User Reviews

They don't make 'em like this anymore, and more's the pity. It's hokey, contrived, politically incorrect, and laced with clichés, but it blissfully transports one back to that innocent, popcorn-scented time in the balcony of the local Bijou when Technicolor images flickering across a silver screen could sweep one into a magical world of harem girls and charging horsemen.

Structurally, the film is a bit of a mess, stitching together a forbidden romance between star-crossed lovers, a stiff-upper-lip adventure about civilized British soldiers subduing pagan hordes, and a personal drama about the growing respect between two enemy combatants. While the plot is a mishmash, however, it's never dull, it moves along at a merry clip, and it fills the CinemaScope screen with lively, colorful, filmed-in-Morocco images.

Michael Wilding and Patrick McGoohan are properly British, Anita Ekberg never looked more glamorous, and Victor Mature was born to play just this sort of thing. Lean back, set your brain at "Idle," and enjoy!

(Incidentally, Victor Mature is flogged twice in this movie. The one which occurs in the first reel is especially vivid and it ranks 52nd on a list published in the book, "Lash! The Hundred Great Scenes of Men Being Whipped in the Movies.")

This desert-set adventure flick exemplifies the subtle difference between Hokum and Camp: recently, I had watched its star, Victor Mature, in THE VEILS OF BAGDAD (1953) – spirited, tongue-in-cheek and generally exuding an air of unpretentious low-budget professionalism, it falls firmly into the former category; ZARAK, on the other hand, tries to be serious (with its religious/political undertones and calling into question familial/patriotic loyalties at times of stress) but is so relentlessly high-strung as to emerge a fount of virtually uninterrupted (but clearly unintended) hilarity!

These are too numerous to cite and most have, in any case already subsided in my memory, but I can't fail to mention Mature's irrepressible resourcefulness – though very obviously doubled at times – when aroused (including high-kicking his opponents and vigorously hacking away at a rope-bridge on which his arch-nemesis Michael Wilding is hanging for dear life), stoicism in the face of torture and impending death and, particularly, his wallowing in self-pity (and hysterically funny subsequent haunting) after unwittingly bludgeoning to death the current Mullah of the mosque – who had actually interceded for Mature during a public flogging and does the same, much to the latter's evident chagrin, for the British Major at the aforementioned bridge sequence! That is not to say ZARAK is a bad film in the strict sense of the word: for one thing, there's plenty of action throughout (some of it actually borrowed from the classic Alexander Korda production of THE FOUR FEATHERS [1939]!) – but, to be sure, the narrative is inordinately muddled for this type of film (not only in delineating the plot or the hero's motivations, but also by having such a prominent character as that of Bernard Miles vanish altogether halfway through)!

This was the second of six British-made actioners featuring Hollywood hunk Mature, filmed virtually back-to-back and after which his career would slowly grind to a stand-still; for the record, the others – none of which I've watched – were SAFARI (1956), INTERPOL (1957; also with co-star Anita Ekberg), THE LONG HAUL (1957), NO TIME TO DIE (1958) and the somewhat similar THE BANDIT OF ZHOBE (1959; actually directed by the co-story writer of this one, John Gilling). Sexy in scantily-clad attire, Ekberg even gets to perform a sultry exotic dance but is otherwise underused here; Wilding is as ineffectual playing the stiff-upper-lipped cavalry officer after Mature as the latter is wooden in Afghan tinge and garb(!), Miles appears as the star's one-eyed comic relief sidekick (at one point drooling over the heroine's writhing and to which he's vainly attempting to draw his brooding partner's attention), while Finlay Currie is – what else? – the earnest but ill-fated Holy Man. Apart from these, the supporting cast includes: Bonar Colleano (as one of Zarak's treacherous younger siblings), Frederick Valk (in his last role as his tyrannical father), Eunice Gayson (best-known for first eliciting the celebrated trademark response of "Bond, James Bond" – in DR. NO [1962], of course – is here Wilding's ingenuous bride) and Patrick McGoohan (youthful but already imposing in what is presumably his first sizeable part in a film as Wilding's aide). The behind-the-scenes credits are similarly notable – several of whom would soon prove instrumental in cementing the 007 image into the public consciousness.

although I was just a teenager when I saw Zarak, I remember very fondly this excellent film, notably the unbelievable Anita Ekberg's dance, certainly one of the most thrilling piece of eroticism of all British films. Director Terence Young was certainly a master of blending sex appeal with action as testified by his latter films (Safari, Dr No...) Ms Ekberg who certainly is the main attraction of the film is not the only one: Victor Mature as Zarak, an afghan rebel (!) is excellent as usual and the British officers are stiff to the point that they look only at Mature and not at Anita Ekberg. Can you believe it? What is amazing me is how such a cult film which has strong fans all over the world lay unissued and can't be seen anymore. When someone somewhere will at last publish this little gem on DVD?

