Something of Value (1957) User Reviews

Still of value

[tomsview · 8/10 · 26 November 2018]

I first saw this movie at a Saturday afternoon matinee in 1957 at the age of ten. Seeing it 60 years later, I'm amazed that it was considered a suitable movie for children at a matinee in that era of rigorous censorship.

There is strong stuff in this film about the Mau-Mau insurrection in Kenya in the 1950's. It was a film I remembered vividly, especially the scenes of Mau-Mau rituals, but also for the haunting background music and for Dana Wynter who just seemed so perfect.

At the time, colonisation was ending. Britain, which had coloured so much of the globe pink, would sometimes just haul down the flag and sail away, but in some African countries with generations of white farmers and landowners, things were trickier.

That was the background to Richard Brook's film of Robert Ruark's novel.

Peter McKenzie (Rock Hudson) and Kimani (Sidney Poitier) have grown up together in Kenya, but find that their different skin colours and cultures are forcing them apart.

There is interesting information on the making of the film in "Tough as Nails: The Life and Films of Richard Brooks" by Douglas K. Daniel. Brooks and his crew went to Kenya and although some of the film was shot back in Hollywood, the location footage gave the film its authentic look. In an act not without danger, Brooks and Hudson went to a secret location to meet members of the Mau-Mau.

Brooks could be a bully and alienated cast and crew except for favourites such as Sidney Poitier whom he protected from discrimination in segregated Kenya. He was rude to Dana and harsh with Rock, but he created tension to get the reactions he wanted from the actors.

Miklos Rozsa, the epic film score maestro, came up with different music for this film. Composed mainly for chorus, sometimes male, sometimes female depending on the mood, it is a fascinating impression of African music and one of the most memorable things about the film.

"Simba", a British film about the Mau-Mau rebellion was made in 1955. Also shot in Kenya, it too featured Mau-Mau attacks on white farmers, but the whole thing seemed condescending towards the Kenyans while Brook's film is more even-handed with treachery and massacres on both sides.

Both films end with a scene of a Kenyan baby, symbolising the key to the nation's future.

Interesting period piece

[wjfickling · 8/10 · 10 April 2004]

This film is an interesting memento of a period seemingly long ago, but actually in the recent past. It raises some of the same questions brought to mind in "The Battle of Algiers," specifically, what methods is it justifiable to use to further a just cause, especially the cause of an oppressed people. Another question, should all members of the oppressor class, in this case whites of British ancestry and citizenship, be regarded and treated as oppressors, even if they are sympathetic to the cause of the oppressed? To its credit, the film doesn't oversimplify. One character, Matson, is a cardboard villain, but the whites are generally portrayed sympathetically. And, although at the time this film was made Kenyan independence was only six years away, it is clear that, to almost all the whites, independence and black majority rule are still unthinkable. It is clear that many of the whites regard the land as just as much theirs as it is the blacks'; most of them were born there. The film doesn't make a case for independence, just for equality of treatment.

The film moves along and is never boring. It tells a good story and is generally well acted. It's too bad that Rock Hudson didn't, or couldn't, attempt a British accent. Although it's clear that all the whites in the film are British, Hudson just moves right along with his American accent, quite un-self conscious about it all. (Maybe it's just as well; he might have ended up sounding as ridiculous as Marlon Brando in "Mutiny on the Bounty.") This is in stark contrast to Sidney Poitier, who manages an African accent quite well. Poitier is actually superb in his role; this was well before he assumed the persona of the saintly characters so superior to everyone else that he played to excess in the 60s. This film appears not to be available on video, so you'll probably have to wait until it appears on Turner Classic Movies again. 8/10

Interesting story of the final years of colonialism in Africa.

