet) awaits his son. He tells everyone, whoever wants to listen, that his son (Jean-Paul Comart) left him one day and that he will return. Though the inhabitants gradually refuse to believe Corneill's story, his young neighbour Camille (Coraly Zahonero), keeps his faith alive. Camille waits along with Corneille, believing in the idealized picture of the son presented by his father.
THE SECRET AGENT
Feature television film (3 episodes, each 60 minutes long), production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1992, director: David Drury, screenplay: Dusty Hughes, cinematography: Alec Curtis, music: Barrington Pheloung, producer: Colin Tucker. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
English television series based on an early Conrad's spy novel The Secret Agent. In the three-episode, three-hour long version Verloc - an anarchist who decided to improve his financial situation by working as a double agent for Russia and England - is played by David Suchet, known for his role as detective Hercules Poirot. Verloc's wife (Cheryl Campbell) is blissfully ignorant of her husband's secret life up to the moment when his work leads to the death of her younger brother (Richard Stirling).
TOMORROW
aka "Jutro" (Poland)
Short television film, production: Poland, year of production: 1990, realization:
Dariusz Gajewski, cooperation: Denis Delic, Mariusz Prokop, editing: Małgorzata Podlejska, pedagogical supervision: Henryk Kluba, Jan Rutkiewicz, Grzegorz Małecki, cast: Magdalena Salewska, Aleksander Fogiel, Zdzisław Suszyński, Brunon Bukowski. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902.
Based on the short story Tomorrow, this less then ten-minute long academic short film was made by Dariusz Gajewski, who was later awarded the Golden Lions in Gdańsk for the film Warsaw in 2003.
THE SECRET SHARER
aka "Le Compagnon secret"
Feature television film, production: France, year of production: 1988, director: Philippe Condroyer, cast: Frederic Cuif, Yves Bonnen. Based on: The Secret Sharer, 1910.
The film was broadcast on the Polish Television on 17 December, 1991.
CANNIBAL WOMEN IN THE AVOCADO JUNGLE OF DEATH
aka "Jungle Heat" (USA), "Piranha Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death" (USA)
Feature film, production: USA (Guacamole Films), year of production: 1988, director: Jonathan Lawton (nom de plume J. D. Athens), screenplay: Jonathan Lawton, cinematography: Robert Knouse (nom de plume Robert G. Knouse), music: Carl Dante, producer: Gary W. Goldstein. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
The US government hires doctor Margo Hunt (Shannon Tweed), a feminist from a local university, to locate the tribe of Pirahna Women, who live deep in the Avocado Jungle, and convince them to move to a reservation in Malibu. Doctor Hunt sets out on a journey with Jim (Bill Maher), a paid guide and male chauvinist, and Bunny (Karen Mistal), a student and every man's dream girl. When they finally reach their destination, Bunny undergoes a tribal initiation, during which an act of cannibalism is nearly committed.
SCENES FROM THE SECRET AGENT
aka "In The Modern World: Ten Great Writers - Joseph Conrad", "The Secret Agent"
Production: Great Britain (London Weekend TV Production for Channel 4 featuring Joseph Conrad, The Secret Agent), year of production: 1988 (LWT), director: David Thomas, Gillian Greenwood, screenplay: David Thomas, Gillian Greenwood, production: David Thomas, commentary: Keith Carabine, V. S. Pritchett. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
A television production that combines a critical reflection with a theatre play and a documentary. Joseph Conrad, The Secret Agent is a part of the "In The Modern World: Ten Great Writers" cycle. In his novel, Joseph Conrad examined a political theme in which he managed not only to capture the specific aura of the time but also to point to the future with brilliant intuition. The film focuses on the book description of London - a dangerous world filled with terrorists, double agents, assassins and meaningless deaths. In Conrad's novel every existence is threatened with violence and moral chaos. This fact is embodied in the Professor (Hywel Bennett) - an anarchist, who transformed himself into a walking bomb. The role of Mr. Verloc is played by Brian Glovero, his wife Winnie by Frances Barber and her brother Stevie by David Doyle. The film is accompanied by a commentary by the writer and critic V. S. Pritchett and the literary scholar K. Carabine. Scenes from the Secret Agent won a Silver Medal at the New York Film and Television Festival.
DES TEUFELS PARADIES
aka "Devil's Paradise" (USA)
Feature film, production: Germany (Atossa Film Productions/Film ZDF), year of production: 1986, director: Vadim Glowna, screenplay: Leonard Tuck, Vadim Glowna, Joe Hembus, Chris Doherty, cinematography: Martin Schäfer, music: Jürgen Knieper, producer: Vadim Glowna, Vera Tschechowa, Robert Arnold. Based on: Victory, 1915.
Escher (Jürgen Prochnow), a reserved and withdrawn man, leads a lonely life on his island in the Java Sea. During a forced visit to mainland he becomes involved with a girl named Julia (Suzanna Hamilton), whom he takes to the island, helping her avoid a life of debauchery. They are being followed by a mysterious Mr. Jones (Sam Waterston) and his young partner who seems to be interested in Julia. Setting the film in the 1930s instead of the 19th century and the change of the characters' nationality from Swedish to German imbues the film with references to the Nazi era.
IL CORSARO
aka "The Rover"
Feature television film (3 episodes, each 60 minutes long), production: Italy (Raiuno; Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen Österreichischer Rundfunk-Fernsehen), year of production: 1983, director: Franco Giraldi, screenplay: Nicola Badalucco, cinematography: Dario Di Palma, music: Luis Enriquez Bacalov, producer: Arturo La Pegna. Based on: The Rover, 1923.
A television film whose story is set in the period between 1779 and 1780. A weary pirate Peyrol (Philippe Leroy) decides to abandon his occupation. He leaves the Indian Seas to find last days of peace in his homeland - a farm in the east of France.
AN OUTPOST OF PROGRESS
Feature film, production: USA (AFI Conservatory film), year of production: 1982, director: Dorian Walker, screenplay: Vince DiPersio, Dorian Walker, cinematography: Robert Bichardson, music: Even de Tissot, producer: Kathleen Cromley, Donald Kowalchuk. Based on: An Outpost Of Progress, 1897.
