Death Drums Along the River

Death Drums Along the River
DVD cover
Directed by	Lawrence Huntington
Produced by	Harry Alan Towers
Written by	Harry Alan Towers Lawrence Huntington Nicholas Roeg
Starring	Richard Todd Marianne Koch Albert Lieven Walter Rilla
Music by	Sidney Torch
Cinematography	Robert Huke
Release date(s)	1963 (UK)
Running time	83 minutes
Country	United Kingdom Germany South Africa
Language	English

Death Drums Along the River or Sanders is a 1963 German/English international co-production using the same characters as Edgar Wallace's Sanders of the River. Filmed on location in South Africa, it features Richard Todd and Marianne Koch leading a cast of British, German and South African actors. It was the first of the German films based on Edgar Wallace works to be shot outside of Germany in colour and filmed in wide screen Techniscope.

Plot

In The Gambia (during British colonial rule), two policemen patrolling a wharf sight a bag of nuts dropped by stevedores. As the bag breaks the workers discover a pouch that was in the bag of nuts that is quickly grabbed by a man who escapes after killing one of the policemen. Police Commissioner Sanders (Todd) questions Pearson (Bill Brewer), a suspected criminal, but finds no information.

At the same time, a Dr. Jung (Koch) arrives at the airport and is met by Todd's assistant Inspector Hamilton (Jeremy Lloyd). Dr. Jung is going to a clinic up country near the Senegalese Border run by Dr. Weiss (Albert Lieven), Dr. Schneider (Walter Rilla) and Nurse Marlene (Vivi Bach). Also on the plane with Dr. Jung is an American journalist (Robert Arden) who wishes to visit the clinic to do a story.

Commissioner Sanders begins to suspect the clinic as a location for smuggled diamonds from across the border.

Cast

• Richard Todd as Inspector Harry Sanders
• Marianne Koch as Dr. Inge Jung
• Albert Lieven as Dr. Weiss
• Walter Rilla as Dr. Schneider
• Jeremy Lloyd as Hamilton
• Robert Arden as Hunter
• Vivi Bach as Marlene
• Bill Brewer as Pearson
• Simon Sabela as Bosambo

Production

Harry Alan Towers was active in South Africa producing several films with West German financing from Constantin Film and a cast of West German actors.^[1] The film has very little to do with Edgar Wallace's Sanders of the River except the name of Sanders (now a Police Commissioner), the boat Zaire (that is now a small craft rather than a steamer) and Simon Sabela playing Bosambo in a very small role. The film was marketed in Germany as one of the then popular Edgar Wallace series of films.

Richard Todd had been in Africa filming The Hellions and was attempting to produce a film of Ian Fleming's The Diamond Smugglers.^[2]

The intertribal warfare of Edgar Wallace's work and the 1935 British film has been replaced by a standard detective story involving murder and diamond smuggling. The fictional nation is not given a name, but in the spirit of the times Dr Jung asks Sanders what he'll do when the nation is granted independence. Sanders replies he'll stay on "if they'll have me".

Locations

The film was shot in Durban, Durban North, Zululand and Lake St. Lucia.^[3]

Notes

1. ^ p.217 Bergfelder, Tim International Adventures: German Popular Cinema and International Co-Productions in the 1960's 2005 Berghann Books
2. ^ Todd, Richard In Camera: An Autobiography continued 1989 Hutchinson
3. ^ http://www.witness.co.za/index.php?showcontent&global%5B_id%5D=10262

External links

• Death Drums Along the River at the Internet Movie Database