[tynesider · 7/10 · 22 March 2008]

This film examines the post-war struggle for Kenyan independence resulting in the State of Emergency set up during the Mau Mau uprising against white settlers and African 'collaborators' in the 1950s, at a time when British Colonialism was in retreat. Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier are childhood friends who become enemies when Poitier joins the violent Kenyan revolt, and Wendy Hiller and Walter Fitzgerald play white settlers trying to come to terms with change, unlike the Robert Beatty and Michael Pate characters who support the status quo and regard the Africans as inferiors. The Mau Mau build-up is handled well, as is Poiter's gradual disillusionment with white rule, while finding it difficult to accept the violence of the Mau Mau. The Juano Hernandez character who administers the Mau Mau oaths is strongly influenced by his tribal religion and this provides the rather unconvincing reason for his change of heart and ultimate betrayal of his fellows. The vulnerability of the British settlers in the bush is evident and the degree of of violence, whether implied or shown, is unusual for the time (the picture was given an X certificate in the UK by the British Board of Film Censors which meant you had to be at least 16 to see it), and the story moves at a steady pace as directed by Richard Brooks. Interesting too for Miklos Rozsa's most unusual music score, using African rhythms and chants. An unusual film and worth seeing.

For me, this was a nostalgic journey.

[hoopoe · 7/10 · 8 March 2004]

I read Robert Ruark's book twice, Once before I went to Kenya in 1968 and once after my return. I had never seen the movie until recently. While in Africa, I was told by the Black Kenyans and the British Kenyans that the story was exaggerated, but this often happens to keep the interest alive. Having visited there, I thoroughly enjoyed the scenery and remembering many places where I had been and the animals running across the plains with Mount Kenya in the background. It was a treat to see young Rock Hudson, beautiful Dana Wynter and the talents of Sidney Poitier and Wendy Hiller. The action and the supporting actors are fine and I think I will watch it again before I return the tape to the video store.

Well-meaning film just misses mark

[rollo_tomaso · 7/10 · 9 January 2001]

Sidney Poitier is excellent in this study of Kenya's fight for independence and backlash against their former oppressors. William Marshall, Michael Pate and Wendy Hiller are superb in poignant supporting performances. But, Rock Hudson is terribly miscast, and his character too good, even beyond sainthood. And the focus on his character ultimately throws the movie off-balance. Still worth watching though, but it's a bit of a shame since the elements of greatness are all here, but the result is thought-provoking but unsatisfying. 7/10.

Thought-provoking and strong film about the Mau Mau violent rebellion in Kenya , well set in the Fifties

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 5 July 2020]

It deals with two youngsters : Peter (Rock Hudson) and Kimani (Sidney Poitier) , both of whom grew up together , Kimani soon finds that both races are treated differently . After Kimani's dad is imprisoned for following tribal habits , Kimani joins a gang of revolutionaries (led by Joaquin Martinez and William Marshall) that wish all non-Kenyans out of their country. While Kimani believes in the cause , he does not agree with the indiscriminate killing of women, children, and those who will not join or agree with them . Along the way , the film reflects the way in which Mau Mau divided two communities , both African and British . Filmed Under Military Protection by M-G-M in Africa's Mau-Mau Country! Love in an Inferno .This is the real Mau-Mau Story! Today's reign of TERROR filmed in Africa! Their love defied primitive jungle laws! White Heat Explodes in Green Hell!

A strong and thoughtful drama for the historical-minded people , concerning the Mau Mau terror with nice mood , well-performed , and not for the squeamish . The tension , intrigue and suspense mantain a real grip across . In "Something of value" anyway , neither White Men , nor African people are necessarily the heroes , but both of them share the guilt of the distresses . In fact, the attitude of the colonials and the Africans are both very accurately portrayed . This is by far the best film about the Mau Mau rebellion in Kenya along with ¨Simba¨by Brian Desmond Hurst with Dick Bogarde , Donald Sinden , Virginia McKenna , this was British forerunner of Richard Brook's work. The ambient of the country at the time is pretty well shown accompanied by an atmospheric cinematography in black and white by Russell Harlan , as well as thrilling musical score by Miklos Rozsa . Being shot on location in Nairobi National Park, and Nairobi , Kenya . Cast is frankly good as Rock Hudson playing Peter who still believes that there is a chance for peaceful co-existence and that he can stop most of the killing if he can reason with Kimani nicely performed by Sidney Poitier. Excellent support cast such as Robert Beatty , Juano Hernandez , William Marshall ,Walter Fitzgerald , Michael Pate, Ivan Dixon , and Wendy Hiller as a doomed wife. the motion picture was competently directed by Richard Brooks.

