Rhodes, O Conquistador

From Gaumont Pictures,UK, Rhodes of Africa stars Walter Huston, Oskar Homolka, and a whole lot of British actors that Americans probably don't know. Huston had won his Oscar for "Treasure of the Sierra Madre" with Bogart. Homolka had worked in England and Hollywood on some biggies, like "Sabotage", "Seven Year Itch", and "War and Peace". Right from the beginning, we know the film is about the life of Cecil Rhodes, who explored and conquered South Africa. It opens with (uncredited) narrator describing what south Africa was like, prior to and during Rhodes actions, and the discovery of diamonds there. It runs like a documentary, but as others have noted, probably much white-washed from what actually occurred. Very serious mood at all times, they highlight the obstacles faced by Rhodes and his plans.

A card at the opening acknowledges the cooperation of the people of Rhodesia "for making possible the realisation of the African scenes", but it is not made clear what exactly that cooperation entailed... Directed by Berthold Viertel in 1936, this was the last film he made, although he lived almost another twenty years. IMDb shows he only directed 15 films.