New World/Playboy/Shoals Creek-Copa de Oro. Director Peter Bogdanovich; Producer Roger Corman; Screenplay Howard Sackler, Paul Theroux, Peter Bogdanovich; Camera Robby Muller; Editor William Carruth; Art Director David Ng
Ben Gazzara
Denholm Elliott
James Villiers
Joss Ackland
Rodney Bewes
Lisa Lu
Shot entirely on location in Singapore, the film (produced by Roger Corman, who gave Bogdanovich his start of The Wild Angels in 1964) is extremely well crafted, finely acted, and conjures up a positively intriguing milieu.
At bottom line, though, it's essentially a character study - Ben Gazzara excels as a pimp with a heart of gold - told in a mood that begins with a twinkling-eyed bawdiness, but becomes progressively more sombre and even nihilistic.
Based on Paul Theroux's novel, the film is laid in 1971, putting its exclusive focus on Gazzara, an expatriate US hustler-type who jumps ship and uses the cover of a local provision broker to operate a freelance prostitution ring.
The script is a good one, gutsy and sometime very funny.
(Color) Available on VHS. Extract of a review from 1979. Running time: 112 MIN.
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