Based on historical events as the Mau Mau Uprising (1952-1960), also known as the Mau Mau Rebellion, the Kenya Emergency, and the Mau Mau Revolt, was a war in the British Kenya Colony (1920-1963) between the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA), also known as Mau Mau, and the British authorities.Dominated by the Kikuyu people, Meru people and Embu people, the KLFA also comprised units of Kamba and Maasai peoples who fought against the white European colonist-settlers in Kenya, the British Army, and the local Kenya Regiment (British colonists, local auxiliary militia, and pro-British Kikuyu people).The capture of rebel leader Field Marshal Dedan Kimathi on 21 October 1956 signalled the defeat of the Mau Mau.

Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier star in this Richard Brooks drama on race

[jacobs-greenwood · 6/10 · 18 October 2016]

Throughout most of Sidney Poitier's career as an actor that primarily appeared in race relations dramas, he played African- Americans whereas, in this one, he actually plays an African, a Kenyan in fact, named Kimani Wa Karanja.

As children, Peter (Rock Hudson) and Kimani grow up doing everything together. But as adults, the Black East African 'boy' is fit only to carry his White East African 'bwana' friend's rifle for him, something neither of them really understands though (naturally) Peter is slightly more accepting of it. When Kimani's father (Ken Renard) is imprisoned indefinitely for following a custom deemed barbaric by the ruling class of British colonists, he runs away to join a criminal gang (led by Juano Hernandez's character) that later becomes an insurgency group dubbed Mau Mau; read your history if you're unfamiliar with the real back-story.

Predictably, Peter and Kimani will inevitably meet again on opposite sides of the law. The movie also features the comely Dana Wynter as Peter's love interest come wife; their relationship parallels that of his aunt Elizabeth (Wendy Hiller) and Uncle Jeff (Robert Beatty).

Jeff and two of their children are murdered during the Mau Mau Uprising. Walter Fitzgerald plays Peter's father, who had been a friend of Kimani's dad and whose knowledge and skills help to end the revolt.

Michael Pate plays a White settler that reflects the colonists' racism; William Marshall plays the Black leader that organizes the revolution starting with a meeting in Nairobi.

Richard Brooks directed and adapted the screenplay from Robert C. Ruark's novel of the same name.

Emerging Africa

[bkoganbing · 9/10 · 14 August 2009]

Thoughtful people around the world have despaired for Africa, the most abused and exploited continent on our globe. The year that the film version of Robert Ruark's novel Something Of Value came out, the first colony of British Africa, the Gold Coast became the independent Republic of Ghana under Kwame Nkrumah. When we see film like Leonardo DiCpario's Blood Diamond come out fifty years later, you have to wonder whether Africa's many problems will ever be solved in the lifetime of most of us.

Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier play childhood friends who grew up side by side in Kenya colony. But race and racial politics have driven them apart as Poitier has joined the nascent Mau Mau movement whose mission it was to kill all the white settlers and drive them from their part of the continent. Hudson who believes the races can peaceful exist together in the Kenya colony and soon to be independent country wants to reconcile with Poitier. The film concerns his attempts to do so.

Some very good supporting performances by Dana Wynter, Wendy Hiller, Ivan Dixon, and William Marshall are in Something Of Value. Best scene in the film other than the final confrontation with Hudson and Poitier is Hudson's father played by Robert Beatty successfully breaking down Mau Mau leader Juano Hernandez into giving up his cohorts. Beatty's knowledge of the Kikuyu tribe culture comes into play here.

The white racist attitudes are exemplified by Michael Pate whose Australian accent makes him sound the most authentically African or the closest to it among the white cast members.

Sad to say this most authentic of African stories is still very relevant today as seen by the critical and popular acclaim that Blood Diamond received in 2006. Hudson, Poitier, and the rest of the cast do some of their best work in Something Of Value.

Yes it is...

[dbdumonteil · 14 October 2004]

This movie is really something of value.Rock HUdson's character says "we steal their earth and their religion,we 've got to give them something of value instead".Actually,Richard Brookes applied to Africa what he 'd done two years back with "the last hunt" where the white men killed the buffalos and starved the Indians.They even despised their belief by killing even the White animal.