The film is set in the times of the British Empire. Two Britons (Simon MacCorkindale, Thomas Hellberg) and a group of their servants have been stationed at a West African trade outpost in the jungle since a few days. No one has yet returned from that place alive. One of the characters is equally ruthless towards the locals and the servants whom he eventually trades for ivory. He is shot by his comrade who was driven to extreme with such conduct.
ROMAN DU SAMEDI: L'AGENT SECRET
aka "Der Geheimagnet"
Feature film, television film, production: France/Germany (Bavaria München/Technisonor Paris/FR3/L.P.Film/Norddeutscher Rundfunk), year of production: 1981, director: Marcel Camus, screenplay: Roger Grenier, cinematography: Pierre Petit, music: Even de Tissot. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
In this television adaptation by Marcel Camus, the plot of Joseph Conrad's novel is taken from London to Paris. Verloc (Michael Lonsdale), his wife (Marina Vlady) and her brother Stevie (Lucas Belvaux) live in Paris at the turn of the 20th century. Being a double agent, Mr Verloc is forced by his Russian superiors to carry out an assault on Breteuil's Pavilion in Severs where the International Bureau of Weights and Measures is located (instead of the Greenwich observatory from the novel).
APOCALYPSE NOW
Feature film, production: USA (Omni Zoetrope), year of production: 1979, director: Francis Ford Coppola, screenplay: John Milius, Francis Ford Coppola, cinematography: Vittorio Storaro, music: Eleanor Broadwater Carmine Coppola, Francis Ford Coppola, Shirley Goodman, Dale Hawkins, Leonard Lee, Stan Lewis, Mike Love, Brian Wilson, producer: Francis Ford Coppola. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
Apocalypse Now - widely considered to be the best adaptation of Conrad's work - takes the story from Africa to the war-ravished Vietnam. Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) receives orders to liquidate the insane US Army colonel Kurz (Marlon Brando) who is hiding deep in the Cambodian jungle. Kurz, who mutinied against his superiors, founded his own kingdom in the jungle and took the lead of a tribe that fights both against the Americans and the Vietnamese.
EL CORAZÓN DEL BOSQUE
aka "Heart of the Forest"
Feature film, production: Spain, year of production: 1979, director: Manuel Gutierrez Aragon, screenplay: Manuel Gutierrez Aragon, Luis Megino, cinematography: Teo Escamilla, music: Jaime Robles, Jesús Oriola, Pedro Gonzáles, Vicente Martínez, producer: Luigi. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
'El Andarin' (Luis Politti) fights against republican forces during the Spanish civil war of 1936-1939. As a result of that, he has been forced to hide in the mountains for ten years. Local inhabitants help him avoid the police who never stopped searching for him. Juan (Norman Briski), a returning war refugee, finds 'El Andarin' and tries to convince him to surrender, which leads to tragic consequences. The film was nominated for the Golden Bear in Berlin.
CON GLI OCCHI DELL'OCCIDENTE
Feature television film, production: Italy, year of production: 1979, director: Vittorio Cottafavi, screenplay: Vittorio Cottafavi, Amleto Micozzi, cast: Franco Branciardi (Razumov), Roberta Paladini (Natalia), Gerardo Amato (Haldin), Franco Graziosi, Elisa Crgani. Based on: Under Western Eyes, 1911.
A second adaptation of Conrad's novel by Vittorio Cottafavi - a director who filmed Almayer's Folly in 1972. The film was broadcast in three episodes.
UN REIETTO DELLE ISOLE
aka "Il male... e dove allora"
Feature television film, production: Italy (RAI-TV), year of production: 1979, director: Giorgio Moser, screenplay: Edoardo Anton, cinematography: Elio Bisignani, music: Mario Nascimbene. Based on: An Outcast of the Islands, 1896.
Captain Lingard (Massimo Girotti), a wealthy village merchant, helps a former pirate named Willems (Sergio Fantoni). During their first meeting, when Willems was 12 years old, Lingard saved him from dying of starvation. The captain, despite being his repeated benefactor, is betrayed by Williams.The film was realized in two versions: a shorter, cinema version (108 minutes long), and a longer television version (156 minutes), by Giorgio Moser, winner of the 1955 Cannes Special Prize for a documentary on cinema Lost Continent. The film is accompanied by a soundtrack by Mario Nascimbene performed using authentic Indian instruments; part of the material was realized near Madras, India.
NAUFRAGIO
Feature film, production: Mexico (Azteca Films), year of production: 1978, director: Jaime Humberto Hermosillo, screenplay: José de la Colina, Jaime Humberto Hermosillo, cinematography: Rosalino Solano, music: Joaquin Gutiérrez Heras, producer: Héctor López. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
Amparito (Ana Ofelia Murguía), a woman living in Mexico, awaits her son (José Alonso) who is a sailor. Though he sent her letters, they have not seen each other for years. Amparito shares her grief and news from the letters with co-workers from a large office and her friend Leticia (María Rojo), who begins to idealize the picture of her friend's son. One day, Amparito falls ill and lapses into a coma. As she lies unconscious, her son returns and has a short, yet rough, affair with Leticia. Then he disappears again.
L'AGENTE SEGRETO
Television film - a two-part mini-series, production: Italy, year of production: 1978, director: Antonio Calenda, screenplay: Dante Guardamagna, Franco Vegliani, cast: Anna Maria Guarnieri (Winnie), Glauco Mauri (Verloc), Lina Volonghi (Winnie's mother), Franco Parenti (Professor), Pierluigi Zollo, Renato Mori, Roberto Herlitzka, Christian Borromeo. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
The story of a double agent Verloc who is forced to carry out a bomb attack that leads him to tragic consequences.
THE DUELLISTS
Feature film, production: Great Britain/USA (Paramount/Enigma Production), year of production: 1977, director: Ridley Scott, screenplay: Gerald Vaughan-Hughes, cinematography: Frank Tidy, music: Howard Blake, producer: David Puttnam. Based on: The Duel, 1908.
