Dark of the Sun (1968, Jack Cardiff)

3 REASONS TO SEEK OUT THIS FILM:

1. A PRECURSOR TO 1970s EXPLOITATION FILMS

Back in 1968, American mainstream audiences weren't exactly used to witnessing graphic violence on screen. Up until that point, the most violent films to come out of Hollywood were films like Bonnie and Clyde, Point Blank and In Cold Blood. Now all of a sudden Dark of the Sun (aka The Mercenaries) is released with the star of The Time Machine and The Birds in a film featuring harrowing graphic violence (for the time) including murder, torture and male rape. 

It paving the way for the exploitation of the next decade, film that completely exploited violence just like this but of course took it to a whole level. Just look at the original The Inglorious Bastards, which also takes place on a train, and countless other great films.

Amidst all of this, we even get a chainsaw fight between Rod Taylor and a Nazi and at one point in the film, all the passengers of an entire train caboose is slaughtered. It's quite a sadistic picture. This clearly led the way to the violent and exciting world of the exploitation films of the 1970s. If you're looking for classic bad ass action and excitement, you won't be disappointed here.

2. A DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH IN THE 'GUYS ON A MISSION' SUB-GENRE

There certainly have been a great number of memorable 'Guys on a mission' films which were often set in WWII. Films like Where Eagles Dare, The Guns of Navarone, Kelly's Heroes and of course The Dirty Dozen, a film I grew up on and have loved ever since I was a little kid and also features the awesome Jim Brown. 

Here, rather than the typical WWII setting, we get hardened mercenaries (played by Taylor & Brown). They're hired to rescue European residents living in an isolated mining town in the heart of the Congo where they're awaiting attacks of a vicious rebel tribe amidst the Congo Crisis. Yet the real reason is soon revealed to be the extraction of $50 million worth of diamonds and they'll need all the help they can get, including that of a sadistic Nazi.

This film however didn't exactly get its fair share of the spotlight, which is quite surprising giving it's influence.  Yet slowly it made it's way into cult status. Not only influencing the exploitation genre of the '70s, but also being a favourite of many film makers like Quentin Tarantino and Martin Scorsese. Tarantino even went so far as to use a particular score from this film in his own film Inglourious Basterds (another 'guys on a mission' film) and even got Rod Taylor out of retirement to star as Winston Churchill.

3. DIRECTED BY A MASTERCLASS CINEMATOGRAPHER

Before directing a number of films, Jack Cardiff was a masterclass cinematographer with 85 credits to his name. Most notably responsible for the dazzling cinematography of three of Michael Powell's greatest achievements: A Matter of Life and Death, Black Narcissus and The Red Shoes. Cardiff elevated these films with lavish results and they are some of the most exquisite looking Technicolor films ever put to the silver screen. 

He later went on to work on many others including The African Queen and of course this film which also contains some beautiful cinematography for the type of film. In his later years he was doing cinematography for films like The Dogs of War, Conan the Destroyer and Rambo: First Blood Part II which just goes to show the immense range on this cinematographer. As shown in the terrific Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff.

Asides from this film being a non-stop action thrill-ride, it also happens to be a gorgeously shot one. Do yourself a favour and check this out.

Click here for the trailer