Preceded by "Simba" an English movie starring Dirk Bogarde the screenplay of which

shows a lot of similarities with "something of value' Brooks 's work seems nevertheless superior ,because it has very strong scenes:Poitier,smashing the mirror with disgust after the killing,the informer killed on the barbed wire by the other prisoners;the old man ,afraid of thunder.This last scene may seem naive ,nay insulting for the natives ,but it was fifty years ago.People who criticize the movie should think about it:in 1957,it was a courageous movie,as "the last hunt" was.

Racial tensions in East Africa provide for topical war story with odd casting...

[moonspinner55 · 6/10 · 6 July 2009]

Rock Hudson stars as the son of a white farmer living in East Africa near Nairobi circa 1950; he's as close as a brother to Sidney Poitier--portraying sort of a slave-cum-porter--until the laws of the domineering British interfere with the black people's superstition-laden ways of living. Poitier becomes part of a bloodthirsty revolt against the oppression of his people, eventually pitting him one-on-one against his friend. Robert C. Ruark's book of racial upheavals and issues (loyalties, betrayals, and injustices) has been adapted well for the screen by writer-director Richard Brooks, although Hudson's character doesn't have many dimensions (and he looks too old to be boyhood pals with Poitier, anyway). The scenes of violence are hard-hitting, yet Brooks' lumpy way of laying out this complicated story occasionally turns the proceedings into high-pitched melodrama. A romance sub-plot between Hudson and pretty-but-piqued Dana Wynter doesn't provide enough substantial release from the horror and strife surrounding them, and Poitier's final scenes are geared towards narrative action and not character motivation. A mixed-bag, but certainly not uninteresting. **1/2 from ****

Something of Value Really Isn't **1/2

[edwagreen · 5/10 · 21 April 2006]

This Rock Hudson, Dana Wynter film deals with the Mau-Mau uprising in Kenya in 1952. At least, it attempts to.

As the wife, Wynter is completely wasted her. She has few lines to convey.

Yes, a racist bigot slapped Sidney Poitier several years before the uprising. During the rebellion, the man's wife is killed. Poitier's father was imprisoned prior to the uprising because he killed a baby that came out feet first. He would have to be defended by a sociologist to get off from this. Poitier turns smoker and militant.

Even more ridiculous than the sub-plot is the fact that Wendy Hiller, who really looked her age in 1957, becomes pregnant in this film and gives birth! Along the way, her family is wiped out by the Mau Mau's in a massacre. Mau Maus march along like Margaret Hamilton's army in "The Wizard of Oz." Their supposedly strong leader, who never took the oath, for a ridiculous reason, melts when captured. Some leadership, but some picture!

The Mau Maus were a militant band who protested the English colonial policy of exploitation. The movie-goer is certainly exploited when viewing this utterly cliché-worn film.

Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier are excellent in Something of Value

[tavm · 9/10 · 2 February 2012]

Just watched this Rock Hudson-Sidney Poitier movie on YouTube. After casting him in The Blackboard Jungle which was a success, writer/director Richard Brooks then put Poitier in this drama about the uprising of a Kenyan revolutionary group called Mau-Mau of which Kimani Wa Karanja-Sidney's character-is forced to join after seeing his father (Ken Renard) uphold a custom that involves a murder resulting in his arrest by English colonialists. Hudson plays Peter McKenzie whose family had long settled in Africa and he himself had befriended Kimani when they were kids but that could be no more because of the unfair social rulings. I'll stop there and just say that this was quite intense and had plenty of moments where you wondered how certain things came to be and how some characters like a Joe Mattson (Michael Pate) came to hate someone much different from him. In a standout performance, Juano Hernandez is powerful as Njogu, who forces Poitier to take an oath that he himself never took. Others worth mentioning include: William Marshall as the Mau-Mau leader who's the one that gets Kimani to initially join, Ivan Dixon as Lathela-loyal gun bearer, Samadu Jackson as a witch doctor, Frederick O'Neal as another Mau-Mau leader named Adam Marenga who often wants to shoot first before any negotiations, and Barbara Foley as Wanju-wife of Kimani. Besides the players I've already cited, here are the other people of color in the cast and the parts they played: John Akar-Waithaka, Myrtle Anderson-Mwange wife, Carl Christian-cook, Kim Hamilton-Kipi's wife, Darby Jones-wine steward, Ike Jones-askari (a policeman), Anna Mabry-a midwife, Juanita Moore and Tommie Moore as tribal women, Paulene Myers-Kikuyu woman, Morgan Roberts-Chief Hinga, Madame Sul-Te-Wan-another midwife, and Paul Thompson-Kipi. Also featuring compelling supporting performances by Wendy Hiller as Peter's sister Elizabeth and Dana Wynter as Holly, Peter's wife. In summation, I highly recommend Something of Value.

