Sundown (1941)

Second viewing; first seen on February 4, 1989.

During World War II, a British outpost in Kenya gets a change in command with the arrival of a strict British officer. He brings bad news about natives getting guns from the Nazis, and an upcoming riot. The arrival of a beautiful woman who owns a trading chain adds to the complexity of situation. To complete the picture, there are three other characters, the outpost's Italian cook and two new arrivals: a mineralogist and a white hunter.

This film is an example of Hollywood fighting World War II before the U.S.A. entered it. Colonialism is also a factor, and the conjugation of European self-interest and African improvement provides the theoretical thrust; the central idea is, on the geopolitical angle, that the Axis is concentrating on land movements, and their success will render the Allies' control of the oceans "useless". On the African human angle, the notion they come up with is that the black man is like a plant that, properly watered, will bloom. The subtheme of Trust, which I discussed recently in my review of Saboteur, appears here too, in very similar terms: here too, "instinct" is a better guide than institutions. I guess this was a recurring dramatic motif. The film chooses to solve its particular political conundrums by revoking the separation of Church and State, in a touching dying speech. I will upgrade my rating a few points because, on one hand, I understand the dialogue better this time, and, on the other, because there are some visually arresting scenes (it was filmed in New Mexico).

Rating: 33 (up from 30)