Darker than Amber (film)

Last updated
Darker than Amber
Darker than Amber-poster.jpg
Original poster
Directed by Robert Clouse
Written by John D. MacDonald
Ed Waters
Produced byJack Reeves (executive producer)
Walter Seltzer (producer)
Starring Rod Taylor
Suzy Kendall
Jane Russell
Janet MacLachlan
Theodore Bikel
Cinematography Frank V. Phillips
Edited byFred A. Chulack
Music byJohn Carl Parker
Distributed by National General Pictures
Release date
  • August 14, 1970 (1970-08-14)
Running time
96 min
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$2,607,328 [1]
Box office$1,621,897 [1]

Darker than Amber is a 1970 film adaptation of John D. MacDonald's 1966 mystery/suspense novel, Darker than Amber . It was directed by Robert Clouse from a screenplay by MacDonald and Ed Waters.

Contents

The film starred Rod Taylor as Travis McGee, the protagonist of a series of successful novels by MacDonald. Darker than Amber and The Empty Copper Sea (adapted as the 1983 film Travis McGee starring Sam Elliott) remain the only McGee novels adapted to the big screen to date.

Critical reception was positive, but the film was not a financial success.

Plot

Travis McGee (Rod Taylor) and his close friend Meyer (Theodore Bikel) are fishing underneath a bridge in their coastal Florida home. To their shock a young woman is thrown off the bridge; she is bound and her ankles weighted with a dumbbell. Travis dives in and saves her, learning her name is Vangie. He is surprised when she insists that he not contact the police and Travis finds himself falling in love with the mysterious woman.

She gradually opens up to Travis, admitting that she was nearly killed due to her involvement in a prostitution ring and a murder scheme. Vangie was part of a team that worked in male/female pairs on cruise ships: pretty young women lured rich lonely men and then drugged their drinks to rob them when they were passed out. The male partner, a sadistic bodybuilder named Terry (William Smith), throws the men overboard to drown. Vangie became a target when she objected to the murders, having been led to believe the men would only be robbed.

Despite Travis and Meyer's efforts to protect Vangie, Terry tracks her down and murders her. Travis and Meyer then set out to dismantle the gang. They locate a woman named Merrimay, who bears a striking resemblance to Vangie. On a cruise ship, Travis poses as a wealthy man traveling alone, serving as bait for Terry and his new partner Del (Ahna Capri). Del approaches Travis and invites him to her room—but knowing their scheme he refuses to take the drinks she serves and warns that her life is in danger. Angry that Travis has located him, Terry, who was lying in wait in an adjoining room, savagely attacks Travis who is overwhelmed after wounding Terry.

Terry flees the cruise ship where Meyer and Merrimay are waiting at the pier. Merrimay, her hair dyed to closer resemble Vangie, calls out to Terry. Already bloodied by his fight with Travis, Terry goes berserk at the idea that Vangie survived and storms down the gangplank towards her, punching anyone in his way. Security guards try stopping Terry, but they only slow him until Travis appears and takes down the muscle-bound killer with a blow from a wooden 2x4.

The movie ends with Travis and Merrimay talking on his houseboat The Busted Flush. She asks if he still is in love with Vangie and hints that she might want a relationship with him, but McGee replies by saying he will need time to consider if he is ready for a new love in his life.

Cast

Production

Other actors considered for the role of Travis McGee were Jack Lord and Robert Culp. John D. MacDonald pushed for Steve McQueen or Vic Morrow. The movie was shot on location in Florida and Nassau. [2]

Reception

Critical

Though it did not gross well in the box office, Darker than Amber earned many positive reviews. Roger Ebert gave the film 3.5 stars out of a possible 4. He wrote that Taylor, somewhat playing against type by showing more warmth than his usual taciturn performances, was well-cast as McGee and that the plot managed to transcend standard detective cliches to become "a surprisingly good movie". [3] Howard Thompson of The New York Times also gave the film reserved praise, stating that the cinematography was "excellent" and that the film was "better than average for this type [of crime film]" and Smith was "a truly horrendous giant of a psycho", but that the screenplay lagged in parts despite the good material to work from (in the original novel), and that the real star of the film was its Florida setting. [4]

MacDonald disliked the film calling it "feral, cheap, rotten, gratuitously meretricious, shallow and embarrassing." [5]

The film played a rare theatrical screening at Anthology Film Archives in New York City, New York, on August 14, 2009. [6] [7] [8]

Box office

The film recorded admissions of 17,351 in France. [9]