Adventure movie dealing with the violent rebellion in Afghanistan and well set in XIX Century . On the mountainous frontier between British India and Afghanistan, circa 1860s, Zarak Khan (Victor Mature) kisses Salma (Anita Ekberg who offers some erotic scenes while performs nimble dances and grossly suggestive costuming by showing the actress in one of her scanty gowns) , the youngest wife of his father. Outraged, Haji Khan - Zarak's Father (Frederick Valk) orders Zarak to be punished but spares his life at the urging of an elderly Mullah (Finlay Currie) . Zarak now leaves his land and becomes a notorious rebel against British empire , prompting the English to assign Major Ingram (Michael Wilding) to capture him. When Ingram is captured by Ahmad, one of Zarak's rivals, Zarak risks his life to save the British officer. But then things go wrong , but later he escapes from British Army . As Zarak Khan sends a threat : I have returned , I attack fort Abbott at dawn on the day after tomorrow. For the Harem Beauty...Mighty Zarak Fought Half a Continent!.Mightiest Of The Mighty! a sensation of excitement and thrills ! Pillage! Plunder! Passion! Today's reign of Terror in Afghanistan ! White Heat Explodes in Green Hell!

Adventure and moving drama/action movie with nice mood , it is a rich , robust and colorful picture , a hell-for-leather stuff . Exciting and thrilling picture set in Afghanistan in the turbulent late 19th century . It is a rousing , moving , stirring tale , but rough-edged fare . Dealing with interesting issues , such as imperialism , colonialism and racism . One of several lively , all-action , color de luxe adventures produced by Britain's Warwick films , in this production company usually played Robert Taylor , Alan Ladd and Victor Mature as stars in the late Fifties .Warwick was set up by Irving Allen and Albert R. Broccoli, and its main purpose was that it offered an European lifeline to fading Hollywood star . The plot is simple and light , brave Mature to lead Afghans on a rebellion against the British and their Fort Abbott : As Zarak joins forces another rebel chief and continuing up country closer and closer to rebel territory , they both get closer to achieving their aims . The film develops an intense and obstinate confrontation between Zarak/Victor Mature and Ingram/Michael Wilding both of whom have several violent encounters , though interweaving a grudging respect for each other . As the tension , intrigue and suspense maintain a real grip across . Along the way , the film reflects the way in which Afghanistan divided two communities , both Afghan and British with their forts , luxurious life , noisy balls .. . In "Zarak" anyway , neither White Men , nor Asian people are necessarily the heroes , but both of them share the guilt of the warring confrontation . In fact, the attitude of the colonials and the Afghans are both very partially portrayed , the reason for ¨Zarak¨ is more an adventure/action movie than a historical film .The usually wooden Mature plays an obstinate Afghan whose real goal is to vanquish the colonialist British . Mature became one of Hollywood's busiest and most popular actors after the war , though rarely was he given the critical respect he often deserved. These enjoyable films were all ordinarily played by Mature who was nearly at his most agile and deft style , as he starred various Adventure films and was superstar of Hollywood epics . His roles in John Ford's My darling Clementine (1946) and in Henry Hathaway's Kiss of the death (1947) were among his finest work, though he moved more and more frequently into more exotic roles in films like Samson y Delilah (1949) and Sinuhe, the Egyptian (1954) . Never an energetic actor nor one of great artistic pretensions, he nevertheless continued as a Hollywood stalwart both in programme and in more prominent films like The Robe (1953). More interested in golf than acting, his appearances diminished through the 1960s, but he made a stunning comeback of sorts in a hilarious romp as a very Victor Mature-like actor in Neil Simon's Zorro (1966). He eventually took over his activities and, after a cameo as Samson's father in a TV remake of his own "Samson and Delilah" (Sansón y Dalila (1984) , he retired for good . He is well accompanied as co-starring by the gorgeous Anita Ekberg , reportedly the producers cut much of Ekberg's erotic dances in the ending edition, and yet objections were still made of "spicy situations" , causing a huge fuss on England billboards . And excellent support cast, such as : Michael Wilding , Eunice Gayson, Finlay Currie , Bernard Miles , Eddie Byrne , André Morell and Patrick McGoohan.