Not a bad film but the novel would definitely deserve a remake

[t_atzmueller · 6/10 · 27 January 2014]

Having spent a good part of my childhood in East-Africa, I read Robert Ruarks novel „Something of Value" (and the semi-follow-up „Uhuru") numerous times while living in Tanzania and for a while it was among my favorite novels. It had elements of Hemingway, Mitchell, being adventurous at times, historically interesting and during many parts extremely violent and shocking. The movie I saw only a few years later and was not too impressed.

The story is relatively straight-forward and simple: two African boys, Peter (son of a white settler) and Kimani, a native Kikuyu have grown up together almost like brothers. As time goes back, the friends drift apart. Peter becomes a safari-guide and Kimani, disillusioned by the white rule of Kenya and still bearing a grudge against Peters brother-in-law Jeff joins the Mau-Mau movement, who seek to take control over the country and eject / butcher the Whites. Soon the former best friends become each others mortal enemies and will have to face off in a fight to the death.

Some people claimed, that the book is oversimplified and much of the cruelty (generally committed by the Mau-Mau, which are portrayed as a form of terrorist guerrillas, who soon didn't distinguish any longer between butchering their enemies, the Whites, or Kikuyu who opposed to disagreed with their methods. Be that as it may, there has been enough violence and brutalities in more recent years, in Liberia, Somalia, Rwanda etc, should be telling that the Mau-Mau uprising was probably by no means a gentle affair. Quiet the opposite.

As for the movie: for the time it must have been slightly more violent than most pictures, but doesn't even get close to the horrors of the book (and reality). Compare to contemporary films, for example, "Blood Diamond", "Something of Value" still feels like it has been produced in a Hollywood studio, despite having been filmed in Africa. Furthermore I was not at all comfortable with the actors, despite me appreciating both Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier. Especially Hudson is way too squeaky clean for the role, the American accent is atrocious (again, it point to "Blood Diamond" and the excellent job Leonardo DiCaprio did with imitating a Rhodesian accent), not for one moment could one imagine Hudson being anything but an American actor put into a safari-suit. Sure, Poitier does a far more convincing job (especially the accent) but again, looks nothing like an African from this part of the continent.

It would also be unfair to say that the rest of a crew did a bad job, but one would really wish for a remake (this coming from somebody who has a general dislike for the concept of remakes, reboots, etc), something grittier, more realistic and it's not that there is a shortage of capable African actors of all colors these days. After all, it's not that the novel has lost anything of value and isn't as contemporary as when it was written.

6/10

A great book let down by a film

[hogan-pj · 5/10 · 17 December 2006]

The film is of average Hollywood standard for the day (and I am a Hollywood fan)which is to say; quite good. To do Robert Ruark's novel justice would require about six hours, which I agree is impractical, but 3hr epic length (rare at that time)would have helped. The levels of violence , now commonplace on screen, could not then be screened.

I try to keep my comments on this database, which is about (or should be)the art/science/entertainment of the cinema, apolitical. It is, however, perhaps relevant to suggest that the novel and film of 'Some thing of Value' be considered in the light of Ruark's 1962 novel 'Uhuru' which revisits basically the same characters (the names change)after Kenyan independence. The events may not have applied so fully in Kenya but looked at as a prophecy of the tragedy that has happened and continues to happen in independent Zimbabwe it was remarkably prophetic.

Interesting social conscience film

[funkyfry · 7/10 · 29 August 2013]

Sidney Poitier and Rock Hudson portray two Kenyans, raised as near brothers, who find their paths in life diverging wildly as they enter young manhood. After suffering indignity at the hands of white men and seeing his father imprisoned by the colonial authorities, Poitier's Kimani becomes a freedom fighter/terrorist within the "Mau Mau" insurgency. The film concerns the efforts of Peter (Hudson) to reach a peaceful agreement with Kimani, and with Kimani's own inner struggle with the violence of revolution.

