Action of the Tiger is a very ordinary anti-Communist film that benefits from a location shoot in Greece (filling in for nearby Albania). The woefully miscast Van Johnson plays Carson, an amoral American smuggler who agrees to help blonde bombshell Martine Carol rescue her brother from the bondage of Enver Hoxha and company. Herbert Lom and Sean Connery provide assistance for Johnson, whose part really should have gone to someone with a little more gravitas, perhaps Sterling Hayden or Richard Widmark. Instead, our lead tries to prove his masculinity by wearing sweaters that are much too tight, a less than pretty sight. Desmond Dickinson's cinematography is uniformly good, especially in exterior setups, but the script is undercooked and ultimately unbelievable, as our heroes end up rescuing a motley assortment of Greek children and outwitting those dumb commies. Action of the Tiger is also of minor interest for Connery fans, as the Scots actor would reunite with director Terence Young for a little film called Dr. No five years later.
11 Reviews
Don't hold this tiger
AlsExGal13 September 2019
A woman (Martine Carol) hires an American smuggler (Van Johnson) to try and rescue her brother (Gustavo Rojo) from a political prison in Albania. They end up escorting a group of refugee kids, as well, as they struggle to make it across the border into Greece.
I liked Carol, an actress I wasnt familiar with, and Herbert Lom has fun as the lusty leader of a group bandits on horseback. Johnson tries, and while he isn't awful, I would have preferred someone else in his role. Connery plays Johnson's second mate aboard his small boat, and the future James Bond gets to drunkenly paw at Ms. Carol. Speaking of Bond, 5 years later Connery would shoot Anthony Dawson (here playing an Albanian military officer) in the first Bond film Dr. No, which incidentally was also directed by this film's Terence Young.
I liked Carol, an actress I wasnt familiar with, and Herbert Lom has fun as the lusty leader of a group bandits on horseback. Johnson tries, and while he isn't awful, I would have preferred someone else in his role. Connery plays Johnson's second mate aboard his small boat, and the future James Bond gets to drunkenly paw at Ms. Carol. Speaking of Bond, 5 years later Connery would shoot Anthony Dawson (here playing an Albanian military officer) in the first Bond film Dr. No, which incidentally was also directed by this film's Terence Young.
Ill suited leading actors
malcolmgsw7 May 2021
The screenplay is fairly mediocre but is given no help by the leading actors. Johnson,who is miscast,seems to be doing a Bogart impression,with a lot of "sweethearts". Carol looks like she has just walked out of Maxims,rather been travelling in a dusty and dirty environment.
Comedic attempted-rape scene
karlpov18 November 2004
If for nothing else, this film is memorable for a scene in which the heroine is chased around the hero's boat by the mate, Mike, played by Sean Connery, as obvious prelude to rape, while said hero, a particularly grubby-looking Van Johnson (who had seen better days in Santa Fe Trail and The Strange Love of Martha Ivers) looks on indifferently. Somehow or other she gets out of this, but the idea that having escaped the clutches of Connery she would subsequently fall hard for Van Johnson give cinema one of it great "huh?" moments. Otherwise, the movie lacks much interest or originality despite the Albanian background which certainly could have been better exploited, as Albania was known during its Communist era as the last surviving medieval society in Europe, and attracted a goodly share of antiquarian tourists.
Absolutely unmemorable thriller. Could have been both interesting and exciting, but it's neither.
barnabyrudge7 September 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Many people believe that Sean Connery made his movie debut in a 1958 film entitled Another Time, Another Place, the poster of which prominently displayed the words "Introducing Sean Connery". In truth Connery had already done supporting acting in a handful of small films, one of which was Action Of The Tiger. The actual star of Action Of The Tiger is Van Johnson, sorely miscast as a tough-talking but soft-at-the-centre pirate smuggling political prisoners out of post-war Albania. There are rumours that the leading female, Martine Carol, suggested on several occasions during the shoot that Connery himself would have been better in the lead role it's certainly an interesting notion, and the more one cringes at the embarrassing efforts of Johnson the more one wishes someone had listened to her advice!
