Outcast of the Islands

For the novel, see An Outcast of the Islands.

Outcast of the Islands
original movie poster
Directed by	Carol Reed
Screenplay by	William Fairchild
Based on	An Outcast of the Islands 1896 novel by Joseph Conrad
Produced by	Carol Reed
Starring	Trevor Howard Ralph Richardson Robert Morley Wendy Hiller
Cinematography	Edward Scaife John Wilcox
Edited by	Bert Bates
Music by	Brian Easdale
Color process	Black and white
Production company	London Film Productions
Distributed by	British Lion Films Corporation
Release date	18 January 1952 (1952-01-18) (London)
Running time	100 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Box office	£149,335 (UK)

Outcast of the Islands is a 1951 British adventure drama film directed by Carol Reed based on Joseph Conrad's 1896 novel An Outcast of the Islands. The film features Trevor Howard, Ralph Richardson, Robert Morley and Wendy Hiller.

Plot

Peter Willems (Trevor Howard), a selfish and ambitious man, is accused of stealing in his position as manager of a shipping port operation near Singapore. After he is dismissed for his misconduct he reacquaints himself with the trading ship Capt. Lingard (Ralph Richardson) who befriended him as a 12-year-old boy. Lingard agrees to help Willems regain his reputation by taking him to a trading village located up a difficult-to-navigate channel near the coast of Batam. Lingard's son-in-law, Elmer Almayer (Robert Morley), operates a trading operation for Capt. Lingard in the village. Lingard asks Almayer to take Willems under his wing and teach him the business. While Lingard is away on one of his sea trips, Willems abuses his trust, seduces the village chieftain's daughter Aissa (Kerima), attempts to steal Almayer's business operation, humiliates Almayer before the villagers, and shares the navigation secrets of the channel with an Arab trader who competes with Capt. Lingard. Lingard returns to discover the mess Willems has made and confronts Willems – who has now been condemned by the villagers because of the shame he brought to the frail and dying chieftain. He abandons Willems to live in isolation and exile.

Cast

• Trevor Howard as Willems
• Ralph Richardson as Captain Lingard
• Robert Morley as Elmer Almayer
• Wendy Hiller as Mrs. Almayer
• Kerima as Aissa
• George Coulouris as Babalatchi
• Tamine as Tamine
• Wilfrid Hyde-White as Vinck (as Wildrid Hyde White)
• Peter Illing as Alagappa
• Betty Ann Davies as Mrs Williams
• Frederick Valk as Hudig
• A. V. Bramble as Badavi
• Marne Maitland as Ships Mate
• James Kenney as Ramsey
• Annabel Morley as Nina Almayer
• Ranjana as Dancing by (as T. Ranjana)
• K. Gurunanse as Dancing by

Production

In the wake of the success of The Blue Lagoon, Alexander Korda was able to get funding for a film version of Outcast. Outcast of the Islands was filmed on location in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and at Shepperton Studios in England.

Reception

Outcast of the Islands was nominated for best British film and best film from any source at the 1953 BAFTA awards.

Home media

Outcast of the Islands was released on home video by Kino Lorber on April 28, 2020 as a Region 1 Blu-Ray.

External links

• Outcast of the Islands at IMDb
• Outcast of the Islands at AllMovie
• Outcast of the Islands at the TCM Movie Database