The Southern Star *** (1969, George Segal, Ursula Andress, Orson Welles, Ian Hendry) – Classic Movie Review 9316

Director Sidney Hayers’s 1969 UK France co-production caper The Southern Star [L’Etoile du Sud] is a carefree, endearing Sixties adventure movie of fun and games in Africa, with a slapdash script based remotely on a Jules Verne novel, L’Etoile du Sud.

The story is set in French West Africa in 1912 and revolves around a huge stolen diamond (called The Southern Star), which diamond businessman tycoon Kramer (Harry Andrews) employs broke American fortune hunter Dan Rockland (George Segal), pretending to be a geologist, to find for him.

Segal and Ursula Andress (in unlikely casting as Andrews’s daughter, Erica Kramer) amuse as they perform feats of derring-do in the jungle and Orson Welles adds a fruity star cameo as Sgt Major Plankett.

The Southern Star [L’Etoile du Sud] is a well-produced, handsome-looking Eurofilm, distinguished if not by its script then by its fine cinematography from the eminent director of photography Raoul Coutard.

Also in the cast are Ian Hendry, Johnny Sekka, Harry Andrews, Michel Constantin, Georges Géret, Sylvain Levignac, Charles Lamb, Guy Delorme, and Jacques Van Dooren.

Sidney Hayers, runs 105 minutes, is made by Columbia Pictures Corporation, Euro-France Films and Capitole Films, is released by Columbia, is written by David Pursall, Jack Seddon (screenplay) and Jean Giono, is shot in Eastmancolor by Raoul Coutard, is produced by Roger Duchet, is scored by Georges Garvarentz and is designed  by Pierre Thevenet.

It is filmed in Senegal at Niokolakoba National Park and in Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England.

Welles directed the opening scenes, uncredited.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 9316

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