Shortly after World War Two, blonde bombshell Tracy (Martine Carol) approaches a pirate/mercenary/adventurer named Carson (Van Johnson) with a dangerous assignment. Her brother is trapped behind the Iron Curtain in Albania, and she is keen to get him out while he is still alive. Carson initially hates the job but for all his hard words and stubborn protests, his weakness for beautiful women and ready money gets the better of him. After numerous close calls, Carson and Tracy find the endangered brother but learn that he is now blind. They strike out across rugged Albanian wilderness in the direction of the Greek border, but their quest is made doubly difficult when they are persuaded to take a bunch of kids with them. Seems the kids' parents are scared that their youngsters will face a future of poverty, torture and persecution under the Communist rule and want Carson to smuggle them to safety. The road to the border is fraught with danger, so much so that Carson has to rely on the aid of a passionate freedom fighter named Trifon (Herbert Lom) to negotiate the final few miles.
The film is poorly scripted by Robert Carson, working from a forgotten novel by James Wellard. The action progresses predictably and in uninvolving fashion from one scene to the next, and by the climax one can barely remember what the film was about. Give it a fortnight and you might have forgotten altogether that you've ever seen the film! Johnson, as noted, is not cut out for this kind of tough-guy action role, while Carol ludicrously maintains perfect hair, perfect lipstick and an overall air of glamour, even whilst fleeing from Communist pursuers in the middle of remote Albania! The only actor who successfully crafts a lively and enjoyable characterisation is Lom as the resistance fighter, but he arrives too late in the story and has too small a role to save the film. It is directed, strangely enough, by Terence Young (who would go on to make three of the first four Bond films with Connery), but in this one Young's direction lacks a sense of pace and purpose. Apart from Lom's forlorn efforts, the only other praiseworthy aspect of the film is Desmond Dickinson's pleasant photography which captures the barren landscapes (Spain standing in for Albania) rather spectacularly.
Shortly after World War Two, blonde bombshell Tracy (Martine Carol) approaches a pirate/mercenary/adventurer named Carson (Van Johnson) with a dangerous assignment. Her brother is trapped behind the Iron Curtain in Albania, and she is keen to get him out while he is still alive. Carson initially hates the job but for all his hard words and stubborn protests, his weakness for beautiful women and ready money gets the better of him. After numerous close calls, Carson and Tracy find the endangered brother but learn that he is now blind. They strike out across rugged Albanian wilderness in the direction of the Greek border, but their quest is made doubly difficult when they are persuaded to take a bunch of kids with them. Seems the kids' parents are scared that their youngsters will face a future of poverty, torture and persecution under the Communist rule and want Carson to smuggle them to safety. The road to the border is fraught with danger, so much so that Carson has to rely on the aid of a passionate freedom fighter named Trifon (Herbert Lom) to negotiate the final few miles.
The film is poorly scripted by Robert Carson, working from a forgotten novel by James Wellard. The action progresses predictably and in uninvolving fashion from one scene to the next, and by the climax one can barely remember what the film was about. Give it a fortnight and you might have forgotten altogether that you've ever seen the film! Johnson, as noted, is not cut out for this kind of tough-guy action role, while Carol ludicrously maintains perfect hair, perfect lipstick and an overall air of glamour, even whilst fleeing from Communist pursuers in the middle of remote Albania! The only actor who successfully crafts a lively and enjoyable characterisation is Lom as the resistance fighter, but he arrives too late in the story and has too small a role to save the film. It is directed, strangely enough, by Terence Young (who would go on to make three of the first four Bond films with Connery), but in this one Young's direction lacks a sense of pace and purpose. Apart from Lom's forlorn efforts, the only other praiseworthy aspect of the film is Desmond Dickinson's pleasant photography which captures the barren landscapes (Spain standing in for Albania) rather spectacularly.
gorgeous scenery the highlight of this color film
blanche-28 January 2022
Van Johnson stars with Martine Carol and Herbert Lom in "Action of the Tiger" from 1957. Sean Connery has a small role.
Johnson plays Carson, an American contraband runner in Greece who is approached by a beautiful woman, Tracy (Carol) who wants to pay him to take her to Communist Albania. She will only say she has to see someone there. He is categorically not interested. His conscience won't let him - even if she arrives there, she won't get out alive.
Later, Carson and his buddy Mike have to flee the police when they become involved in a drunken brawl. They board Carson's boat - and there is Tracy. They finally agree on a $10,000 price to leave her ashore in Albania. He has to return with cargo - perishable, he says, so he can't be there for long.
