I just want to know why if Charlton Heston could lead millions of Hebrew slaves out of Egypt, why couldn't he rid the Amazon of a billion singing and thinking ants. He spends the first half brooding over his mail order bride Eleanor Parker and a few minutes declaring his love for her before he prepares to turn over his plantation to the marching bugs. Parker adds another unintentional camp classic to her credits, given such unforgettable dialog as "If you knew more about music, you'd realize that a piano is only good when it is played. This is not a good piano."
Of course, simply reading that line doesn't have the same effect as hearing it with her over the top delivery, reciting it as if it had come from the pen of Ernest Hemmingway. Parker, at least, has the good sense to play it for melodrama or like a Maria Montez movie. Heston rips into his ridiculous part as if he thought he was playing Othello.
At least they had the sense to film this in very garish Technicolor with some lively special effects including a realistic looking flood. The invasion of the ants is pretty frightening as they make meals out of a few of the natives. I don't know how today's cynical youth would take to something like this, but the mentality does seem to be intended for pre-teenaged boys.
Of course, simply reading that line doesn't have the same effect as hearing it with her over the top delivery, reciting it as if it had come from the pen of Ernest Hemmingway. Parker, at least, has the good sense to play it for melodrama or like a Maria Montez movie. Heston rips into his ridiculous part as if he thought he was playing Othello.
At least they had the sense to film this in very garish Technicolor with some lively special effects including a realistic looking flood. The invasion of the ants is pretty frightening as they make meals out of a few of the natives. I don't know how today's cynical youth would take to something like this, but the mentality does seem to be intended for pre-teenaged boys.