Two officers from Napoleon's army: noble D'Hubert (Keith Carradine) and Feraud (Harvey Kitel), who comes from a poor family, are promoted during their commander's campaigns and eventually end their careers after his fall and the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy. Though their paths do not cross too often, they are sure to meet again and again in duels fought against each other. This is a result of an old grudge which neither of them remembers well, though the fight continues for nearly sixteen years.
LE CRABE-TAMBOUR
aka "Drummer-Crab"
Feature film, production: France (BELA Production-AMLF-LIRA-TF1), year of production: 1977, director: Pierre Schoendoerffer, screenplay: Pierre Schoendoerffer, cinematography: Raoul Coutard, music: Philippe Sarde, producer: Georges de Beauregard. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902 and Pierre Schoendoerffer's Le Crabe-Tambour, 1976.
A dying captain of a French frigate (Jean Rochefort) tries to meet on the waters of the Grand Banks lieutenant Wilsdorfem (Jacques Perrin), a French war hero he betrayed 20 years ago. Wilsdorf, currently known as 'Le Crabe-Tambour' and his trawler 'The Shamrock' have become a legend among the fishermen.The film was based on a true story of a certain French officer Pierre Guillaume (Le Crabe-Tambour). He was captured during a patrol mission on the Mekong River in Vietam and kept prisoner for three years. He then took part in a failed military coup against Charles de Gaulle.
THE SHADOW LINE
"Smuga Cienia (Poland)"
Feature film, production: Poland/Great Britain, year of production: 1976, director:
Andrzej Wajda, screenplay: Bolesław Sulik, Andrzej Wajda, cinematography:
Witold Sobociński, music:
Wojciech Kilar, producer: Barbara Pec-Ślesicka, JolyonWimhurst. Based on: The Shadow Line, 1917.
A young and inexperienced navy officer of Polish descent named Conrad (Marek Kondrat) takes command of a trade vessel for the first time in his life. His task is to bring a ship from Bangkok to Singapore, whose captain unexpectedly died. As it soon turns out, the ship is squalid and its crew is disobedient. The only experienced sailor onboard - first officer Burns (Graham Lines) - is ill-disposed towards the new captain and is soon stricken with cholera along with some part of the passengers.
UNDER WESTERN EYES
Television show, production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1975, director: Robert Knights, screenplay: Howard Brenton, producer: Mark Shivas. Based on: Under Western Eyes, 1911.
Adaptation of Conrad's novel that was included in a television programme entitled "Centre Play: Saliva Milkshake".
UNDER WESTERN EYES
Feature television film, production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1975, director: Stuart Burge, screenplay: Stuart Burge, additional music: Shostakovich, Symphony No. 11 in G minor, Opus 103 and Cello Concerto No. 1 in E Flat Major, Opus 107, producer: Rosemary Hill, cast: Barry Foster (Mikulin) Sara Kestelman (Sophia), Avril Elgar (Tekla), Godfrey James (Nikita), Gertan Klauber (Barman), Dinny Powell (Ziemianitch), Roger Rees (Razumov), Shane Briant (Haldin), Anna Calder-Marshall (Natalya), Geoffrey Bayldon (Peters), Derek Godfrey (Ivanovitch), Noel Willman (Prince), Harold Innocent (general Tulin), Ian Sharp (Ivan), Anita Sharp Bolster (Mrs. Sale). Based on: Under Western Eyes, 1911.
A student (Shane), who carried out a bomb attack against the minister, choses Razumov's (Roger Rees) room as his hideout.
THE SECRET AGENT
Feature television film, production: Great Britain (BBC), year of production: 1975, director: Herbert Wise, lighting: Nigel Wright, additional music: Beethoven Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Opus 111, producer: Rosemery Hill. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
Television adaptation of Conrad's novel. The bomb attack planned by Verloc (Paul Rogers) initiates a cascade of events that eventually lead to murder and suicide.
OMNIBUS: JOSEPH CONRAD
Television show, production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1974, director: Colin Nears, screenplay: Colin Nears, Norman Sherry. Based on: Amy Foster, 1901, pub. 1903.
A story of the Polish-born novelist writing in English who explored in his works the human weakness and moral instability. Conrad (Patrick Stewart) tells in front of a camera about his life and his ideas, imitating a television interview. The interview is enriched with film material realized on the basis of the novel Amy Foster - a story of a boy from Eastern Europe, who survived from a marine disaster and found himself among alien - also because of the language - shores of Kent.
HER RETURN
aka "Jej Powrót" (Poland)
Feature film, television film, production: Poland, year of production: 1974 (TV), director: Witold Orzechowski, screenplay: Witold Orzechowski, cinematography: Kazimierz Konrad. Based on: The Return, 1898.
Edward (Jerzy Zelnik), a wealthy member of the bourgeoisie, seems to be leading a steady life. One day, however, having returned home he finds a letter from Emma (Beata Tyszkiewicz), his wife, in which she notifies him that she is leaving. Her unexpected return on the very same afternoon is an even greater shock. The characters face a final battle on the ruins of the once stable system of values.The plot of Conrad's The Return was taken from 19th century London to the interwar Poland.
TOMORROW
Academic short film 8 min., production: Poland, year of production: 1975, genre: Feature short film, director: Wojciech Maciejewski, screenplay: Wojciech Maciejewski, cinematography: Rudolf Palarz, sound: Jan Silczak, editing: Janina Grosicka, pedagogical supervision:
Wojciech Jerzy Has, Mieczysław Jahoda, production management: Bronisław Cichoński, production: National Film, Television & Theatre School in Łódź, cast: Diana Stein, Tomasz Fogiel, Bogusław Sochnacki. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
This black-and-white, 8-minute long academic short film was realized at the Polish Film School in Łódź by the documentary maker Wojciech Majewski.
TOMORROW
Television musical film, production: Poland, year of production: 1974, genre: Musical film, director: Bohdan Hussakowski, screenplay: Bohdan Hussakowski, Jerzy Stanisław Sito, cinematography: Mieczysław Jahoda, music:
Tadeusz Baird, libretto: Jerzy Sito, music performed by: National Polish Padio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, conductor: Mieczysław Nowakowski. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
Filming of a staged version of a short story, performed in the Warsaw Grand Theatre in 1966. The film won the Golden Prague award in the musical films category at the 11th International Festival of Television Films in Prague in 1974.
