Former loin cloth hero Jon Hall basically goes down the same path that Johnny Weissmueller was doing as Jungle Jim in that cheapy Columbia series made around the same time as this. This is a sole entry for Hall as visiting American Martin Viking who becomes involved in an adventure against his will, chased all over India for a murder he did not commit. We know from past experience that whenever a character appears wearing an eye patch they must be the villain. Or do we? It is an old friend of his in December who is mysteriously stabbed in the back with a brawl with hall for not agreeing to assist him in an attempt to prevent a violent explosion that will lead India into rebellion. It's not Hall's day for luck as he ends up all over the country, betrayed by American photojournalist Christine Larson to the military, encountering apparent double agents, and obviously going to make it out of this alive, all within under 75 minutes!
What is formula is also silly fun, perfect for the matinee crowd who had been enjoying Adventure Yarns like this since the silent era. While it looks cheaply made, some of the sets are fun for the action sequences, and the dialogue has some zany moments as well. Hall encounters the stereotypical foreign use familiar in American slang (the role that former co-star Sabu would have played had this been made a decade before) as well as several exotic women (Lisa Ferraday and Donna Martell) who aid him but make you wonder what side they are really on. Hall gets lots of laughs in a silly scene where he hops onto an odd-looking contraption on the train track, a culmination of lots of amusing but outlandish moments. Sam Katzman always made him cheap, but always with a sense of humor.
What is formula is also silly fun, perfect for the matinee crowd who had been enjoying Adventure Yarns like this since the silent era. While it looks cheaply made, some of the sets are fun for the action sequences, and the dialogue has some zany moments as well. Hall encounters the stereotypical foreign use familiar in American slang (the role that former co-star Sabu would have played had this been made a decade before) as well as several exotic women (Lisa Ferraday and Donna Martell) who aid him but make you wonder what side they are really on. Hall gets lots of laughs in a silly scene where he hops onto an odd-looking contraption on the train track, a culmination of lots of amusing but outlandish moments. Sam Katzman always made him cheap, but always with a sense of humor.