The African Queen (1951)

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

C.S. Forester (novel)
James Agee (adaptation) ...

Release Date:

20 February 1952 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

The greatest adventure a man ever lived...with a woman!

Plot:

In Africa during WW1, a gin-swilling riverboat owner/captain is persuaded by a strait-laced missionary to use his boat to attack an enemy warship.

Plot Keywords:

German | Steamboat | Torpedo | Swamp | Fort

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Humphrey Bogart	...	Charlie Allnut
Katharine Hepburn	...	Rose Sayer
Robert Morley	...	Rev. Samuel Sayer
Peter Bull	...	Captain of Louisa
Theodore Bikel	...	First Officer
Walter Gotell	...	Second Officer
Peter Swanwick	...	First Officer of Shona
Richard Marner	...	Second Officer of Shona

Also Known As:

African Queen (Austria) (West Germany) [de]
La reina africana (Argentina) (Venezuela) [es]
La reine africaine (Belgium: French title) (France) [fr]
A Raínha Africana (Portugal) [pt]
Africká královná (Czechoslovakia: Slovak title) [sk]
Africká královna (Czechoslovakia: Czech title) [cs]
Afrika kraliçesi (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
Afrikan kuningatar (Finland) [fi]
Afrikas dronning (Denmark) [da]
Afrikas drottning (Sweden) [sv]
Afrykanska królowa (Poland) [pl]
De afrikaanse koningin (Belgium: Flemish title) [un]
I vasilissa tis Afrikis (Greece) [el]
L'odyssée de l'African Queen (France) (informal title) [fr]
La regina d'Africa (Italy) [it]
La reina d'Àfrica (Spain: Catalan title) [ca]
La reina de África (Spain) [es]
Schicksal am Olanga-Fluß (Austria) [de]
Uma Aventura na África (Brazil) [pt]

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English | German | Swahili

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Certification:

Canada:G (Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Quebec) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Norway:7 | Singapore:PG | USA:Approved (PCA #15611) | South Korea:15 (2002) | Argentina:13 | Australia:G | Finland:S | Iceland:L | Netherlands:AL (video rating) | Sweden:15 | UK:U | USA:Unrated | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Company:

Horizon Pictures (II)

Trivia:

To show her disgust with the amount of alcohol that John Huston and Humphrey Bogart consumed during filming, Katharine Hepburn drank only water. As a result, she suffered a severe bout of dysentery.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Charlie welds the replacement blade that he "made" onto the broken propeller, the new blade he is using is a perfect fit, and was clearly cut from the propeller he is repairing.

Quotes:

Charlie Allnut: I don't know why the Germans would want this God-forsaken place.
Rose Sayer: God has not forsaken this place, Mr. Allnut, as my brother's presence here bears witness.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Anjelica Huston and Billy Martin/George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic (#11.18)" (1986)

Soundtrack:

God of Grace and God of Glory (Cwm Rhondda)

Bogie Deserved It

To me this film will always be the validation of Humphrey Bogart's long and distinguished career. His portrayal of the hard drinking Charlie was what made this film what it was. Also, he showed just how great an actor he was when he was able to match up against the woman who is generally considered to be the greatest actress in film history, Katherine Hepburn. Also, this film will always be recognized for having the perfect mix of action, romance and comedy and it will always be a classic.