"Tiny, run-down, desolate seaside village and its three lonely inhabitants. Possessed with an insane vision Ozjasz (Ryszard Ronczewski - dubbing Edward Pawlak), old blind man Jozue (Zdzisław Tobiasz - dubbing Jerzy Artysz), and his daughter Jessica (Iwona Biernacka - dubbing Krystyna Szostek-Radkowa). Ozjasz lives in an unreal world of imagination. He awaits his son Harry (Janusz Ostrowski) who, according to his imaginary visions, is an ideal embodiment of filial affection, truth and humanity. Ozjasz passes his vision on to Jessica. They both await the happier tomorrow which will be heralded by Harry's return. He finally shows up, but Ozjasz does not recognize his son in the cynical young man. He sees him only as an obstacle in the making of his vision come true. Harry must die at the hands of his father in the name of the faith in tomorrow". (M. Wieroński, "Ekran", 1974, No. 18: 11)
OMNIBUS: JOSEPH CONRAD
Television film, production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1974, director: Colin Nears, screenplay: Colin Nears, Norman Sherry. Based on: Amy Foster, 1901, pub. 1903.
A story of the Polish-born novelist writing in English who explored in his works the human weakness and moral instability. Conrad (Patrick Stewart) tells in front of a camera about his life and his ideas, imitating a television interview. The interview is enriched with film material realized on the basis of the novel Amy Foster - a story of a boy from Eastern Europe, who survived from a marine disaster and found himself among alien - also because of the language - shores of Kent.
DOMANI
Experimental television film, production: Italy, year of production: 1974, director: Domenico (Mimmo) Rafele. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
Experimental television film realized in Calabria.
HEROES AND COWARDS (LORD JIM)
35 minute video, production: USA (Learning Corporation), year of production: 1973. Based on: Lord Jim (1900).
This adaptation of the novel based on the first part of Lord Jim depicts a painful moral conflict of the ship's captain. The fact that he is forced to confront his real nature in a critical moment is bound to influence his whole future. Jim feels secure as the ship's officer, but his illusions are suddenly exposed when the vessel sinks and he is forced to decide between risking his own life to alert the passengers and saving it. Columbia Pictures special edition with Orson Welles' commentary.
THE SECRET SHARER
Feature film, production: USA, year of production:1973 (Encyclopaedia Britannica Educational Corporation), director: Larry Yust, screenplay: Larry Yust, cinematography: Isidore Mankofsky, sound: John Brasher, producer: Larry Yust, commentary: Charles van Doren, cast: David Soul (The Captain); Aron Kincaid (Leggatt); Paul Brinegar (Captain Archibold); William Benedict (Chief Mate); Patrick Campbell (Steward); Johnnie Collins III (Second Mate); Buck Kartalian (Francis). Based on: The Secret Sharer, 1910, pub. 1913.
The Secret Sharer is an episode in the Short-Story Showcase film series made in 1969-1977, commissioned by Encyclopaedia Britannica Educational Corporation. 14 of these episodes were realized by Larry Yust. Some of the films were accompanied by a supplement in the form of a 10 minute long 'Discussion on...' concerning the particular adaptation.
LA LIGNE D'OMBRE
Feature television film, production: France/Italy/Germany (ORTF/Télécip), year of production: 1972, director: Georges Franju, screenplay: Georges Franju, Louis Guilloux, cinematography: Marcel Fradetal, editing: Gilbert Natot. Based on: The Shadow Line, 1917 and A smile of Fortune, 1911, pub. 1913.
Story of a young, inexperienced ship captain named Marlow (Jean Babilée), who struggles in solitude during the voyage with disease, insubordinate crew and vagaries of weather.
"The film-makers have 'embellished' this tale with foreign accents - two merchants from Bangkok, young captain's mysterious love affair and an unfortunate potato deal." (Maria Brzostowiecka, "Spotkanie z Conradem", "Ekran" 1975, issue 45, p. 11)
One of the four films based on Conrad's novels (Almayer's Folly, The End of the Tether, Freya of the Seven Isles, The Shadow Line), the plot of which is set in the Malay Archipelago. They constitute a series entitled "From the Far Seas" produced by the French television in 1972.
LA FOLLIA DI ALMAYER
aka "La Folie Almayer"
Feature television film, production: France/Italy/Germany (RAI/Télécip), year of production: 1972, director: Vittorio Cottafavi, screenplay: Louis Guilloux, dialogues: Jean-Daniel de la Rochefoucauld. Based on: Almayer's Folly, 1895.
Kaspar Almayer (Giorgio Albertazzi), a white man living among the Malay people, wants to secure social status and wealth for her daughter Nina (Rosemary Dexter) though by being half-Malay she is unwelcome in the society. The role of Almayer was played by Giorgio Albertazzi remembered for his part as a Stranger in Alain Resnais' Last Year in Marienbad. The film changes the negative character of Almayer into a truly tragic one. The father falls victim to encirclement and experiences a real tragedy of maladjustment. One of the four films based on Conrad's novels (Almayer's Folly, The End of the Tether, Freya of the Seven Isles, The Shadow Line), the plot of which is set in the Malay Archipelago. They constitute a series entitled "From the Far Seas" produced by the French television in 1972.
FREYA DES SEPT ÎLES
Feature television film, production: France/Italy/Germany (RAI/Télécip), year of production: 1972, director: Jean-Pierre Gallo, screenplay: Jean-Daniel de la Rochefoucauld, Louis Guilloux, cinematography: Jean-Jacques Rochut, music: Gérard Gallo, cast: France Daugnac (Freya), Jean-Marie Patte (Heemskirk), Claude Vernier (Nielsen), Vania Vilers (Jasper Allen), Vernon Dobtcheff (Sailor from Neptune), Joachim Hansen (Sailor from Banito), Henri Marteau (Marlow), Fred Personne (Danich Officer), Jean-Marie Richier (Sailor), Christiane Rorto (Antonia), Max Vialle (Schultz). Based on: Freya of the Seven Isles, 1912, pub. 1913.