In Albania, Carson arranges to meet his contact there, Kol (Jose Nieto). Tracy admits she wants to see her brother, and if he will agree to take him back to Greece with them, she will pay him extra. Her brother is a French diplomat, and the Communists won't want him to leave. Again, Carson says no way - just see him and get out. Later, Kol agrees to take her to see him, due to her brother's condition.
It turns out the perishable cargo is children whose parents are paying to get them out of the country. Before Carson knows it, he's stuck with Tracy, her blind brother, his girlfriend, and a bunch of kids. They then make their way back to the border, and it's treacherous.
I see this film has been roundly criticized as an average adventure film - I actually don't see many of these, and I found this one absorbing and the ending quite sweet. Van Johnson was a great asset for MGM - he was charming and goodlooking for lighter fare, but could do serious drama as well. Here he's actually sexy at times.
Carol said later the part would have been played better by Sean Connery, who was as yet not a name. I'm sure Connery would have been fantastic. Johnson did well nonetheless.
The color and scenery are beautiful.
Johnson plays Carson, an American contraband runner in Greece who is approached by a beautiful woman, Tracy (Carol) who wants to pay him to take her to Communist Albania. She will only say she has to see someone there. He is categorically not interested. His conscience won't let him - even if she arrives there, she won't get out alive.
Later, Carson and his buddy Mike have to flee the police when they become involved in a drunken brawl. They board Carson's boat - and there is Tracy. They finally agree on a $10,000 price to leave her ashore in Albania. He has to return with cargo - perishable, he says, so he can't be there for long.
In Albania, Carson arranges to meet his contact there, Kol (Jose Nieto). Tracy admits she wants to see her brother, and if he will agree to take him back to Greece with them, she will pay him extra. Her brother is a French diplomat, and the Communists won't want him to leave. Again, Carson says no way - just see him and get out. Later, Kol agrees to take her to see him, due to her brother's condition.
It turns out the perishable cargo is children whose parents are paying to get them out of the country. Before Carson knows it, he's stuck with Tracy, her blind brother, his girlfriend, and a bunch of kids. They then make their way back to the border, and it's treacherous.
I see this film has been roundly criticized as an average adventure film - I actually don't see many of these, and I found this one absorbing and the ending quite sweet. Van Johnson was a great asset for MGM - he was charming and goodlooking for lighter fare, but could do serious drama as well. Here he's actually sexy at times.
Carol said later the part would have been played better by Sean Connery, who was as yet not a name. I'm sure Connery would have been fantastic. Johnson did well nonetheless.
The color and scenery are beautiful.
Hard to rate as I don't know which version you're watching!
JohnHowardReid28 June 2017
Warning: Spoilers
Director: TERENCE YOUNG. Screenplay: Robert Carson. Based on the 1955 novel by James Wellard. Photographed in Technicolor and CinemaScope by Desmond Dickinson. Film editor: Frank Clarke. Art director: Scott MacGregor. Music: Humphrey Searle. Sound recording: Sash Fisher. Producer: Kenneth Harper.
Copyright 1957 by Loew's Inc. A Claridge Film Production, released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. New York opening at Loew's neighborhood cinemas as the lower half of a double bill with "Jailhouse Rock": 19 November 1957. U.S. release: August 1957. U.K. release: 22 September 1957. Australian release: 21 November 1957. Running times: 97 minutes (Australia), 93 minutes (U.K.), 91 minutes (U.S.A.).
SYNOPSIS: Hero enlists Albanian bandits to help rescue the heroine's dad from a Communist jail.
COMMENT: This is a review of the original 97 minutes version: Very attractive location photography distinguishes this somewhat slackly acted and none too briskly directed adventure yarn. In fact, the movie rates as somewhat disappointing, considering the talents involved. Both the screenplay and the movie itself probably really needed even sharper editing than that given the 91-minute American version. This said, however, the editing needs to be carried out with considerable care. Simply deleting whole scenes – as happened in this case – is generally NOT the way to go! Not only do you risk confusing audiences by deleting important information, but you often end up throwing away some poor actor's whole role. And if the poor actor's name is Sean Connery, for example, you're in real trouble! Mind you, I've not seen the U.S.A. version and I don't know for sure if Sean is still in the movie or not, but it's a risk that – if I was the producer – I'd be most unwilling to take!
