The Roots of Heaven

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The Roots of Heaven
Original film poster
Directed by	John Huston
Produced by	Darryl F. Zanuck
Written by	Romain Gary
Starring	Errol Flynn, Juliette Gréco, Trevor Howard
Music by	Malcolm Arnold
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	1958
Running time	121 mins
Language	English

The Roots of Heaven is a 1958 adventure film made by 20th Century Fox, directed by John Huston and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck from a screenplay by Romain Gary and Patrick Leigh Fermor based on the novel Les racines du ciel by Romain Gary.

The film starred Errol Flynn, Juliette Gréco, Trevor Howard, with Eddie Albert, Orson Welles, Paul Lukas, Herbert Lom and Gregoire Aslan.

Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Notes 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Plot

Set in French Equatorial Africa, the film tells the story of Morel (Trevor Howard), a crusading environmentalist who sets out to preserve the elephants from extinction as a lasting symbol of freedom for all humanity. He is helped by Minna (Juliette Gréco), a nightclub hostess and Forsythe (Errol Flynn), a disgraced British military officer hoping to redeem himself.

[edit] Cast

Errol Flynn - Maj. Forsythe

Juliette Gréco - Minna

Trevor Howard - Merel

Eddie Albert - Abe Fields

Orson Welles - Cy Sedgewick

Paul Lukas - Saint Denis

Herbert Lom - Orsini

Gregoire Aslan - Habib

André Luguet - Governor

Edric Connor - Watari

Oliver Hussenot - The Baron

Pierre Dudan - Maj. Scholscher

Marc Doelnitz - De Vries

Dan Jackson - Madjumba

Maurice Cannon - Haas

Jacques Marin - Cerisot

Alain Saury - A.D.C.

Francis de Wolff - Father Fargue

Frederick Ledebur - Peer Qvist

[edit] Notes

• William Holden left the production and Trevor Howard replaced him. Errol Flynn assumed top billing.
• The film was made on location in Chad.
• The cast and crew suffered from the heat, malaria and other tropical diseases.
• It is the memories of the challenging location that Flynn mentions with affection in his memoirs My Wicked, Wicked Ways (1959).

[edit] References

• Flynn, E. My Wicked, Wicked Ways. G.P. Putnam’s Sons 1959, Pan Books 1961 in association with William Heinemann Ltd, 5th Printing 1979.
• Norman, B. The Hollywood Greats. Arrow Books, 1988 edition.
• Thomas, T. Behlmer, R. & McCarty, C. The Films of Errol Flynn. Citadel Press. 1969.

[edit] External links

• The Roots of Heaven at the Internet Movie Database

v • d • e Films directed by John Huston 1940s The Maltese Falcon • In This Our Life • Across the Pacific • Report from the Aleutians • The Battle of San Pietro • Let There Be Light • The Treasure of the Sierra Madre • Key Largo • We Were Strangers 1950s The Asphalt Jungle • The Red Badge of Courage • The African Queen • Moulin Rouge • Beat the Devil • Moby Dick • Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison • The Barbarian and the Geisha • The Roots of Heaven 1960s The Unforgiven • The Misfits • Freud the Secret Passion • The List of Adrian Messenger • The Night of the Iguana • The Bible: In the Beginning • Reflections in a Golden Eye • Casino Royale • Sinful Davey • A Walk with Love and Death 1970s The Kremlin Letter • Fat City • The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean • The Mackintosh Man • The Man Who Would Be King • Wise Blood 1980s Phobia • Victory • Annie • Under the Volcano • Prizzi's Honor • The Dead