One of the four films based on Conrad's novels (Almayer's Folly, The End of the Tether, Freya of the Seven Isles, The Shadow Line), the plot of which is set in the Malay Archipelago. They constitute a series entitled "From the Far Seas" produced by the French television in 1972.
AU BOUT DU ROULEAU
Feature television film, production: France/Italy/Germany (Télécip), year of production: 1972, director: Claude-Jean Bonnardot, screenplay: Michel Andrieu, cast: Charles Vanel (captain Whalley), Etienne Bierry (Massy), Yves Arcanel (Sterne), Louis Arbessier (Eliott) Bernard Cara (Clerk). Konrad von Bork (Van Wyk), Germaine Byron (Van Wyk's servant), Claude Gaudelette (Sailor), Virginie Grigaut (Ivy), Henri Lambert (Jack), John A. Tinn, Raoul Guylad. Based on: The End of the Tether, 1902.
One of the four films based on Conrad's novels (Almayer's Folly, The End of the Tether, Freya of the Seven Isles, The Shadow Line), the plot of which is set in the Malay Archipelago. They constitute a series entitled "From the Far Seas" produced by the French television in 1972.
TOMORROW
Academic television film, production: Poland, year of production: 1969, director: Jacek Szczęk, cast:
Elżbieta Czyżewska (Bessie), Andrzej Łapicki (Harry), Bolesław Płotnicki (Capt. Hagberd), Janusz Paluszkiewicz (Carvil). Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
60-minute long academic television film by Jacek Szczęk - maker of numerous television dramas and actor who appeared in
Rysopis ("Identification Marks: None") by
Jerzy Skolimowski.
RIUSCIRANNO I NOSTRI EROI A RITROVARE L'AMICO MISTERIOSAMENTE SCOMPARSO IN AFRICA?
aka "Will Our Friends Succeed in Finding Their Friend Who Disappeared In"
aka "Will Our Heroes Be Able to Find Their Friend Who Has Mysteriously Disappeared in Africa?"
Feature film, production: Italy (Documento Film), year of production: 1968, director: Ettore Scola, screenplay: Agenore Incrocci, Furio Scarpelli, Ettore Scola, cinematography: Claudio Cirillo, music: Armando Trovajoli, producer: Gianni Hecht Lucari, Fausto Saraceni. Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
An enterprising businessman Fausto Di Salvio (Alberto Sordi), tired of his job, family and present life, along with his friend accountant Ubaldo Palmarini (Bernard Blier), set out to Africa. Their aim is to find Fausto's brother-in-law Oreste Sabatini (Nino Manfredi), who disappeared without a trace in the Black Continent in unknown circumstances.
THE SECRET AGENT
Feature television film (two episodes: The Fuse, The Explosion), production: Great Britain (BBC-TV), year of production: 1967, director: Gerald Blake, screenplay: Alexander Baron, producer: David Conroy. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
A two-part adaptation of Joseph Conrad's The Secret Agent. Mr. Verloc (Nigel Green) appears to be a harmless seller at a London shop. However, his other 'occupations' are that of an anarchist and a double agent - Russian and English. His actions will cause the death of his wife's (Mary Webster) younger, impaired brother which in turn will lead her to a cruel revenge.
SUTRA
Feature television film, production: Yugoslavia, year of production: 1967, director: Zdravko Sotra, production design: Dora Dusanovic, cast: Ljubisa Jovanovic, Milivoje Zivanovic. Based on: Tomorrow, 1902, pub. 1903.
THE ROVER
aka "L'Avventuriero"
Feature film, production: Italy/Great Britain (Arco Film, Rome; Selmur Production, London), year of production: 1967, director: Terence Young, screenplay: Jo Eisinger, Luciano Vincenzoni, cinematography: Leonida Barboni, music: Ennio Morricone, producer: Alfredo Bini. Based on: The Rover, 1923.
The plot is set in post-revolutionary France. Peyrol (Anthony Quinn) - a former pirate wanted by the police in all ports - abandons the path of crime and joins the counter-revolutionary movement. While carrying a message to Port Commander, he is stopped by the police. During his escape he saves a young woman named Arlette (Rosanna Schiaffino) and eventually finds refuge in her home where she lives along with her aunt (Rita Hayworth). Ultimately, he will need to choose between love to Arlette and his counter-revolutionary duties.
L'OSPITE SEGRETO
Feature film - television production, production: Italy, year of production: 1967, director: Eriprando Visconti, screenplay: Oreste Del Buono, cast: Nino Castelnuovo (captain Marlow), Giulio Brogi (Leggatt), Gigi Pistilli (Burns). Based on: The Secret Sharer, 1910, pub. 1913.
LORD JIM
Feature film, production: Great Britain/USA, year of production: 1965, director: Richard Brooks, screenplay: Richard Brooks, cinematography: Freddie Young, music: Bronislau Kaper, producer: Richard Brooks. Based on: Lord Jim, 1900.
Young sailor Jim (Peter O'Toole) abandons a ship sinking with a group of pilgrims onboard. The desertion will have a decisive influence upon his future life. Disgraced Jim seeks for ways in which he could rehabilitate himself not only in the eyes of the British Navy commission, but also in his own. Willing to expiate his crime, he volunteers to embark on a ship that carries dynamite to some distant tribes. Jim also takes part in a rebellion against a dictator (Eli Wallach), repeatedly proving his courage. He hopes to find death during his service and thus erase his guilt.
ANCORA UN GIORNO
Feature television film, production: Italy, year of production: 1962, director: Flaminio Bollini, screenplay: Flaminio Bollini, cast: Flaminio Bollini (Josiah Carvil), Relda Ridoni (Bessie Carvil), Aldo Silvani (captain Hagberd). Based on: Tomorrow - a theatrical adaptation (One Day More, a Play in One Act, 1913).
VICTORY ("ART CARNEY SHOW")
Television show, production: USA, year of production: 1960 (NBC-TV), director: Daniel Petrie, screenplay: Michael Dyne, producer: David Susskind. Based on: Victory, 1915.
