JohnHowardReid
Director Glenville's fondness for TV-style close-ups seems deliberately designed to emphasize the inadequacies in Elizabeth Taylor's performance. The scenes between Taylor and Burton are particularly slow and tedious. At least two of their clinches have even been step-printed to make them run longer! When they have a chance to strut their stuff, the support players fare much better. True, they all have far more interesting material to work with, although Elizabeth even manages to make one of her scenes with Peter Ustinov boring. Fortunately, Guinness delivers one of his best performances. Lillian Gish and Paul Ford are along mainly for laughs and exit halfway through. After their departure, the film literally staggers to an inconclusive and unsatisfying conclusion. An effective use of natural locations is about the only strong feature in this dull, uninteresting, long-winded effort.
wes-connors
After three months in New York, English-accented Richard Burton (as Brown) returns to Haiti. He has been unable to sell his luxury hotel to the Americans. Also arriving on the boat are three friendly travelers; Mr. Burton has offered each of them rooms in his Haitian hotel. Unexpectedly, nice Alec Guinness (as Jones) is arrested and thrown into jail. The other two guests, elderly vegetarians Paul Ford (as Smith) and Lillian Gish (as Mrs. Smith) arrive safely and take Burton's "John Barrymore Suite"...In a possibly pre-arranged meeting, Mr. Burton meets French, then German-accented Elizabeth Taylor (as Martha) for sex in a car; the lovers must sneak around because she is married to Ambassador Peter Ustinov (as Pineda). Later, they are able to find a bed...Upon arriving at his hotel, Burton finds a dead body in his drained swimming pool. Haiti is under the iron-fisted rule of dictator "Papa Doc" Duvalier; this explains the dead body, abduction of Mr. Guinness, and other things. The decision to adapt Graham Greene's novel is commendable, and the location convincing; however, the film is too long and fails to sustain interest. Many in "The Comedians" contribute engaging work, but Burton, Ms. Taylor and Mr. Ustinov often appear bored - and it's contagious.***** The Comedians (10/31/67) Peter Glenville ~ Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Alec Guinness, Peter Ustinov
highwaytourist
This had all the making of a first rate political drama. There is an acclaimed novelist whose novel this was adapted from, an exciting premise (British expatriates in Haiti, brutally ruled by the brutal and eccentric "Papa Doc" Duvliar's, get caught up in political oppression and rebellion), an star-studded ensemble cast, and exotic locations. So why does it fall so flat? Part of the problem is that it the film is overlong, lasting for around two and a half hours. The result is a story which moves very slowly with a lot of excess chat. Also, there is too much emphasis on the dreary soap opera love triangle of the three main characters (Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, and Peter Ustinov). The Burton character, a cynical hotel owner of British decent, is obviously copied on the Humphrey Bogard character in "Cassablanca." The film also fails to take advantage of the official oppression and corruption which is the cause of the country's problems. There is little sense of danger until the last half hour, and even then the action is sporadic. There is also a failure to take advantage of the locations. The film was shot in Benin, an African country which isn't a convincing substitute for Haiti, though there was obviously no way this could have been shot in Haiti itself. But the photography is pretty ordinary. There are a few good scenes, including a voodoo ceremony and a shootout in a cemetery. Also, some supporting characters are actually rather interesting, helped by fine performances by James Earl Jones as a surgeon who supports the rebels and Raymond St. Jacques as a sinister police commander who tortures and murders people as casually as most people would order a take-out lunch. Unfortunately, but most of the film is a case of missed opportunities. It's passable, but overlong and never worthy of the talent that went into it.
moonspinner55
Talky and rather dull combination of political thriller and history lesson. When natty politico Alec Guinness is thrown into jail upon his arrival in strife-ridden Haiti, local welcoming factor Richard Burton helps him through the red tape; Elizabeth Taylor plays Burton's lover, Peter Ustinov is Taylor's husband. Rather a bit like Liz and Dick's "The V.I.P.s"--with the soap opera trimmings intact--although Guinness is very good and the location shooting is interesting. Burton hardly knows a subtle moment; he is so full of hot air that his spouting-off seems rote. Taylor looks as though her main concern was trying to stay attractive in the wilting heat. Graham Greene adapted the screenplay from his own novel, and sadly bears most of the blame for the overripe characters and dialogue. *1/2 from ****
AD
