SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

Senteur As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Bluebell Alcock Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Oslo Jargo (Bartok Kinski) (Contains spoilers) The Southern Star (1968) starts out sluggish and it doesn't even pick up steam. It is unsure whether it wants to be a violent jungle manhunt flick or just a lazy adolescent comedy. I don't mind a little humour, but The Southern Star is so lackluster even in that, that nothing seems to work.The plot is about a native Negro from French West Africa, who is friends with a white man who is engaged to Ursula Andress (as Erica Kramer), whose father, Kramer (English film actor Harry Andrews), does not like the arrangement. He's a ruthless diamond mine owner. George Segal doesn't do much either. He is the friend of the native Negro who may have stolen a diamond. Now I like George Segal (King Rat (1965), The Bridge at Remagen (1969)) but he doesn't have a good script and can't show us his prowess. Ursula Andress is eye candy and nothing else.To bring in some conflict in the "story", they have a jealous rival to George Segal. Ian Hendry as Capt. Karl Ludwig doesn't like George Segal so he attempts to kill him and is following him. The whole film is about the chase through the jungle. In one stupid scene, George Segal starts a stampede with a few matches. The film is peppered with excessive stock footage of African animals. Orson Welles, as usual, drinks his way lazily through the film. In another scene, Ursula Andress, falls near a Cobra, again, stock footage is used and the scene looks so preposterous because the "dimension" of the Cobra stock footage is too big.The characters don't really appear to be French at all, but more like Boers (Dutch and Afrikaners) or English blokes. Every jungle cliché is thrown in for good measure, quicksand, snake attacks, wooden bridge over river, soldiers who can't shoot, etc.This is an average, dull affair, which doesn't really engage the viewer. It won't hurt to look at it, but don't expect much.

Cristi_Ciopron I have seen this flick when I was in kid, in '87 or perhaps in '86--and on the big screen. Ursula Andress makes it worth watching at all ages.The director, Sidney Hayers, worked mostly for the TV--with such big--screen exceptions like Diagnosis: Murder (1975), The Trap (1966) and Night of the Eagle (1962)(which the genuine connoisseurs admire).The Southern Star (1969), with Ursula Andress, Orson Welles and George Segal, is a recommended African adventures outing, with some gusto and even excitement and a beautiful broad to justify the movie.It certainly doesn't resemble much the book which it claims it adapts; I remember a scene with two guys playing chess with small glasses of alcohol and drinking the pieces they were taking. The same scene is in a Greene novel.

theowinthrop Say Jules Verne and one has memories of cannons shooting men to the moon, or a mad sea captain destroying British ships with his personal submarine, or a proper Englishman betting 20,000 lbs (half his fortune) that he can get around the world in 80 days. And the movies have been kind to Verne's best known films: George Melies immortalized FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON in an early film. Walt Disney did films on TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA and THE CHILDREN OF CAPTAIN GRANT (the latter entitled IN SEARCH OF THE CASTAWAYS). Ray Harryhausen's special effects are one of the treats of MYSTERIOUS ISLAND. Mike Todd produced AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS. And James Mason did make that JOURNEY TO THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH. What is usually not realized is the lesser known titles that have gotten onto the screen - for Jules Verne wrote nearly 80 novels. MICHAEL STROGOFF was made into a film in Great Britain in the 1930s with Anton Walbrook. FIVE WEEKS IN A BALLOON was made into a comedy adventure (with Sir Cedric Hardwicke and Red Buttons) in the 1960s. A Mexican version of the long forgotten EIGHT HUNDRED LEAGUES OVER THE AMAZON was made in the 1950s. A French version of MATTHIAS SANDORF (Verne's attempt at an updated version of THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO) was made starring Louis Jordan in the 1960s. And there was this little film, made in 1969.What is frequently forgotten about Verne was that he was as preoccupied with politics as scientific developements. He usually was a liberal (one remarkable exception was his anti-Semitism, most markedly shown in his novel OFF ON A COMET - he also was convinced for years that Alfred Dreyfus was a traitor). In a late novel, THE DANUBE PILOT, he looks at the various warring nationalities in the Balkans and Austria Hungary. Another novel, THE SURVIVORS OF THE JONATHAN, dissects the various political philosophies of the day (Verne's hero is an anarchist). In the original THE SOUTHERN STAR Verne was taking a jaundiced eye at his particular bete noir - the British Empire in South Africa. The Boer - British rivalry there are a sounding board for looking at the society of South Africa. But one element is missing from the film. The villain is described as looking like Cecil Rhodes. But the villains in the film don't look like Rhodes.Yet the film does get the relations of the three groups (native Africans, Boers, British) into some proportion. Ian Hendry is the real villain, having slowly made his way into a position of power over the career of his predecessor (and former patron) Welles, and hoping to take over Harry Andrews economic empire. Hendry romances Andrews niece, Andress, who is in love with Segal. As for Segal, he is friendly with Johnny Secca, who grew up with him. Andrews disapproves of this friendship, and Hendry detests the native Africans anyway. Andrews' diamond works has just produced the world's largest diamond - the "Southern Star". It is stolen and suspicion (fed by Hendry, and swallowed by Andrews) is that Secca stole it. Segal tries to help his friend (who is fleeing). Then Welles returns - he hopes to force Secca to give him the diamond, so he can regain his old position with Andrews.The film is actually interesting enough to watch to its conclusion (and actually satisfactory even for Welles, as ambiguous a villain here as in some of his own films). It is not a great film by any stretch, but I would recommend seeing it.

John Seal Yes, The Southern Star features a pretty forgettable title tune sung by that heavy set crooner Matt Monro. It pretty much establishes the tone for this bloated and rather dull feature, stunningly miscast with George Segal and Ursula Andress as an adventurous couple in search of a large diamond. Add in Harry Andrews (with a strange accent, no less) chasing an ostrich, tons of stock footage of wildlife, and poorly composed and dull photography by Raoul Coutard, and you end up with a thoroughly unexciting romp through the jungles of Senegal.