Art Carney Show is a comedy programme made for the NBC hosted by Art Carney. One of its episodes presented a screen version of the short novel Victory with a superb cast. Heyst was played by the programme host Art Carney. The remaining characters were played by: Lois Smith (Alma), Eric Portman (Pan Jones), Oscar Homolka (Schomberg), Richard Harris (Ricardo), Ruth White (Mrs. Schomberg), Ira Petina (Elvira), Richard Weyand (Pedro), Kaie Deel (Wang). No information concerning existent copies of the film is available.
HEART OF DARKNESS ("PLAYHOUSE 90")
Television show (season 3, episode 7), production: USA, year of production: 1958 (CBS-TV), director: Ronald Winston, screenplay: Stewart Stern, cinematography: Joseph F. Biroc, Albert Kurland, music: Robert Drasnin, producer: Fred Coe, introduction: Sterling Hayden, cast: Boris Karloff (Kurtz), Roddy McDowall (Charles Marlow), Richard Haydn (Accountant), Oskar Homolka (Doctor), Eartha Kitt (Queen), Cathleen Nesbitt (Old Woman), Inga Swenson (Maria). Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
'Playhouse 90' is a series of television dramas produced between 1956-1961 and broadcast each week. The name derives from the length (90 minutes) of the successive episodes, many of which were soon to grow into feature films.
ONE DAY MORE ("STAR TONIGHT")
Television show (season 2, episode 7), production: USA (ABC-TV), year of production: 1955, cast: Bramwell Fletcher, Scott Marlowe, Margaret Phillips, Frederick Worlock. Based on: Tomorrow - a theatrical adaptation (One Day More, a Play in One Act, 1913).
'Star Tonight' is a series of 30-minute long episodes broadcast by the ABC from 3 February, 1955 to 9 August, 1956, every Tuesday at 9.00. These half-hour long shows starred some of the greatest names of the 50s.
HEART OF DARKNESS
Television show, production: USA (WCBS-TV/New York State Education Departament), year of production: 1955, director: Francis Moriarty, screenplay: Robert Herridge, music: Tom Scott, producer: Robert Herridge, cast: John Drainie (Marlow), Robert Blackburn, Sheppard Kerman, Robert Hersh, Tom Daly, Gordon Sterne, lee Henry, John Mackwood, Charles Martin, Frank Glass, Jim McAndrew (Moderator). Based on: Heart of Darkness, 1899, pub. 1902.
60-minute long television drama.
THE BLACK MATE ("SCHLITZ PLAYHOUSE OF STARS")
aka "Herald Playhouse", "Schlitz Playhouse", "The Playhouse USA"
Television show (season 3, episode 42), production: USA, year of production: 1954, director of series: Walter C. Brown (story and teleplay) - whole series, cinematography: George T. Clemens, Paul Ivano, music: Paul Sawtell (music supervisor) - whole series, producer: Nat Holt. Based on: The Black Mate, 1908, pub. 1925.
'Schlitz Playhouse of Stars' (1951-1959) was a television series broadcast by the CBS from 5 October, 1951 to 31 July, 1959, every Friday at 9.00 pm. The 60-minute long episodes featured such stars as: David Niven, Helen Hayes, Margaret Sullivan, Wendell Corey, Joan Caulfield, James Dean, Raymond Burr, Irene Dunne, Gene Kelly, Agnes Moorehead, Rosalind Russell, Anthony Quinn, and Vincent Price. One of the episodes was based on Joseph Conrad's The Black Mate. Its cast features Robert Cornthwaite, Paul Kelly,William Phipps, Lee Van Cleef.
LAUGHING ANNE
aka "Between the Tides"
Feature film, production: USA/Great Britain (Repudlic Pictures/Imperadio), year of production: 1953, director: Herbert Wilcox, screenplay: Pamela (Wilcox) Bower, cinematography: Max Greene, music: Anthony Collins, Ted Grouya, Pierre Roche, producer: Herbert Wilcox. Based on: Because of the dollars, 1914, pub. 1928.
Red-haired Anne (Margaret Lockwood), who works as a singer in an elegant Paris night club, is famous for her laugh and known as the 'Laughing Anne'. Her lover, boxer Jen Farrell (Forrest Tucker), is hurt so badly during one of his matches that Anna realizes he will not be able to fight anymore. They sail off to the eastern seas, where Anne sings in a shabby Java bar. Then, she runs away to Singapore with Captain Davidson (Wendell Corey), but on her way she has a sudden change of heart and decides to return to her miserable life with Farrell. After several years, Davidson finds her living in poverty, with a child and still by Farrell's side. He starts to persuade Anne to leave. At the same time, having heard of a valuable cargo carried by Davidson, Farrell decides to seize it.
FACE TO FACE
Feature film, production: USA (Theasquare Productions), year of production: 1952, director: John Brahm, screenplay: Eneas MacKenzie, cinematography: George E. Diskant, Karl Struss, music: Hugo Friedhofer, producer: Huntington Hartford. Based on: The Secret Sharer, 1910, pub. 1913.
Film - the action of which takes place during one day - begins with a ship being intruded by a stranger on a tranquil night. The fresh and inexperienced captain Falcor (James Mason) must decide what to do with the murderer named Leggatt (Michael Pate) - a fugitive from the ship Sephora where he had killed a man. The captain decides to hide him in his cabin. In order to help him escape and safely reach land swimming, he hazardously approaches the offshore rocks and puts his vessel at risk. Adaptation of Conrad's novel constituted the first part of Face to Face. The other was made by James Agee and is based on the story by Stephen Crane The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky.
OUTCAST OF THE ISLANDS
aka "L'avventuriero della Malesia"
Feature film, production: Great Britain (London Film for British Lion Film Corporation), year of production: 1952, director: Carol Reed, screenplay: William Fairchild, cinematography: Edward Scaife, John Wilcox, music: Brian Easdale, producer: Carol Reed. Based on: An Outcast of the Islands, 1896.
Willems (Trevor Howard) is an ex-pirate wandering aimlessly between the Malay islands. When he was twelve, captain Lingard (Ralph Richardson) lent him a helping hand. Driven by love to Aissa (Kerima) and manipulated by her father (A. V. Bramble), as well as his partner (George Coulouris), Willems reveals the secret trade route of his benefactor captain Lingard. After having heard of betrayal, the angered captain rejects Willems calling him 'a man without a heart'.