The ambient of the country at the time is pretty well shown accompanied by an atmospheric and brilliant cinematography by John Wilcox , Cyril J. Knowles, Ted Moore . Being shot on various locations : Morocco, Tangier, Burma m Elstree Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK. As well as thrilling musical score by William Alwyn and musical director by regular Muir Matheson. Being shot on location in Nairobi National Park, and Nairobi , Kenya . Lavishly produced by the notorious producers Irving Allen and the famous Albert R. Broccoli who subsequently to finance the successful James Bond series . The motion picture produced by Warwick along with Columbia Pictures was decently directed by Terence Young who directed some of the best Bond movies as Doctor No , From Russia with love and Thunderball .

Victor Mature puts on a turban and grows a beard to star as the title character in Zarak. It's the story of the eldest son of a clan chief who betrays his father with the father's youngest bride played by the Swedish Anita Ekberg. Just another case of an obviously Cauacasian woman playing an exotic Oriental and just by looks not carrying it off too well. Still she does what she can, Maureen O'Hara knew best of all how Anita felt cast in something like Zarak.

After being banished from the tribe, Mature becomes a bandit chief and the scourge of the territory in what is now Pakistan. Michael Wilding is sent to bring in Mature dead or alive, but other tribes are starting to get restless.

It maybe set in what was the real India then, but Zarak plays like an eastern western. Finlay Currie plays a mullah who pops in and out of the film at critical points in our protagonist's life. He's quite the saintly figure, more like a Christian saint than a Moslem one.

All in all a routine action film that fans of Victor Mature will appreciate.

The character of Zarak was not derivative : at once at odds with his own compatriots (and own brothers) and with the British colonizers , a born-rebel , he deserved perhaps more than specialist-of-the -genre Victor Mature's wooden acting (who was great in Sternberg's "the Shanghai gesture" though) ; unfortunately the script is messy,a muddled affair , the story out of a comic .Terence Young ,who was reponsible for some of the best Bond and for the brilliant thriller "wait until dark" , can direct an action-packed movie and the wide screen ,still rare at the time, is used with good results :a good sense of space indeed .Miss Ekberg is a feast for the eye, but her part is strictly decorative;on the other hand , two character actors such as Finlay Currie as the mullah (holy man) and Michael Winding as the major give the movie a little of the substance it terribly lacks. The Zarak /major relationship could have been a very interesting subject,had it been much more developed .

Good sequences: -the major ,clinging to the ropes of the bridge over a breathtakingly high gorge .

-the same 's "psychological' torture of the sabers

-the plunder of his desirable mansion ,quite violent for the time.

A perfect Saturday-night-at-the-movies feature.

In the 1950s and 60s, the buxom Swedish actress Anita Ekberg was a hot commodity. She made quite a few films and was very popular. Why then did someone decide that "Zarak" was a good film for her...playing one of the wives of an Afghan king?! Smudged with brown paint, you can STILL tell it's Ekberg and her blonde hair certainly stands out in a movie set in Afghanistan! Who thought this would be a good idea? Certainly no one with a functioning brain!

While not nearly as bad, the film also features a lot of non-Afghans playing roles for which they aren't suited, such as Victor Mature in the lead. He looked more at place as an Afghan but still was wrong for the part...as were all the many blonde dancing girls who were painted darker in order to make them look...well, like blondes whose skin has been painted! And, if you look, you can sometimes see the line between their actual skin color and the paint...making it funny (and a bit sad).

"Zarak" is a fictional story about an Afghan outlaw during the time when Britain controlled...or tried to control the country. It begins with Zarak (Mature) caught kissing his step-mommy (Ekberg) and daddy sure is angry! He first orders his son killed, but then is convinced just to make him an outlaw and expel him. Soon, Zarak is a very successful bandit with followers...and he's driving the British overlords crazy trying to stop him.

So, am I saying that this is a terrible film? No. But it certainly could have been a lot better. A few other problems are that for a murderous bandit, Zarak never really kills anyone! And, there are several dance sequences that simply make little sense. It an an interesting film...but a flawed one that could have easily been better.