It's a solid film, though perhaps not a "great" film for whatever reasons..... one of which is a boring and largely unnecessary romantic subplot with Hudson and the dull Dana Wynter, looking and feeling for all the world like a second-rate Liz Taylor. I thought Hudson's acting was quite powerful for the most part, especially in the scene when he first arrives home from the war. Poitier blows him off the screen, of course, and we wish that the film gave them equal time (where was the romance between Kimani and his wife?), but Hudson isn't the total loss that some of the reviewers here have made him out to be. Indeed, he could have attempted an accent, but that would have been dangerous; surely Poitier mastered his Kenyan accent because he had much more to lose, and to gain, from a film concerning political turmoil in Africa.

The film struggles to maintain some kind of balance; it depicts the Mau Mau as thoroughly "savage", yet also reveals the torture and lies of the British colonialists. There are moments of really breathtaking stylized violence that could still shock audiences. It's a difficult line to walk, and a view emerges in which basically no one, except perhaps the next generation, is the winner. It's a respectable viewpoint, considering that the conflict was still ongoing at the time of the film's production. Some parallels between the "equal rights" demanded by Kimani and the situation in America at the time must have made some distributors and audiences nervous, but the film does not try to push these parallels in any obvious way.

Before closing, mention should be made of Miklos Rozsa's extraordinary score; indeed, extraordinary even for Rozsa, as it combines the whine of the electronic theramin with "tribal" rhythms and chanting.

Interesting but not satisfying

[shiannedog · 6/10 · 17 March 2019]

This movie kept me interested but not satisfied.The cast is made up of good actors but they lacked the chemistry needed to make the film enjoyable. I usually love Sidney Poitier's acting but this performance seemed a bit contrived. Worth viewing if the subject matter interests you but don't expect to be moved by it.

Sermon of life and death and group of insurgents

[carvalheiro · 26 October 2007]

"Something of Value" (1957) directed by Richard Brooks like that in itself it's a segregated specimen as genre in extinction of ancient black humor now as well told as positive discrimination, which means that memory and perception view from liberal democratic from the past itself is always old and not in mood. Even though when it was the rehearsal of the movie about Mau Mau incident, in 1952 and unrest that arose in the African continent, in which alarming peasants in a suddenly butchery contributes for that it finally aliments revenge from colons. The scene of the mentor chief in sermon of life, with some of the first group of insurgents, is still of master in black and white screening and screaming.

There are some characters of hunters with bwana's spirits and in itself this movie has scenes that by its crudity shocking a while inside the home of a given farmer, constructed as a resort near a kind of precarious compound for natives a half there in unrest, which took the viewers for the tragedy and switched targets during the fighting, but its melodramatic realism surpasses the confusion by the clarification of the strengths in presence and that holds the concerned characters of the colonization in its diversified reaction, before the lack of local institutions to compromise with the unlocked way of the people, by whom had taking as peasants and servants the way of uncontrolled answer to the oppression. This movie is a failed compromise between father and son at the pace for substituting oppression by religion and civilized youth by owners against employees of the soil without changing costumes nor structure of the soil, with a local chief and a young Mau Mau in enraged and prolonged injustice, deep both in violence that caught this specific colonial situation at the brink of irrationality and army genocide by lack of comprehension for the standing that the African continent meant against European presence before independence. Except more patient compromising with religious differences and beginning of separatist mind for calming interests.

As if things were like that in Kenya at the same time, that others out of this territoriality were also thinking less in such a dramatic structure, without enough presence to understand that phase of the fighting, without rules than terror and unrest out of democratic values of the colonists at the time. No way out at this stage of the movie, only waiting for the grow up of the black baby belonging to the killed young revolutionary - in 1954, Dedan Kimathi from Aberdare forest guerrilla whose evocation is made here in this movie three years after - at the time of awakening, as premonitory it was the book from where Brooks took his screenplay.

A SHAKY TRUCE IN AFRICA...!

