We were in Málaga once again in mid-summer, and we ferried across the Strait of Gibraltar to Tangier in late August for a third visit, so the movie Fire Over Africa, set mainly in Málaga and Tangier, raises a question: Can we be objective about a movie set in our stomping grounds? The answer would seem to be no, because though Fire over Africa, alternatively known as Málaga, is a movie we liked, if we ask ourselves objectively whether you will, we have to conclude: probably not.
First shown to the public either today in 1954 or in June 1954, depending on whether you consult IMDB or American Film Institute, it’s a disjointed and unlikely excursion, but because of its locations looks nice and carries with it a marvelous sense of place. Maureen O’Hara, whose red hair could be the main reason the film was made in Technicolor, stars as an ex-OSS agent sent to Tangier to infiltrate and destroy an international smuggling ring responsible for the murder of a police agent. She pretends she’s down on her luck and in need of a job, and from her new position at a place called Frisco’s Bar looks for contacts and clues.
Any movie set in Morocco with a bar at its center invites comparisons to Casablanca. It doesn’t compare favorably. But there are positives. O’Hara is a badass in this flick. She knows judo, makes shit happen with a sword cane, and will kill to fulfill her mission. She does everything she can with her role, and co-star Macdonald Carey is fine too, if obnoxious, but critical problems exist with both plot and direction. We didn’t love that O’Hara’s hotness saves her bacon when a villain is reluctant to shoot her. That isn’t ideal conceptually, though we have to admit, considering how men think, it may be realistic.
In terms of line-to-line writing there are some clever moments. Someone describes Frisco’s Bar as a place, “where the elite meet the cheap.” There are other clever turns of dialogue too, but sadly, too few to win the day. However, even if we twist our own arms and reluctantly admit that Fire over Africa isn’t nearly as good as it might have been, we’ll probably watch it again down the line just for the atmosphere and O’Hara’s cold blooded ex-OSS op. We all have a few mediocre movies on our love lists.