The film recorded a loss of $2,958,251. Producer Jack Reeves had bought the rights for another McGee novel The Deep Blue Goodbye but it was decided not to proceed with it. [1]

Fight scenes and rating

Initially rated R in the United States, in 1971 it was edited and re-rated GP (now PG). [10] The film was considered graphically violent for its time, especially the fist fight scene that ends the film, between Rod Taylor's Travis Mcgee and the film's villain, Terry (played by William Smith). Director Steven Soderbergh said the fight's ferocity was considered "jaw dropping" for its era. [11] With the cameras rolling Rod Taylor hit William Smith who retaliated in kind, [12] and a staged fight scene became a real fight. Smith later reported that Taylor was "a very tough guy" who broke three of his ribs while he broke Taylor's nose. [13]

After Darker Than Amber ran its course in theaters, both Rod Taylor and William Smith would reportedly be considered for the part of Caucasian martial artist Roper in the 1973 Bruce Lee blockbuster Enter the Dragon , which would also be helmed by Darker Than Amber director Robert Clouse. [14] The role would ultimately go to John Saxon, however.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rod Taylor</span> Australian actor (1930–2015)

Rodney Sturt Taylor was an Australian actor. He appeared in more than 50 feature films, including Young Cassidy (1965), Nobody Runs Forever (1968), The Train Robbers (1973) and A Matter of Wife... and Death (1975).

John Dann MacDonald was an American writer of novels and short stories. He is known for his thrillers.

Travis McGee is a fictional character, created by American mystery writer John D. MacDonald. McGee is neither a police officer nor a private investigator; instead, he is a self-described "salvage consultant" who recovers others' property for a fee of 50 percent. McGee appeared in 21 novels, from The Deep Blue Good-by, first published in 1964, to The Lonely Silver Rain in 1984. In 1980, the McGee novel The Green Ripper won a National Book Award in a one-year Mystery category. All 21 books have the theme of a color in the title, one of the earliest examples of detective/mystery fiction series to have a 'title theme'.

<i>The Deep Blue Good-by</i>

The Deep Blue Good-by is the first of 21 novels in the Travis McGee series by American author John D. MacDonald.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Flanders</span> American actor (1934–1995)

Edward Paul Flanders was an American actor. He is best known for playing Dr. Donald Westphall in the medical drama series St. Elsewhere (1982–1988). Flanders was nominated for eight Primetime Emmys and won three times in 1976, 1977, and 1983.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ahna Capri</span> American actress (1944–2010)

Anna Marie Nanasi, better known by her professional name Ahna Capri, was an American film and television actress best known for her role as Tania in the martial-arts film Enter the Dragon.

<i>Dark of the Sun</i> 1968 British adventure war film by Jack Cardiff

Dark of the Sun is a 1968 British adventure war film starring Rod Taylor, Yvette Mimieux, Jim Brown, and Peter Carsten. The film, which was directed by Jack Cardiff, is based on Wilbur Smith's 1965 novel, The Dark of the Sun. The story about a band of mercenaries sent on a dangerous mission during the Congo Crisis was adapted into a screenplay by Ranald MacDougall. Critics condemned the film on its original release for its graphic scenes of violence and torture.

<i>A Purple Place for Dying</i> Book by John D. MacDonald

A Purple Place for Dying (1964) is the third novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald.

<i>The Quick Red Fox</i>

The Quick Red Fox (1964) is the fourth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. In it, McGee is hired to aid a fictitious Hollywood star named Lysa Dean who is being blackmailed with revealing photographs.

<i>Darker than Amber</i>

Darker than Amber (1966) is the seventh novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. The plot begins when McGee and his close friend Meyer are fishing underneath a bridge and a young woman, bound and weighted, is thrown over the bridge. It was adapted into a 1970 film of the same name.

<i>One Fearful Yellow Eye</i>

One Fearful Yellow Eye (1966) is the eighth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. The plot revolves around McGee's attempts to aid his longtime friend Glory Doyle in her quest to uncover the truth about her late husband and the blackmail which made over half a million dollars of his fortune disappear. It is largely set in Chicago, rather than the usual McGee haunt of Florida. When Fortner Geis dies, it becomes clear that his fortune was swindled out of him in his last months. McGee tracks down the money and eventually builds a romantic relationship with Fortner's daughter, Heidi Trumbill.