Copyright 1957 by Loew's Inc. A Claridge Film Production, released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. New York opening at Loew's neighborhood cinemas as the lower half of a double bill with "Jailhouse Rock": 19 November 1957. U.S. release: August 1957. U.K. release: 22 September 1957. Australian release: 21 November 1957. Running times: 97 minutes (Australia), 93 minutes (U.K.), 91 minutes (U.S.A.).
SYNOPSIS: Hero enlists Albanian bandits to help rescue the heroine's dad from a Communist jail.
COMMENT: This is a review of the original 97 minutes version: Very attractive location photography distinguishes this somewhat slackly acted and none too briskly directed adventure yarn. In fact, the movie rates as somewhat disappointing, considering the talents involved. Both the screenplay and the movie itself probably really needed even sharper editing than that given the 91-minute American version. This said, however, the editing needs to be carried out with considerable care. Simply deleting whole scenes – as happened in this case – is generally NOT the way to go! Not only do you risk confusing audiences by deleting important information, but you often end up throwing away some poor actor's whole role. And if the poor actor's name is Sean Connery, for example, you're in real trouble! Mind you, I've not seen the U.S.A. version and I don't know for sure if Sean is still in the movie or not, but it's a risk that – if I was the producer – I'd be most unwilling to take!
The smugglers of the 50ties
jos-destrooper14 December 2003
This movie by Terence Young is the typical adventure-movie of the fifties. The action in Albania is well described with the Albanian resistance against communism and the double-spy colonel Stendho. The battles - horses against jeeps - are realistic and the Albanian family-life and the Countess Valona is also realistic with the remembrance of the past (Italians, Geeks). Martine Carol is wonderful and she does everything to save the children and her brother. Captain Carson is the typical American smuggler of the Mediterranean Sea and he falls in love with Tracy Malvoisie (Carol). Good script, good family-movie.
Saved by some gorgeous location scenery and a surprisingly touching ending.
mark.waltz27 April 2020
Warning: Spoilers
When I think of macho leading men of the golden age of Cinema, for some reason I do not think of Van Johnson even though he did his share of war films and action movies during his heyday. In this film, he's oddly cast as a snarling contraband runner, rather cynical and emotionless, smuggling children out of Albania even though he can't stand them. In this film, he's escorting the beautiful Martine Carol from Greece to Albania to find her brother, and in their shared adventures, they find romance and she helps him see the world from a different angle.
Any film that starts off with a scene in the ruins of ancient Greece is certainly going to get your attention, so there are a lot of ooh's and aah's over the mountainous European scenery, mostly filmed in Greece. The film which features four foreign children avoids the cuteness usually associated with films where children are in peril, and the dangers that they face on the road as he attempts to smuggle them out is very real. It looks like that they might cross the paths of communists at any time, so there is some tension among the glorious settings.
long before he was the wisecracking but heroic James Bond, Sean Connery had a cameo in this film, playing Johnson only crew member, attempting to rape Carol in a drunken stupor. Fortunately, the sequence is short, but Connery doesn't get any opportunity to show off the screen magnetism that would make him a major star. The really good supporting performance is by Herbert Lom as Johnson's contact who is the true hero. Johnson gets to come around to become a better person at the end of the film which utilizes a quote from Shakespeare's Henry V to make its point.
Any film that starts off with a scene in the ruins of ancient Greece is certainly going to get your attention, so there are a lot of ooh's and aah's over the mountainous European scenery, mostly filmed in Greece. The film which features four foreign children avoids the cuteness usually associated with films where children are in peril, and the dangers that they face on the road as he attempts to smuggle them out is very real. It looks like that they might cross the paths of communists at any time, so there is some tension among the glorious settings.
long before he was the wisecracking but heroic James Bond, Sean Connery had a cameo in this film, playing Johnson only crew member, attempting to rape Carol in a drunken stupor. Fortunately, the sequence is short, but Connery doesn't get any opportunity to show off the screen magnetism that would make him a major star. The really good supporting performance is by Herbert Lom as Johnson's contact who is the true hero. Johnson gets to come around to become a better person at the end of the film which utilizes a quote from Shakespeare's Henry V to make its point.
