She [DVD] [1965]

 

 

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For me, this is one of Hammer's finest productions and the best film version of Haggard's classic novel.
No other actress at the time could possibly have enacted the part of Ayesha more effectively. The posters proclaimed "Ursula Andress...the most beautiful woman in the world" and they didn't exaggerate. The rest of the cast is uniformly excellent. There are liberties taken with the original story but the end result is faithful in spirit. And that wonderful James Bernard score!

Hammer's 1965 version of She can't match Merian C. Cooper's 1935 version for spectacle but it's still rather more handsomely mounted than you'd expect from the studio: location shooting, numerous sets and more extras than usual even if these descendants of Ancient Egyptians seem to have an army consisting of Roman legionaries. The most commercially successful adaptation of `the famous novel by H. Rider Haggard' (as the credits bill it), even inspiring a dreary sequel, The Vengeance of She, it's also surprisingly good, with rather more substance than you might expect.

Played partially as an old-fashioned adventure with far more action than any other version, the story is updated to post-WW1 Palestine, its explorers (Peter Cushing, John Richardson and mild comic relief Bernard Cribbins) now reimagined as demobbed soldiers uprooted by the war. "She who waits" is introduced into the picture surprisingly early and long before they reach her domain - here it is Ayesha herself who urges Leo to make the hazardous journey to prove that he is the reincarnation of her lost love. The second half makes more of the battle for Leo's soul, with more of an argument made against the temptations of eternal youth than in other versions, and the film goes to much darker places than its predecessors: this time Leo is lost long before the blue flame appears, and the end remarkably bleak. Being Hammer it also ups the sadism, not only in a mass execution of chained slaves but in the manner in which one character is `returned' to their family.

With Haggard's novel touching on the worship of beauty and youth above character or even basic humanity (She is so in thrall to her image of a lover that she blames herself for his infidelity) it's actually rather fitting that both leads are dubbed: Ursula Andress because of her thick accent - but then, no-one ever cast her for her voice - and John Richardson because, well, with his zombie-like vocal delivery that made him the Clive Owen of his day: acting never was his forte as long as he had the looks to get away with not having to. It's left to the bearded Peter Cushing's Holly to provide the weight of authority and make the case for growing old gracefully, which he does with effortless professionalism, while Christopher Lee's ambitious high priest Bilali is a far more interesting and less blindly devoted character here, adding another layer of moral decay to the crumbling kingdom. The production design makes a virtue of its relative economy, Kumar past its prime and on the edge of rebellion, the lost city itself long crumbled and the kingdom retreated into the very mountains, though the fact that the sets are smaller than they look and shot with long lenses to look larger is occasionally given away by distortion in some of the panning shots thanks to the still far from perfected Scope lenses. The special effects, though not always photo-realistic, are rather good in their old-fashioned way while James Bernard's score features a particularly memorable desert trek theme. All in all, one of Hammer's finer hours, and still highly enjoyable.

On this page (above) it says..."Synopsis. She, the immortal goddess, leads her band of female warriors against mutants and warlike tribes who roam the land establishing their own laws and codes for survival. She needs to conquer the Norks, the strongest of all the tribes, in order to establish her supremacy over all."

Surely Amazon can employ somebody to actually watch the film before just making something up like this? Having said that this would make a great basis for another movie... any investment bankers out there daft enough?

I love both the original book and this movie it's well worth the money and please ignore the synopsis above...

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5.0 out of 5 stars for eternity
a hammer classic ursula andress is fantastic as is the cast if you have never seen this i recommend you do

Published 14 days ago by crewestew

2.0 out of 5 stars b-movie
Those familiar with Haggard's novel will be rather disappointed to find crucial aspects (both plot- and characterwise) changed beyond recognition. Read more

Published 3 months ago by scribbler

4.0 out of 5 stars Ursula or Rosenda?
This,brief review, applies to the "Hammer Collection" released by Optimum, version. Full wide screen, but just slightly washed out colour, and some poor voice synchronization at... Read more

Published 7 months ago by A. W. Wilson

3.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable 'lost world' 'epic' from Hammer!
Adapted from Haggard's novel 'She', immortal Ayesha (Ursula Andress) lures her long dead but now reincarnated lover Killikrites (John Richardson) back to her lost city to join her... Read more

Published 8 months ago by K. J. Greenland

5.0 out of 5 stars She, who must be watched!
What can one say? A rip-roaring adventure! Ursula Andress is magnificent, John Richardson is quite dashing, and Peter Cushing & Bernard Cribbins are a delight - the scene with... Read more

Published 9 months ago by Sarah P

2.0 out of 5 stars She and Bubbles
Compared to the earlier Hollywood version, this one is Horror with Bubbles.
Andress doesn't hold the same power as Helen Cahagan in the original. Read more

Published 10 months ago by John A. Hunter

2.0 out of 5 stars She
Picture quality of my copy is poor and appears to be a copy from a VHS tape?
Not what I expected from an Amazon endorsed product.

Published 21 months ago by Stephen J. Deakin

4.0 out of 5 stars Top Notch Hammer Film With Andress In Her Prime.
SHE was not the most expensive film Hammer ever made but it sure looks like it. Of course it's not LAWRENCE OF ARABIA or ZULU but it does try to cash in on those two films at a... Read more

Published 21 months ago by Chip Kaufmann

5.0 out of 5 stars They say a moth is attracted to a flame
Well not quite the novel "She", by Henry Rider Haggard, but a little closer than earlier versions this movie and is quit fun to watch. Read more

Published 21 months ago by bernie

5.0 out of 5 stars Ursula Andress, the goddess of the lost city, beautiful as always and not just Bond Girl.
Vaguely inspired by the myths of Atlantis, is a product that does not depart from peplum crassest products in photocopy in the sixties. Read more

Published 24 months ago by Massimo Santilli

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