THE SECRET SHARER
Feature television film, production: Great Britain (BBC), year of production: 1950, director: George F. Kerr, screenplay: George F. Kerr, producer: W. P. Rilla. Based on: The Secret Sharer, 1910, pub. 1913.
Television adaptation of Joseph Conrad's short novel about a young and inexperienced captain (Clement McCallin) who is placed in command of a ship for the first time. Captain helps a man named Leggatt (Patrick Barr) who seeks refuge onboard his vessel. It soon turns out that he is a murderer who fled his ship after killing a man during a sea storm.
VICTORY: AN ISLAND TALE
Feature film, production: USA (Paramount Picture Inc.), year of production: 1940, director: John Cromwell, screenplay: John L. Balderston, cinematography: Leo Tover, music: Frederick Hollander, producer: Anthony Veiller. Based on: Victory, 1915.
Hendrik Heyst (Fredric March), an English intellectual, lives on a desert island in the East Indies trying to isolate himself from the world. However, when he meets a girl named Anne (Betty Field) who is threatened by three murderers, he is forced to break this rule. The criminals led by Mr. Jones (Sir Cedric Hardwicke) change their interest from Anne to Heyst, whom they suspect of possessing valuables. This experience returns Heyst back to life.
SABOTAGE
aka "A Woman Alone", "I Married a Murderer", "The Hidden Power"
Feature film, production: Great Britain (Gaumont-British Picture Corporation Ltd.), year of production: 1936, director: Alfred Hitchcock, screenplay: Charles Bennett, cinematography: Bernard Knowles, music: Hubert Bath, Jack Beaver, Louis Levy, producer: Michael Balcon. Based on: The Secret Agent, 1907.
London in the 1930s. Mr Verloc (Oscar Homolka), owner of a small cinema, is actually a foreign intelligence agent. Even his wife (Sylvia Sidney) is unaware of that. Despite the fact that the police is following him, he organizes a bomb attack. He sends his wife's brother (Desmond Tester) with a parcel containing a bomb, but the bus is stuck in a traffic jam and the bomb goes off on the way killing the boy. When Verloc's wife learns about it, she kills her husband. A Scotland Yard officer Ted (John Loder) helps her avoid punishment.The film contains one of the most famous Hitchcock scenes - the boy carrying the parcel with the bomb is unaware of the danger he is put into, unlike the viewers watching this scene.
SOUS LES YEUX D'OCCIDENT
aka "Razumov"
Feature film, production: France (Films Ossa), year of production: 1936, director: Mark Allégret, screenplay: L. Lustig, Hans Wilhelm, dialogues: Jacques Viot, cinematography: Michel Kelber, music: Georges Auric, producer: Roger LeBon. Based on: Under Western Eyes, 1911.
The film is set during the times of Russian Revolution of 1905. Haldin (Jean-Louis Barrault), member of a terrorist organization, murders a Russian government official, and then hides in the house of his friend Razumov (Pierre Fresnay). Rozumov, in fear of being arrested, turns Haldin in to the authorities, but despite that, is accused of complicity. To save himself from the firing squad, Rozumov agrees to take on a role of a double agent for the tsarist police. It is only when his beloved (Daniele Parola) is in danger, Razumov confesses his betrayal and dies to save her.
FARORNAS PARADIS
Feature film, production: USA/Sweden (Les Studios Paramount), year of production: 1931, director: Rune Carlsten, screenplay: Rune Carlsten, cast: Elisabeth Frisk (Anita), Knut Martin (Davis), Oscar Textorius (Schomberg). Based on: Victory, 1915.
Copy of the film is lost. A French-language version of
a film by William A. Wellman realized by the Paramount film studio.
TROPENNÄCHTE
Feature film, production: USA/Germany/France (Paramount Publix Corporation), year of production: 1931, director: Leo Mittler, screenplay: Egon Eis, Grover Jones, Rudolf Katscher, cinematography: René Guissart, production management: Paul Reno, cast: Dita Parlo (Alma), Robert Thoeren (Heyst), Fritz Greiner (Schomberg). Based on: Victory, 1915.
Copy of the film is lost. A German-language version of
a film by William A. Wellman realized by the Paramount film studio.
LA RIVA DEI BRUTI
Feature film, production: USA/Włochy (Paramount), year of production: 1930, director: Mario Camerini, screenplay: Pier Luigi Melani, cinematography: Fernando Risi, cast: Carmen Boni. Based on: Victory, 1915.
Copy of the film is lost. An Italian-language version of
a film by William A. Wellman realized by the Paramount film studio.
DANS UNE ÎLE PERDUE
Feature film, production: USA/Francja (Films Paramount), year of production: 1930, director: Alberto Cavalcanti, screenplay: Georges Neveux, cinematography: René Guissart, producer: Paramount. Based on: Victory, 1915.
Alma (Daniele Parola), a violinist, flees from obscene offers made by the rogue Schomberg (Gaston Jacquet). She boards a boat that belongs to the handsome Davis (Enrique Rivero), who moored in the village. Alma's adversaries set out after them. Copy of the film is lost. A French-language version of
a film by William A. Wellman realized by the Paramount film studio.
NIEBEZPIECZNY RAJ
"Dangerous Paradise"
Feature film, production: USA (Paramount), year of production: 1930, director: Ryszard Ordyński, screenplay: William Slavens McNutt, Grover Jones. Based on: Victory, 1915.
"A young violinist Alma (Maria Malicka) came to Simbali with an orchestra led by Zangiacoma (Leon Recheński), which was hired for a series of performances in the Schomberg hotel. Both the conductor Zangiacomo and Schomberg are persecuting Alma with their love. One evening, when Alma is, as usual, forced to sit by the guests in the cafe and encourage them to spend as much as possible, she meets Heyst (Adam Brodzisz) who arrived that evening from his island Sourabaya, where he lives in solitude, away from the world and people. He takes Alma to his place on the island. After many adventures and mishaps she becomes his wife." (www.filmpolski.pl)
Copy of the film is lost. A Polish-language version of
a film by William A. Wellman realized by the Paramount film studio. The film was screened in Polish cinemas for eight days only.
