A film from the early 1950s which attacks prejudice and religious intolerance and celebrates indigenous culture, easygoing sexual morality, and interracial marriage. I'm reminded of King Solomon's Mines with Stewart Granger. Both these films did something remarkable for the time. They made their films with the local people instead of a Hollywood backlot, showing the local cultures on their own terms.
RTP was made in Samoa, using almost all Samoan actors. The one jarring note is the female lead is obviously a white woman in makeup. At one point she even shows off a pale leg while her face is tinted darker. Still, this German American actress did avoid acting in stereotypes and speaks Samoan, at least to my ears, not any different than the Samoan actors. Samoans might feel differently.
Gary Cooper fits this role well, a decent everyman that outsiders will identify with in his fight against the intolerant missionary and governor who uses force and Puritanical hostility to "turn the island into a prison" in one Samoan boy's words. Worth a look, and an interesting time capsule of a film.
RTP was made in Samoa, using almost all Samoan actors. The one jarring note is the female lead is obviously a white woman in makeup. At one point she even shows off a pale leg while her face is tinted darker. Still, this German American actress did avoid acting in stereotypes and speaks Samoan, at least to my ears, not any different than the Samoan actors. Samoans might feel differently.
Gary Cooper fits this role well, a decent everyman that outsiders will identify with in his fight against the intolerant missionary and governor who uses force and Puritanical hostility to "turn the island into a prison" in one Samoan boy's words. Worth a look, and an interesting time capsule of a film.