''Sumuru'', or ''Sax Rohmer's Sumuru'', is a 2003 pulp

science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstellar ...

directed by

Darrell Roodt Darrell James Roodt (born in Johannesburg, 28 April 1962) is a South African film director, screenwriter and producer. He is probably most well known for his 1992 film '' Sarafina!'' which starred actress Whoopi Goldberg. Also regarded as South ...

and starring

Alexandra Kamp Alexandra Kamp-Groeneveld (born 29 December 1966) is a German model and actress. Biography She was born in Karlsruhe to Peter Kamp and his wife and grew up in Baden-Baden. She visited drama schools in New York, Los Angeles and Paris before s ...

and

Michael Shanks Michael Garrett Shanks (born December 15, 1970) is a Canadian actor, writer and director. He is best known for his role as Daniel Jackson in the long-running military science fiction television series ''Stargate SG-1'' and as Charles Harris on ...

. It is an update of the character Sumuru created by pulp novelist

Sax Rohmer Arthur Henry "Sarsfield" Ward (15 February 1883 – 1 June 1959), better known as Sax Rohmer, was an English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Dr. Fu Manchu."Rohmer, Sax" by Jack Adrian in Da ...

. It was the first adaptation of Sumuru in a sci-fi setting (the prior two adaptions were ''

The Million Eyes of Sumuru ''The Million Eyes of Sumuru'' is a 1967 British spy film produced by Harry Alan Towers, directed by Lindsay Shonteff and filmed at the Shaw Brothers studios in Hong Kong. It stars Frankie Avalon and George Nader, with Shirley Eaton as the t ...

'' (1967) and '' The Girl from Rio'' (1969)).

Story

''Earth's outermost colony was forgotten for 900 years -- until now. Cut off from the rest of the universe, men have become beasts of labor -- and women rule.'' Arriving on the planet Antares, Adam Wade and Jake Carpenter come with a mission and a secret. Humanity has suffered from a deadly virus that has left the women barren, and the two are to seek out the last fertile members of the human race and relocate them. When the small spaceship crashes, the two find the planet run by women ruled by Queen Sumuru, and the men slaving in primitive mines, used occasionally for procreation purposes. The two astronauts have to overcome anti-male prejudice as well as earthquakes, a giant snake (The Snake Mother, worshipped as a Goddess by the High Priestess Taxan and her followers) and opposition from snake cult priestess Taxan, but find support in the relatively rational-minded queen Sumuru as well as her personal guard Dove and her kid brother Will. Ultimately Taxan and her followers are defeated and Adam, Jake, Sumuru and her followers including the freed male slaves set off for an anticipated new home amongst the stars; escaping Antarres, which is due to explode from its internal pressures.

Cast

- Sumuru *

- Adam Wade * Simona Levin - Taxan * Terence Bridgett - Jake Carpenter * David Lazarus - Will * Casey B. Dolan - Dove

Production

The film was produced in late 2002 in the area around Johannesburg and Pretoria, mainly around and in mine dumps, the

Voortrekker Monument The Voortrekker Monument is located just south of Pretoria in South Africa. The granite structure is located on a hilltop, and was raised to commemorate the Voortrekkers who left the Cape Colony between 1835 and 1854. It was designed by the a ...

, a film studio in Johannesburg and a disused explosives factory in Modderfontein.

Reception

The film received relatively bad reviews, being called "thoroughly forgettable"; other reviews refer to the rules of the genre ("trash factor") and call it "good fun".

References

External links

* 2003 films British science fiction films German science fiction films English-language German films English-language South African films 2000s English-language films Films directed by Darrell Roodt 2003 science fiction films South African science fiction films 2000s British films 2000s German films {{2000s-sf-film-stub