[masonfisk · 7/10 · 3 April 2022]

A 1957 effort from Richard Brooks (Elmer Gantry/In Cold Blood) starring Rock Hudson & Sidney Poitier where childhood friends now adults in Kenya are forced to revisit their union when colonial racism starts to assert itself which leads to a Mau Mau uprising. Things come to a head when a Kenyan elder is jailed for putting a newborn to death (an accepted ritual since the infant was born feet first). Already salty from his run-in w/Hudson's brother (who smacks him as a result of a simple, playful demand), Poitier becomes the focus of the Mau Mau rein of terror against their white suppressors where lives are lost on both sides. Hudson, feeling he can reason w/Poitier, sets off on a quest to quell the violence even though by obvious factual episodes whatever ending is reached, ultimately it will be an empty one. Fine performances by both leads (even though Hudson is supposed to be a Brit & no accent is attempted) buoy the narrative (reminiscent of Poitier's breakthrough w/The Defiant Ones made the following year w/Tony Curtis) even though the censors of the day wouldn't let the full onslaught of race relations to be seen on film. Co-starring Dana Wynter, Juano Hernandez, Wendy Hiller, Ivan Dixon (from Hogan's Heroes) & William Marshall (Blacula himself).

Something of value is allowing an already civilized nation to live peacefully and independently.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 7 August 2023]

Another anger inducing drama about the injustices that befall already established civilizations when foreign powers move in, play God and try to change everything. The Mau Mau revolution could have been avoided had the white men treated the Africans of Kenya as human beings and not tried to stop them of observing their already established customs and acted like their masters.

It's a gruesome battle where there's a lot to lose, including some of the Kenyan natives of tribes other than the Mau Mau who are in conflict with their fellow country men. Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier have been close friends all their lives but are now at odds because of Poitier's involvement in the revolution. There's a brutality of the Mau Mau that is almost as inhumane as the foreign powers who have attempted to completely take over.

Good performances by Dana Wyntner as Hudson's wife, Wendy Hiller as his sister and especially Juano Hernandez as a Kenyan native fighting against the Mau Mau helps make this racial drama a very powerful one along with the direction of veteran Richard Brooks, nearly topping "The Blackboard Jungle". English treatment of the Kenyans is presented shockingly brutal, with Hudson offended by what he sees them do, but perhaps too scared of the power of other white men to stand up against it. Definitely a film to express a sad truth about so-called civilized men.

I may be prejudiced in favor of this film

[vincentlynch-moonoi · 8/10 · 1 May 2018]

When I was just 12, back in 1961, we had a Cornell University student from Kenya who often stayed at our home for a couple of years; he was actually the first Kenyan long distance runner to make his mark in the U.S. I was too young to join in the conversation, but I remember Stephen talking about the political situation in Kenya and mentioning the Mau Mau crisis of several years before. I wish I could go back now and be a part of that discussion.

I thought this was a good film. Not perfect. I'm sure liberties were taken in the writing of the script that probably compromised historical accuracy. But it still, I think, gives you a sense of the time and the tensions, and shows us once again how futile -- and just plain wrong -- the earlier white domination of Africa was.

Rock Hudson is very good here...except for one scene which stuck out because he was smiling in a situation where that was not appropriate. Dana Wynter is excellent as Hudson's young wife; not sure why she wasn't a more popular actress. Sidney Poitier has any number of films with a stronger performance, but he's good here. I always enjoy the actress Wendy Hiller, here as a mother.

This film is worthwhile watching because it covers a part of history unknown now to most Americans.

Upsetting film

[HotToastyRag · 1/10 · 28 November 2017]

It's the age-old "children are color-blind, adults are racist" theme in Something of Value. Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier grew up together as children, and now in their young adulthood, they're still incredibly close. They laugh, play, hunt, and talk together, even though Rock's family doesn't really think it's right. One day, while hunting for sport, Sidney gets a little miffed that he's not allowed to shoot the gun. Rock tries to explain that it's just the way things are, but Robert Beatty, the mean brother-in-law, intervenes. He slaps Sidney's face and orders him to never argue with his superiors again. Rock is heartbroken and Sidney bursts into tears—I actually turned the movie off during that scene, I was so upset.

After having a glass of water, taking a walk outside, and giving myself a talking-to, I decided to turn the movie back on and continue watching it. After all, the actors' heart-wrenching performances were benefits of the film, right? If I was so shaken up by that horrible scene, that meant the film was well written and crafted, right? So, I dried my tears and pressed play.

