Let's be honest right from the start. This lengthy made for TV special is a very entertaining action/adventure period piece. It's a bit sprawling, but it keeps you interested. And Patrick Swayze brings a certain grizzled macho charm to Allan Quatermain, while Alison Doody is decorative and far from helpless as the leading lady.
But, notwithstanding a couple of nods by way of set pieces in the final act, it ain't Rider Haggard's book. And that's a pity, because the book is a) good and b) film-able. Yet, in a number of attempts, the films have always featured divergences of such significance that what is on screen is essentially a different story.
Maybe one day...
But, notwithstanding a couple of nods by way of set pieces in the final act, it ain't Rider Haggard's book. And that's a pity, because the book is a) good and b) film-able. Yet, in a number of attempts, the films have always featured divergences of such significance that what is on screen is essentially a different story.
Maybe one day...