<i>Pale Gray for Guilt</i> 1968 book by John D. MacDonald

Pale Gray for Guilt (1968) is the ninth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. The plot revolves around McGee's investigation into the death of his close friend Tush Bannon, who he suspects has been murdered because of his refusal to sell his waterfront property to developers. In terms of series continuity, Pale Gray for Guilt is particularly important in that it involves a love interest, Puss Killian, who is central to the final book: The Lonely Silver Rain.

<i>Dress Her in Indigo</i>

Dress Her in Indigo (1969) is the eleventh novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald.

<i>The Long Lavender Look</i>

The Long Lavender Look (1970) is the twelfth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. After the preceding book, Dress Her in Indigo, which was largely set in Mexico, The Long Lavender Look not only returns to McGee's usual haunt of Florida, but is almost entirely set in one tiny town deep in the rural part of the state.

<i>The Empty Copper Sea</i>

The Empty Copper Sea (1978) is the 17th novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. In it, McGee looks into the apparent drowning of Hub Lawless in a boating accident. His $2 million insurance policy leads some to believe he has faked his death.

<i>Free Fall in Crimson</i>

Free Fall in Crimson (1981) is the nineteenth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. In the plot McGee sets out to investigate the death of an ailing millionaire, and encounters a motorcycle gang, pornographic movie-makers, and balloonists. The book also revives the character of Lysa Dean from The Quick Red Fox, an early novel in the series. In the finale, McGee's longtime friend Meyer is terrified into submission by the main villain and judges himself a failure because his inaction almost led to disaster. This moral dilemma is resolved in the next novel, Cinnamon Skin.

<i>Cinnamon Skin</i> 1982 novel by John D. MacDonald

Cinnamon Skin (1982) is the twentieth novel in the Travis McGee series by John D. MacDonald. Like a few other books in the series, McGee ends up traveling to Mexico to solve a crime. His friend Meyer's niece is killed by a bomb on the John Maynard Keynes, Meyer's houseboat, with two other people. As Meyer and McGee investigate the explosion, they discover her husband, Evan Lawrence, did not die, and instead had a dark and dangerous past.

<i>Kisses for My President</i> 1964 film by Curtis Bernhardt

Kisses for My President is a 1964 comedy film directed by Curtis Bernhardt and starring Fred MacMurray and Polly Bergen. Leslie McCloud (Bergen) makes history when she is elected the first female president of the United States. However, her husband Thad McCloud (MacMurray) is less enthusiastic. The picture's supporting cast features Eli Wallach, Arlene Dahl, Edward Andrews, and Donald May.

Piranha, also known as Piranha, Piranha or Caribe, is a 1972 Venezuelan adventure-thriller film starring William Smith, Peter Brown and Ahna Capri. Smith and Brown had previously starred together in the Laredo Western TV series.

Travis McGee is a 1983 American TV movie based on the 1978 novel The Empty Copper Sea by John D. MacDonald. It was the second film adaptation of the Travis McGee series. It was made by Warner Bros.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Stephen Vagg, Rod Taylor: An Aussie in Hollywood (Bear Manor Media, 2010) p154
  2. ↑ Stephen Vagg, Rod Taylor: An Aussie in Hollywood, Bear Manor Media 2010 p152
  3. ↑ ( Ebert 1971 )
  4. ↑ ( Thompson 1970 )
  5. ↑ A MacDonald festival: Happy number sixty-three, John D!: MacDonald festival: He's so good, why isn't he better? Petersen, Clarence. Chicago Tribune 15 July 1973: f1.
  6. ↑ Rapold, Nicolas. "True grit: Anthology Film Archives and William Lustig unearth some lost gems of '70s Hollywood", Time Out New York , Issue 723 : Aug 6–12, 2009
  7. ↑ "Anthology Film Archives". Anthologyfilmarchives.org. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  8. ↑ "Cinema Strikes Back: "Anthology Film Archives Screens The Seventies – Buried Treasures Series, Curated by William Lustig"". Archived from the original on 2009-09-03. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
  9. ↑ 1971 Box Office Figures in France at Box Office Story
  10. ↑ [ dead link ]
  11. ↑ Anthony Kaufman (2015). Steven Soderbergh: Interviews, Revised and Updated, University Press of Missouri
  12. ↑ Tal, Tim (April 1, 2010). "William Smith: My fight with Clint Eastwood was longest two-man fight scene on screen". Bzfilm.com. BZ Film. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  13. ↑ Louis Paul (2007). Tales from the Cult Film Trenches: Interviews with 36 Actors from Horror, Science Fiction and Exploitation Cinema. McFarland, p. 226
  14. ↑ "Sound file" (MP3). Cityonfire.com. Retrieved June 26, 2022.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.