Favorite star Alan Ladd stars as a gun runner in THUNDER IN THE EAST (1952), which recently made its U.S. Blu-ray debut thanks to Kino Lorber.
Steve Gibbs (Ladd) flies into the newly independent India hoping to sell guns to the local maharajah (Charles Lung), knowing the province will soon be under attack by rebels.
The maharajah's peace-loving prime minister (Charles Boyer) turns down buying the guns...and sure enough, things start to get very dicey in town, especially for the British living there.
Steve falls in love with charming Joan (Deborah Kerr), who happens to be blind, but their initial romance runs into issues when Steve tries to sell seats on his airplane to potential evacuees, disillusioning Joan.
Eventually Steve and Joan repair their relationship, just as rebels advance on the palace where they're holed up...
The THUNDER IN THE EAST screenplay by Joan Swerling was adapted by George Tabori and Frederick Hazlitt Brennan from a
novel by Alan Moorehead.
It's an engrossing 97 minutes, thanks in large part to the always-compelling Ladd. His character's journey here is reminiscent of his role in
CHINA (1943) several years before; he starts out as a man in it for himself, but getting to know a thoughtful woman in the midst of serious conflict changes him for the better.
The relationship which develops between Ladd and Kerr is quite charming, as they connect with a shared sense of humor and a genuine liking for one another. I appreciated that her blindness really isn't a factor as they get to know one another; the main time it comes up in a significant way is when Steve asks Joan to relocate to the safer Bombay and she explains how daunting it will be for her to start her life over in a place she doesn't know.
The film builds to an open-ended finale which is a bit of a jaw-dropper; I'm not quite certain if it was disturbing or potentially hopeful, but it plays pretty dark.
Supporting actors in the film are Cecil Kellaway, John Williams, John Abbott, and Leonard Carey. Corinne Calvet is wasted in a small role, and the film might have been better off excising her and shaving a couple minutes off the running time.
THUNDER IN THE EAST was filmed in the spring of 1951 but Paramount delayed its U.S. release to early 1953, apparently wanting to stagger putting out the final films Ladd made under contract to the studio.
Kino Lorber's Blu-ray print is from a 2022 HD master made by Paramount Pictures from a 4K scan. It looks and sounds very good.
The Blu-ray is presented as a special edition with a cardboard slipcase. Extras consist of the trailer; a gallery of eight additional trailers for other films available from Kino Lorber; and a commentary track by Elissa Rose with the late Lee Gambin. Gambin, who frequently contributed commentary tracks to Kino Lorber and other releases, sadly passed away in late May.
A side note: Charles Boyer previously starred in a film alternately known as THUNDER IN THE EAST (1934) or THE BATTLE. There is no connection with this later film by the same name.
While I wouldn't list THUNDER IN THE EAST as one of my favorite Ladd films, it's worth seeing, and his fans will particularly want to check it out now that it's available for home viewing at long last.
Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.
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