DANGEROUS PARADISE
aka "Victory"
Feature film, production: USA (Paramount Famous Players-Lasky Corporation), year of production: 1930, director: William A. Wellman, screenplay: William Slavens McNutt, Grover Jones, cinematography: Archie J. Stout, music: Albert R. 'Sonny' Cunha, John Leipold, producer: Jesse L. Lasky. Based on: Victory, 1915.
A film concluded by a happy end that became an example for five further adaptations of Victory in five language versions (Polish, French, Italian, German and Swedish - all copies are lost). After the sound revolution there emerged the problem of distributing American films in non-English-language countries. Therefore, a Paramount film production studio in Joinville (near Paris) was established. It was to produce different language versions of the American films. Dangerous Paradise is an effect of such a procedure. Alma (Nancy Carroll) is a violinist hired to play in a hotel on an island. She is forced to fulfil the obscene offers made by men who visit the hotel. Alma flees and finds shelter on a boat that belongs to Heyst (Richard Arlen), of whom people say that he owns gold. Smelling an occasion to rob some gold, a few men follow Alma: Mr. Jones (Gustav von Seyffertitz), Pedro (George Kotsonaros) and Ricardo (Francis McDonald). However, after the confrontation with Heyst they are either arrested or killed. Heyst, who was not really in possession of a fortune, stays with Alma.
THE RESCUE
Feature film, production: USA (Samuel Goldwyn, Inc.), year of production: 1929, director: Herbert Brenon, screenplay: Elizabeth Meehan, H. H. Caldwell, Katherine Hilliker, cinematography: George Barnes, Joseph F. Biroc, James Wong Howe, music: Hugo Riesenfeld, producer: Samuel Goldwyn. Based on: The Rescue, 1920.
An English traveller Tom Lingard (Ronald Colman) helps a prince and his sister hide on an island after they have been cast away by the rebels. Then he tries to recover their house, but is stopped by a wealthy English family, the Travers. Soon, the protagonist engages himself in a love affair with the wife of Mr Travers (Alfred Hickman) - Lady Edith Travers (Lili Damita). During an assault on the yacht that belongs to the Traverses, the English lady calls for Tom's help, but instead of saving the ship they both indulge in their rampant lusts. Before they reach the ship, it blows up with Mr Travers onboard. The hero, tortured by his conscience, sends the woman back and becomes a hermit.
THE ROAD TO ROMANCE
aka "Romance"
Feature film, production: USA (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer), year of production: 1927, director: John S. Robertson, screenplay: Josephine Lovett, Joseph Farnham, cinematography: Oliver T. Marsh. Based on: Romance, 1903.
The beautiful Serafina (Marceline Day) is captured by a corrupt judge Balthasar (Roy D'Arcy), who wants to marry her under duress. In the guise of a pirate, the Spanish captain José Armando (Roman Novarro) who travels from Spain to the lawless Carrabean island. The disguise allows him to move freely among the various scoundrels, waiting for a proper moment to launch an attack against Balthasar. José Armando begins to act in the moment when the judge decides to marry Serafina. Copy of the film is lost. Casting of Roman Novarro caused a change of the protagonist's origin from an English aristocrat to a noble Spaniard.
THE SILVER TREASURE
Feature film, production: USA (Fox Film Corporation), year of production: 1926, director: Rowland V. Lee, screenplay: Robert N. Lee, Elisabeth Pickett, cinematography: G. D. Post, titles: Elizabeth Pickett. Based on: Nostromo, 1904.
The story is set in a mythical country in South American republic Costaguana, where the local hero Nostromo (George O'Brien) is considered to be a very noble man. Charles Gould (Stewart Rome), owner of a silver factory, asks Nostromo to protect his shipment from bandits on the way to the coast. During the battle with the outlaws that ensues, a woman is shot. On her deathbed she forces Nostromo to promise her that he will marry her daughter Linda (Helene D'Algy), despite the fact that he loves his cousin Giselle (Joan Renee). When the silver is transported on the ship, the bandits strike again. Nostromo flees, but gradually a temptation is being born within him to capture the silver and escape together with Giselle, avoiding the marriage with Linda. However, Giselle refuses, while Nostromo, who is terrified with his plans, confesses to Gould, who forgives him. After the silver is returned, Nostromo learns that Linda's mother exempted him from his promise. Copy of the film is lost. Some of its sequences are coloured.
LORD JIM
Feature film, production: USA (Famous Players-Lasky Corporation), year of production: 1925, director: Victor Fleming, screenplay: John Russell, George C. Hull, cinematography: Faxon M. Dean, producer: Victor Fleming. Based on: Lord Jim, 1900.
Jim (Percy Marmont) is a sailor under the despicable Captain Brown (Noah Beery). When the ship full of pilgrims heading to Mecca crashes with a shipwreck, the captain and the crew, including Jim, desert the ship. As a result of that Jim loses his sailing licence. Thanks to the help of a friendly merchant he gets a job in a Malayan trading company. Gradually he climbs the steps of hierarchy and finally takes control over it, replacing Cornelius (Raymond Hatton), for whose daughter Jewel (Shirley Mason) Jim has a deep affection. Meanwhile, Brawn and his crew, deprived of their marine rights just like Jim, become pirates. They attack the city and get caught, but Jim orders to release them. After being freed, the pirates kill an innocent man, which costs Jim his own life.
VICTORY
Feature film, production: USA (Famous Players-Lasky Corporation), year of production: 1919, director: Maurice Tourneur, screenplay: Jules Furthman (as Stephen Fox), cinematography: René Guissart, stage effects: Floyd Mueller, producer: Maurice Tourneur. Based on: Zwycięstwo (Victory, 1915).
Axel Heyst (Jack Holt), an independent wanderer, settles on an island in the southern seas. He take pity over a young woman Alma (Seena Owen) and helps her escape to his island. Jones (Ben Deely), a corsair who is convinced that Heyst is in possession of a buried treasure, gathers a band to invade his remote Eden.