A stroke of genius lead to the casting of two strong personalities such as Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart in this war drama romance. Both are hard headed and strong willed character actors who were guaranteed to clash yet are also believable as a couple once things swing in that direction. This is also helped along by a story that is riveting and believable, easy to get engrossed in with stakes that can be understood by virtually everyone. The WWI setting may not have been topical but with the war in Korea going on it made for an easy substitute.
The story is relatively straight forward. Samuel (Robert Morley), and his sister Rose (Katharine Hepburn) are Methodist missionaries in German East Africa during the beginning of the war. When German soldiers burn the village they serve in and round up the people into military service, Samuel protests and is beaten. He subsequently dies leaving Rose alone to fend for herself. Their supplier of food and other goods, Charlie Allnut, (Humphrey Bogart), a Canadian mechanic who captains a small steamer boat up and down the river, arrives and assists in burying Samuel as well as evacuating Rose from the area.
While on the river, Rose comes up with a plan to aid in the war effort by using the steamer as a makeshift torpedo, with the aid of some gelignite Charlie has onboard, to sink a gunboat that is patrolling a large lake downriver and preventing the British from attacking. Charlie is hesitant at first, stating that the way would be suicidal with dangerous rapids and a German patrol in the way but Rose persists and eventually convinces him to try. Much of the remainder of the film is taken up with this journey down the river as the two face rapids, heavy brush, and, for Rose, trials of faith and each other’s strong wills as they slowly begin to fall in love.
There has already been hundreds and hundreds of pages written about the various merits of The African Queen that it would seem almost insurmountable to come up with anything new or enlightening seventy years after it debuted. What I can say about this film is that it is a real tour de force for both leads as they are asked to share the bulk of the screen time to themselves with no one else to bounce off of. In that way it can be compared to such films as True Grit and especially its sequel Rooster Cogburn which also focused primarily on an odd couple on the river. Films like this can die on the vine if the chemistry isn’t right. Fortunately, this film has that chemistry in spades, building up right from the start to the point that when Charlie and Rose finally do kiss we have been anxiously awaiting the moment.
Adding onto our interest in their relationship, we also have a vested interest in their self assigned mission. Their success might not bring a turning point to the war but it would make a great deal of difference to the region as well as the overall safety of Rose and Charlie. We are so invested in our leads that the rest of it is just gravy on top. Audiences at the time were largely made up of people who had either participated in in some way or lived through the Great War. Those who were too young would have at least gone through WWII followed by Korea and could easily understand the feelings of our two leads as they face off against an invading superpower. The timing here greatly elevates the emotional payoff this movie is going for.
Humphrey won his one and only Academy Award for this film. He is good here but not on the level of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre or Casablanca. Much like John Wayne in True Grit, this award feels more like a lifetime achievement Oscar than a true award for this specific film. Irregardless, he deserved the award here and was visibly moved when accepting the award.
Filming The African Queen was notoriously brutal on all who were involved. Extreme temperatures and harsh environments took their toll on the cast and crew. Nearly everyone came down with dysentery with the exception of Bogart and director John Huston who managed to avoid illness by allegedly drinking whisky they brought with them rather than the local waters. Hepburn was particularly ill and often had sick buckets nearby for her between takes. She wrote extensively about her experience on this film in her memoirs of the production. Throughout the turmoil one gets the sense that it wasn’t all arduous. There are several scenes where the two leads inject moments of genuine humor to the proceedings obvious one involving Bogart goofing around at Hippos and monkeys while Hepburn laughs at his antics. Earlier in the film there is an uncomfortable humor surrounding Bogart, Hepburn and Morley, the latter two made uncomfortable by the exaggeratingly loud noises Bogart’s stomach is making. These scenes inject a little levity into an otherwise serious drama.
Despite the hardships, or perhaps thanks to them, virtually everything about this film is spot on, from the lead actors to the beautiful scenery filmed on location in Uganda and the Congo. Films in the past that tried to approximate location shoots always seemed to come across as a little fake and staged. Here, the location stands out as a character of its own, something that cannot be accomplished entirely on a stage or backlot. Some of the more dangerous scenes were filmed in London but, with the exception of some obvious rear projection work, is mostly flawless. Some of the model work needed to film scenes on the rapids is a little dated but that is not so much a flaw as it is a trope of this era of filmmaking.
This is a highly entertaining film that hardly seems dated aside from a few effects shots. The romance and the drama are all deftly handled and never hit a false note. The conclusion plays exactly as you would expect from this type of a film but that is just fine, too. This isn’t the type of movie that needs twists and turns to it. It is better off staying true to the drama and introducing conflict naturally. It is a near perfect film that will satisfy virtually anyone willing to give it a couple of hours of their time.
Release Date: December 26, 1951
Running Time: 105 Minutes
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Katharine Hepburn
Directed By: John Huston
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