King Solomon's Mines

Deborah Kerr,Hugo Haas,Richard Carlson,Stewart Granger

1897. Widowed for six years, Briton Allan Quatermain uses his skills as a big game hunter to guide hunting safaris in East Africa mostly for other visiting Brits. He is growing disillusioned with life, he contemplating going back to Britain for good to care for his now seven year old son who lives there. Although initially declining the offer, he eventually agrees to the request of Elizabeth Curtis and her brother John Goode for £5,000 - twenty-five times his usual fee - to search for her husband Henry Curtis who apparently went on a quest to find the mythical mines of King Solomon in uncharted African territory in the interior west of Allan's base, the mines purported to be filled with diamonds. Live or die through the experience, he largely expecting the latter, Allan only agrees to be able to leave his son with the money. Allan also agrees despite never having had to guide a woman on safari, prim and proper Elizabeth who he can see will be ill-equipped physically and mentally for trekking through the wilds of Africa. As a starting point, Elizabeth and John have a copy of the map Henry was using for his quest. Allan knows they will have to battle the elements and the native wildlife to survive, as well as the natives themselves, some who may be less than friendly, with all these items more unknown as they enter the uncharted territory. That uncertainty concerning the natives becomes all the more acute when they are joined by a seven foot tall native named Umbopa, Allan believing it safer to let him join their party than not allow him to join only to have him track them. But Allan and Elizabeth's biggest obstacle in finding Henry and/or reaching King Solomon's mines is arguably each other, as, as John states, they seem to be waiting for the other to fall flat on his/her face in their mutual antagonism. However, in Allan and Elizabeth's case, the old adage may apply in that there is a fine line between love and hate.—Huggo