The rest of the film follows Sidney as he runs away from home and joins a rebellious group who fight back against their British captors. Rock just wants his friend back, but Sidney is too far gone, and has become angry and full of hate. It's a pretty violent, upsetting film, showing both the creation and sustention of deep-seeded racism on both sides. If that's the type of movie you like, go ahead and watch this, but I wish I'd never given it a second chance. I don't like movies like this; my heart is far too sensitive.

Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to racially upsetting scenes and violence, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.

An interesting film that tries to take the middle ground....

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 13 April 2017]

"Something of Value" is a film about the so-called 'Mau Mau Rebellion' which took place through much of the 1950s in Kenya. The fact that it was made there and the uprising was still going on do make this an unusual movie.

The story begins by showing the contempt that many of the white British colonists have towards the native Kenyans. Because of this, it's very easy to see how these black men and women would become disaffected by British rule...and Peter (Rock Hudson) can see the wicked way these folks are treated. He is especially appalled to see his friend Kimani (Sidney Poitier) slapped around and treated like dirt. At the same time, the film tries to look at both sides and shows the brutal way in which the Mau Maus tore apart the white colonists. How will all this resolve itself and what will happen to these two friends who are now on opposite sides in the conflict?

This is generally a very good film, though I wonder why Rock Hudson was chosen for the movie. After all, he sounds about as British as a talking taco! But he is very good despite this. As for Poitier and Juano Hernandez and many of the other black actors, they were more convincing in their roles and at least approximated the right accents. Some seeing it today might feel a bit torn, after all, I was. Who would you root for in the film when BOTH sides seemed in the wrong. And, you certainly could applaud the locals' rights to self-determination. Well worth seeing.

Lost Gem

[garyk-04924 · 8/10 · 18 January 2021]

I only caught the latter part of this movie on TCM so this review is based on a partial viewing, but there was enough to appreciate a few things. First, I was impressed at the subject matter at this date (1957) that demonstrated a willingness to tackle both an unknown problem (to those of us in the US) and controversial subject with as much depth and nuance as could be expected in the time it was made and the time duration of the film...very complicated stories within the main story and told with as much as can be expected. Second, knowing that Rock Hudson was known mostly for his fluff roles in color in the 60s, except for the great Sirk films, this was unexpected, with the bonus of being paired with a young Sidney Poitier and his usual brilliance. At the time, Hudson was not known to be gay, so it is possible that if he knew he was (no way of knowing now) subject to discrimination in general society, that he appreciated the role that much more...perhaps there was a level of conviction in his portrayal that was beneath the radar. I (we) would be curious to know how Poitier today recalls his personal and working relationship with Hudson in this film. Third, the whole unavoidable messiness and conflict in how colonial rule in Africa was withdrawn is portrayed well and probably fairly realistically, and all people have their own agendas and it is and was never simple. The story of Kenya in this case was an opportunity for learning while being entertained, and it is one of many such stories of this old continent. Fourth and last, it is both poignant and eloquent how the story ends, with a personal tragedy but with a possibility of redemption from that tragedy, in that what the two main characters shared as children but lost as adults caught in the power and politics of the adult world, might be played out again with the possibility that there will be a better outcome. This movie is indeed, a lost gem.

Rock Hudson and Sidney Poitier

[SnoopyStyle · 8/10 · 4 August 2020]

It's 1945 colonial Kenya. The McKenzies are a successful white farming family with many black workers. Henry McKenzie is the patriarch and Peter (Rock Hudson) is his eldest son. Kimani (Sidney Poitier) is a black servant and Peter's best friend. Henry's method of ruling his black workers is harsh in Peter's eyes. It's a clash of cultures as the years go by. Kimani's father gets thrown in jail and Kimani runs away to join the budding Mau Mau uprising.

The subject matter is daring. It has Poitier facing off opposite Hudson. It does have some overacting and old style over-dramatic action. It's trying but Hollywood hasn't discovered more realistic filmmaking. Nevertheless, the actual rebellion has realistic drama. It is a story of poignant power. This may be before its time. It's definitely challenging its audience.