Yet another movie not as bad as promised
MissSimonetta10 June 2022
Director Terence Young later dismissed ACTION OF THE TIGER as poorly directed and acted. Today, many seem to concur it's a bad film, only of interest because it brought Young and Sean Connery together, setting them on the path to make history with DR. NO five years later. However, I have to contest the idea that ACTION OF THE TIGER is a total turkey. Maybe it's because of its low reputation, but I was pleasantly surprised with it.
To be sure, the conventional wisdom that Van Johnson is miscast as a tough-talking sea captain is true. This role would have been ideal for Humphrey Bogart in his 1940s heyday, but not Johnson by any means. He struggles to seem like a hardass and his tough guy line delivery is stiff. Martine Carrol is a little better, but she's often wooden as well. She also happens to be the other lead.
However, I say the film survives this miscasting. It's a straightforward adventure story, the sort that would be homaged in the INDIANA JONES series. There's travel, exotic locations, dangers from an authoritarian regime, moments of humor, and plenty of suspense. Young keeps it all rolling and his direction, far from lousy, is assured throughout. It's not earth-shattering, but it is entertaining, ideal for a rainy Sunday.
To be sure, the conventional wisdom that Van Johnson is miscast as a tough-talking sea captain is true. This role would have been ideal for Humphrey Bogart in his 1940s heyday, but not Johnson by any means. He struggles to seem like a hardass and his tough guy line delivery is stiff. Martine Carrol is a little better, but she's often wooden as well. She also happens to be the other lead.
However, I say the film survives this miscasting. It's a straightforward adventure story, the sort that would be homaged in the INDIANA JONES series. There's travel, exotic locations, dangers from an authoritarian regime, moments of humor, and plenty of suspense. Young keeps it all rolling and his direction, far from lousy, is assured throughout. It's not earth-shattering, but it is entertaining, ideal for a rainy Sunday.
From Albania with love
ulicknormanowen10 March 2024
Along Romania, Albania suffered after WW2 the hardest communist dictatorship; Enver Hoxca (d.1985) ,who proclaimed his country the most atheist in the world,was responsible for extremely bloody reprisals .
It came to an end only in 1991. Today the country has opened up to Tourism ; you can go to the country from Greece by boat .....
But circa 1957 ,you were not able to walk just right in, like our heroes ; the borders were inaccessible, and a guy and his machine gun ( Sean Connery in the movie) single-handedly fighting both the Albanian soldiers and police , in your dreams perhaps !
Not only the captain (Van Johnson ) and his passenger (Martine Carol) can enter the country ,but most of the time they cross the country while effotlessly deceiving caricatures of soldiers (the galeries Lafayette bill - a department store in Paris- takes the biscuit !) and finding the brother straight-away , but they also find help on the way (Carol being the price to pay !)
Martine Carol was French biggest sex symbol in the fisrt half of the fifties ,till the coming of BB : she often appeared topless ("Lucrèce Borgia" "un caprice de Caroline Chérie" ) ,so it was only natural to show her breast after a swim :there's absolutely no chemistry between her and Johnson ,but Sean Connery -who would work again with Terence Young and was catapulted into megastardom- is more than fond of her .
It came to an end only in 1991. Today the country has opened up to Tourism ; you can go to the country from Greece by boat .....
But circa 1957 ,you were not able to walk just right in, like our heroes ; the borders were inaccessible, and a guy and his machine gun ( Sean Connery in the movie) single-handedly fighting both the Albanian soldiers and police , in your dreams perhaps !
Not only the captain (Van Johnson ) and his passenger (Martine Carol) can enter the country ,but most of the time they cross the country while effotlessly deceiving caricatures of soldiers (the galeries Lafayette bill - a department store in Paris- takes the biscuit !) and finding the brother straight-away , but they also find help on the way (Carol being the price to pay !)
Martine Carol was French biggest sex symbol in the fisrt half of the fifties ,till the coming of BB : she often appeared topless ("Lucrèce Borgia" "un caprice de Caroline Chérie" ) ,so it was only natural to show her breast after a swim :there's absolutely no chemistry between her and Johnson ,but Sean Connery -who would work again with Terence Young and was catapulted into megastardom- is more than fond of her .
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