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THE STORY:
On an African big game hunt, wealthy Robert Preston proves to be a coward when he encounters his first lion. Wife Joan Bennett taunts him with insults to his manliness and compromises him with their guide, Gregory Peck. A cynic, Peck can see through Bennett's deceit more easily than Preston. Finally finding his courage, Preston meet a challenge, but is "accidentally" shot by Bennett.
-- From 500 Best American Films
BEHIND THE SCENES:
In spite of the 30 day shoot in the blazing heat of June in a deserted section of Baja, California, this was a dream role for Peck. "This is a lazy man's role. I am a lazy man.... You see, I'm saving about 150 hours on this picture. No makeup. No change of costume. Same clothes all through. Not even a tie to tie."
The crew, stars and 125 extras had to be housed 40 miles away at Rosarito Beach, 10 miles south of Tijuana. Because of the bad roads, it took two hours to drive to the location site. Peck spent some of that time writing a screenplay he hoped he would someday get a chance to act in and re-reading the three volumes of "Captain Horatio Hornblower," a part he would take on four years later.
In The Films of Gregory Peck, the actor tells another story of extracuricular activities during the shoot. Still up at 6 a.m. after pulling an all-nighter of drinking and singing with Preston and the entire crew (Bennett & Korda the only exceptions), the gang was notified that "The cars are leaving in 20 minutes."
"So well all went down to the beach and stripped and ran into the surf to try to sober up, got out and got into our clothes, swallowed some black coffee and got into these cars--drunk. We got got to the location and were ready to shoot at 8:30."
THE AUTHOR:
Bogeaus and Robinson paid Hemingway $85,000 for the screen rights to "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber." Even though the author considered this one of his best stories, he was not the least bit interested in the making of the film. When the filmmakers tried to reach Hemmingway for his input in re-writing the script to adhere to the Hollywood Production Code on morality (which required Bennett to be punished for her evil deeds by the end of the film), he was no where to be found. A forced re-write by Robinson & Seymour Bennett caused them to deviate from an otherwise honest translation of Hemmingway's story and left the film muddled at the end. Would Wilson be waiting for Mrs. Macomber after her inquest?
THE CRITICS:
The deviation didn't go unnoticed, but the film was generally considered one of the best translations of Hemmingway's work and his vision of the Great White Hunter.
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