"Zarak" gets off to a roaring start - with us entering the Arabian village where Anita Ekberg's character lives with her old husband, being acquainted with her lusty relationship with his son (Victor Mature) and the father catching them in the act and sentencing them both to death - all within the first ten minutes of the film!!!! After that, it sort of delves into non-stop rebel war fighting scenes, which aren't that engrossing or all that well filmed - only momentarily catching up with Ekberg and her turgid relationship with Mature here and there. There are some very "American" touches of humour which clearly separate this US sword and sandal flick from the much more common Italian ones. But Anita Ekberg's scantily-clad dances, and sizzling seduction scenes are reason enough to seek out this title and sit through the yawn- inducing battle scenes which make up most of the movie.

In 1956 I was a twelve year old girl, going to the Saturday Matinée with my friends. The things I remember best about Zarak were the marvelous colors of the costumes, the romantic plot line and the desert fighting. It was both a Swash and a Buckle, and made even more exciting by its exotic location. Victor Mature was a bit long in the tooth, and probably could have played the father instead of the son, but he was still in good enough shape for my twelve year old heart to side with the errant lovers. Anita Ekburg didn't actually act much, but she was spectacular---in living color and almost in the costumes. In comparison to Victor Matures' be-robed macho, Michael Wilding seemed a bit of a stuffed shirt, leading most twelve year old girls to decide that Arabs were much sexier than Englishmen!

It's interesting sitting down to write a review on a film you have only seen once - some forty five years ago! Just ten years old, perhaps on account of the striking name (ZARAK - how onomatopoeic? - better look that one up!) I have remembered the film clearly...perhaps Anita Ekberg was an early awakening for me?

Victor Mature done up like bin Laden on a bad day, played the title role with gusto, the middle eastern outlaw, on the run from terribly British Michael Wilding as Major Ingram. He derring-do's with the best of them! This type of desert adventure was all the rage in the 50's, another biggie of its day as I recall, Tyrone Power in KING OF THE KHYBER RIFLES!...but I digress!

Probably most men in the audience (and I was inarguably male, even at that stage) will doubtless remember Ms Ekberg as Zarak's forbidden love Salma, rather inconveniently one of his father's wives. Unless I am mistaken, I seem to recall Zarak pacing around his exotic garden while Ms Ekberg, barely legally silked-up, was sashaying around him teasingly, singing "Climb up the Garden Wall," God, I'd like to see that again!

So yeah, take it from a ten year old, this was a film that went off!

Zarak Khan is the son of a chief who is caught embracing one of his father's wives, Salma. Zarak's father sentences both to torture and death but they are saved by an imam. The exiled Zarak becomes a bandit chief and an enemy of the British Empire.

It's a watchable orientalist romp, despite the muddled script, sometimes plodding pace, especially in the first half, and it has some good action sequences such as the bridge scene. Far from a great film, however it's diverting enough, especially with Anita Ekberg and her outfits or lack of it, and a good performance by Michael Wilding as the British officer looking to capture Zarak Khan (the great Victor Mature). There's a 007 connection here - Terence Young is the director, screenplay by Richard Maibaum, co-produced by Albert broccoli and actress Eunice Grayson feature.

saw this movie at ganesha talkies in mysore,india(1957). was a big fan of victor mature those days.i think it was a big hit in india.in my opinion this movie was much better than the spielberg creations like(the raiders series).

This dashing adventure film of problems around the north-west frontier to Afghanistan completely overshadows "Captain King of the Khyber Rifles" with Tyrone Power two years earlier, which was a bore compared to this flamboyant action adventure of mostly extensive battles with rifles and swords and overwhelmingly impressive dance numbers and scenes, one of the dancing ladies even being Anita Ekberg, who actually performs some belly dancing here; but that is far from the only excellent ballet sequences, one of them even with swords, feigning an execution in preparation for it. Victor Mature is the leading figure, outlawed by the king his father for having had a love affair with his father's wife, Anita Ekberg, who also is appropriately banished and almost executed. Victor Mature was supposed to be executed as well, but an old holy man (Finlay Currie) saved him and will save more lives, before he himself is accidentally killed. Michael Wilding is the leading British soldier, who with his troops is hunting Victor Mature as a gang leader in the mountains, and they meet a few times, actually rescuing each other's lives occasionally. The most interesting detail of the film is the mutual gentlemanly behaviour of these two enemies, both seeking the death of the other, but both reaching some mutual understanding and respect, especially when all is lost. Like all Terence Young's films, the intrigue is rather complicated, made more difficult to follow by efficient action direction, like also in his later Bond films, but at the same time very intelligent. It's an enjoyable film for the great adventure, the action, the flamboyant colours and scenery and the very extensive battle scenes, altogether actually making it deserving of a full score appreciation.