Replace a huge, thundering herd of elephants with forty square miles of ravenous red soldier ants, and you've got Charlton Heston's answer to another 1954 Technicolor flick, "Elephant Walk". The similarities in story line are remarkably consistent - they both take place in a remote jungle, the owner built the place from scratch, a lovely young woman arrives on scene to take her place next to a rugged newlywed husband, and the story ends in an epic battle against nature in which the odds are stacked against the humans. I guess Paramount figured if they could make it work once, they could do it again. And only a month apart!
You have to admit though, Heston's character is way too much of a jerk for most of the picture. After fifteen years in the jungle, you would think he'd be a little more appreciative when someone like Eleanor Parker shows up. Comparing her to a piano that's been played before when he finds out Joanna was once married is about as crude a remark you could come up with and not get slapped silly.
But then there's the Marabunta! Did you get a load of the look on Heston's face and the way the music trembled when the Commissioner said marabunta? Definitely ominous. If made today, I'm sure there would be no problem coming up with a CGI concoction featuring billions of ants, but for 1954 this seemed pretty impressive. And speaking of the commissioner, it took me a while to figure out that was William Conrad when he was only about half the size of his future TV creation Cannon. Just another reason why I love watching these old flicks.
Interestingly, this picture is almost too colorful for the kind of story that gets played out here. Everything is so green and lush, and Parker's wardrobe makes her look stunning in every scene. Even the ants look good, which is saying something, because their mutant cousins in the same year's "Them" had to make do in glorious black and white.
You have to admit though, Heston's character is way too much of a jerk for most of the picture. After fifteen years in the jungle, you would think he'd be a little more appreciative when someone like Eleanor Parker shows up. Comparing her to a piano that's been played before when he finds out Joanna was once married is about as crude a remark you could come up with and not get slapped silly.
But then there's the Marabunta! Did you get a load of the look on Heston's face and the way the music trembled when the Commissioner said marabunta? Definitely ominous. If made today, I'm sure there would be no problem coming up with a CGI concoction featuring billions of ants, but for 1954 this seemed pretty impressive. And speaking of the commissioner, it took me a while to figure out that was William Conrad when he was only about half the size of his future TV creation Cannon. Just another reason why I love watching these old flicks.
Interestingly, this picture is almost too colorful for the kind of story that gets played out here. Everything is so green and lush, and Parker's wardrobe makes her look stunning in every scene. Even the ants look good, which is saying something, because their mutant cousins in the same year's "Them" had to make do in glorious black and white.