Outcast of the Islands

1951

Action / Adventure / Drama

3
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 52% · 4 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Spilled 52% · 250 ratings
IMDb Rating 6.9/10 10 1425 1.4K

indigenous outcast imperialism

Plot summary

After financial improprieties are discovered at the Eastern trading company where he works, Peter Willems flees the resulting disgrace and criminal charges. He persuades the man who gave him his start in life, the merchant ship captain Lingard, to bring him to a trading post on a remote Indonesian island where he can hide out.

Director

Carol Reed Photo
Carol Reed

Top cast

Trevor Howard Photo
Trevor Howard as Willems
James Kenney Photo
James Kenney as Ramsey
Peter Illing Photo
Peter Illing as Alagappan
Marne Maitland Photo
Marne Maitland as Ships Mate
720p.BluRay
919.85 MB
1280*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 40 min
Seeds 4

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by brogmiller 8 / 10

"Provoke? There is nothing in you to provoke."

Despite being of Polish descent and not learning English until his twenties Joseph Conrad became one of the greatest writers in the English language. His novels are deeply pessimistic and depict Man as being able neither to escape nor elude his destiny. To say that his works are unfilmable would be an overstatement but they certainly pose particular challenges. Such a pity that David Lean's plan to direct Conrad's late work 'Nostromo' did not come to fruition.Here we have his second novel directed by another of our truly great directors Carol Reed. Although Reed's films of the 1960's show a distinct falling off, this comes from a period when he is really 'on form'. There are changes from the novel but that is par for the course where film adaptations are concerned. Conrad was fascinated by the nature of evil and here it is personified by Trevor Howard as Willems who plays his part with tremendous relish. Ralph Richardson brings his presence to bear as Lingard although his appearance is rather pantomimic. Robert Morley and Wendy Hiller are excellent as Mr. And Mrs. Almayer but her role is underwritten and 'ambiguous' to say the least.In the novel Willems dies but here he is left to exist in the living hell he has created for himself and Aissa, played by Kerima, whose sexual magnetism has caused so much destruction. Willems has described his feelings for her as 'something between love and hate but stronger' and this ambivalence is powerfully depicted.Reed and adaptor William Fairchild have ended the film with a masterful shot of Aissa lowering her head in despair. This sweeping and mesmerising film with a majestic score by Brian Easdale is from a director at the top of his game.
Reviewed by AlsExGal 6 / 10

I wanted to like this one more than I did

British drama based on a book by Joseph Conrad. Trevor Howard stars as middle manager in a Far East shipping company. When he's found to have been embezzling, he's virtually exiled and runs of with his old friend, ship captain Ralph Richardson. Ralph takes him to a remote island paradise and instructs Trevor to learn the ways of their trading business with local overseer Robert Morley. However, Howard slowly succumbs to his worst impulses in the never-ending heat and boredom of island life.I really wanted to like this one more than I did. The direction from Carol Reed is good, although things drag in a few places. The cinematography is very good; one of the camera operators was Freddie Francis. Guy Hamilton also worked as the assistant director. My chief problem with the film was the Howard character. I haven't read the source novel, and perhaps it provided more of the inner voice of the character, but as he stands in the film, he's completely unlikable, and not in a compelling or entertaining way. He's just a boring, self-centered jerk.The natives are presented in a less-than-flattering light as well, which is exacerbated by having one of them be George Coulouris in dark body paint. I've also never been fond of Robert Morley. He's an irritating ham and he's unpleasant to even look at. That's terrible to say, I suppose, but in a visual medium, it's a valid point. His real-life daughter played his on-screen daughter here, and she's just as annoying.
Reviewed by brogmiller 8 / 10

Provoke? There is nothing in you to provoke.

Despite being of Polish descent and not learning English until his twenties Joseph Conrad became one of the greatest writers in the English language. His novels are deeply pessimistic and depict Man as being able neither to escape nor elude his Destiny. To say that his works are unfilmable would be an overstatement but they certainly pose particular challenges. Such a pity that David Lean's plan to direct Conrad's late work 'Nostromo' did not come to fruition. Here we have his second novel directed by another of our truly great directors Carol Reed. Although Reed's films of the 1960's show a distinct falling off, this comes from a period when he is really 'on form'. There are changes from the novel but that is par for the course where film adaptations are concerned. Conrad was fascinated by the nature of evil and here it is personified by Trevor Howard as Willems who plays his part with tremendous relish. Ralph Richardson brings his presence to bear as Lingard although his appearance is rather pantomimic. Robert Morley and Wendy Hiller are excellent as Mr. and Mrs. Almayer but her role is underwritten and 'ambiguous' to say the least. In the novel Willems dies but here he is left to exist in the living hell he has created for himself and Aissa, played by Kerima, whose sexual magnetism has caused so much destruction. Willems has described his feelings for her as 'something between love and hate but stronger' and this ambivalence is powerfully depicted. Reed and adaptor William Fairchild have ended the film with a masterful shot of Aissa lowering her head in despair. This sweeping and mesmerising film with a majestic score by Brian Easdale is from a director at the top of his game.
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