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:

The Queen of Africa was played by the LS Livingston, which had been a working steamboat for 40 years. It is now docked next to the Holiday Inn in Key Largo, Florida, just off US Highway 1.

Goofs:

Continuity: In some close-ups of the African Queen, her name is painted in white letters. Other shots show the name of the boat in black lettering.

Quotes:

Rose: Dear?... Dear?... What is your first name?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Sanford and Son: Home Sweet Home for the Aged (#2.21)" (1973)

Soundtrack:

God of Grace and God of Glory (Cwm Rhondda)

entertaining but overrated

The African Queen is an entertaining film done in grand old Hollywood style, and it is probably the most conventional movie John Huston ever made. It's surprising though that people can call this movie one of the greatest of all time considering the hokey (and at times unbelievable) script and the awkward lack of chemistry between Bogart and Hepburn. Actually, that lack of chemistry creates some strangely funny moments which change the tone of this adventure story--sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. The two are never really believable as the characters they are playing, but they are still fun to watch as a couple of stars chewing up the scenery. Bogart's Academy Award for this performance is obviously a Revlon choice in that it makes up for his being overlooked for at least 10 better performances that he gave prior to this one. Huston's direction seems to lose focus in the last 10 minutes or so and the ending is very abrupt, but overall the film is briskly paced and painless. Also worth noting is the wonderful use of African locations as photographed by master cinematographer Jack Cardiff. If you want to see a better film with similar themes, check out Huston's far superior Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison.