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Special 35mm Edition (1932, RKO) Joel McCrea, Delores Del Rio, John Halliday, Skeets Gallagher, Lon Chaney, Bert Roach. Don’t let this pansy-sounding title fool you, this is one of the greatest adventure epics of the 1930s, complete with jungle islands, erupting volcanoes, bloodthirsty natives, whirlpools, mighty sailing ships, killer sharks, giant sea turtles, etc. First off, Orson Welles was correct, Delores Del Rio was the most beautiful woman in the world. In this pre-code classic she has an erotic skinny dipping scene that shows off her incredible beauty. Some of the close-ups of her face are simply stunning—beautiful beyond words. And what a great plot, McCrea leaves his sailing ship to run off with a gorgeous girl of the islands. Unfortunately, she is promised in matrimony to another. The two of them take refuge on another nearby island; but when the local volcano erupts, the natives coming looking for Del Rio, who must be sacrificed into the volcano to quell its mighty fury. This movie is a wow. Made by RKO and produced by David O. Selznick, it has the same look and feel as two other RKO classics from the same era, King Kong and The Most Dangerous Game. A must!
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