{"id":34513,"date":"2015-06-12T14:54:55","date_gmt":"2015-06-12T21:54:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=34513"},"modified":"2021-02-05T10:23:59","modified_gmt":"2021-02-05T17:23:59","slug":"white-cargo-1942","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=34513","title":{"rendered":"White Cargo (1942)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;She knows how to purr her way into your mind and scratch her way out, always taking and never giving.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Poster-197x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"197\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-34515\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Poster-197x300.jpg 197w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Poster-84x128.jpg 84w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Poster.jpg 328w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 197px) 100vw, 197px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA rubber plantation overseer (Walter Pidgeon) in a humid African village &#8212; just one among a handful of white men, including an alcoholic doctor (Frank Morgan) and a kind missionary (Henry O&#8217;Neill) &#8212; laments the arrival of an idealistic new co-worker (Richard Carlson) who quickly falls in love with a local &#8220;half-breed&#8221; seductress named Tondelayo (Hedy Lamarr).\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Africa<\/li>\n<li>Femmes Fatales<\/li>\n<li>Flashback Films<\/li>\n<li>Frank Morgan Films<\/li>\n<li>Hedy Lamarr Films<\/li>\n<li>Plantations<\/li>\n<li>Play Adaptation<\/li>\n<li>Walter Pidgeon Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nThere is so much to be offended by in this openly misogynist, racist, colonialist jungle flick &#8212; based on a hit 1923 play, which was in turn based on a novel entitled <em>Hell&#8217;s Playground<\/em> (!) &#8212; that, as many viewers have pointed out, its true value lies in its perceived camp appeal. Indeed, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/498\/white-cargo#articles-reviews?articleId=139161\">TCM<\/a> refers to it as a &#8220;popular mixture of exotica, pulp thrills and over-the-top misogyny&#8221;, as well as &#8220;a deliciously ripe relic&#8221;. With black-faced, shiny-skinned Hedy Lamarr:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-34516\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography2.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography2-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography2-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8230; slinking around spouting dialogue like the following to her &#8220;prey&#8221; (Carlson):<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;I&#8217;m married to you for five months &#8212; and you not beat me once! Awila, please beat me&#8230; Then maybe you feel much better. Soon we make up &#8212; much love, many bangles.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&#8230; you will simply be slack-jawed throughout. Her pidgin-like speech is peppered with the words &#8220;much&#8221; and &#8220;many&#8221; (&#8220;Him much nice man.&#8221;; &#8220;Awila give me much silk and many bangles.&#8221;), with the particularly favored phrase &#8220;much love, many bangles&#8221; repeated at least once. While Tondelayo is referred to at one point as possessing an &#8220;innate morality&#8221;, there&#8217;s really none of that on display here, as she simply evinces a &#8220;childlike&#8221; simplicity combined with seductive, sociopathic maneuvering. At least Harry Stradling&#8217;s cinematography is gorgeous, so that&#8217;s a bonus.   <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Harry Stradling&#8217;s dramatic cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-34517\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography.png 640w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography-128x96.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/White-Cargo-Cinematography-300x225.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a>\n<\/li>\n<li>Some clever dialogue:<br \/>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;The natives have been looking at me in a queer sort of way.&#8221;<br \/>\n&#8220;Maybe they&#8217;re wondering how you can walk without a spine.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nNo &#8212; though of course, if this seems like your cup of tea, you should give it a try! <\/p>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0035553\/\">IMDb entry<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/498\/white-cargo#articles-reviews?articleId=139161\">TCM Article<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/1942\/11\/27\/archives\/casablanca-with-humphrey-bogart-and-ingrid-bergman-at-hollywood.html\">NY Times Original Review<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;She knows how to purr her way into your mind and scratch her way out, always taking and never giving.&#8221; Synopsis: A rubber plantation overseer (Walter Pidgeon) in a humid African village &#8212; just one among a handful of white men, including an alcoholic doctor (Frank Morgan) and a kind missionary (Henry O&#8217;Neill) &#8212; laments the arrival of an idealistic new co-worker (Richard Carlson) who quickly falls in love with a local &#8220;half-breed&#8221; seductress named Tondelayo (Hedy Lamarr). Genres, Themes,&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=34513\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34513","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34513","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=34513"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34513\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":68907,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34513\/revisions\/68907"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=34513"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=34513"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=34513"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}