Khartoum (film)

Khartoum
Directed byBasil Dearden
Eliot Elisofon
(introductory scenes)
Written byRobert Ardrey
Produced byJulian Blaustein
StarringCharlton Heston
Laurence Olivier
Richard Johnson
Ralph Richardson
Narrated byLeo Genn
CinematographyEdward Scaife
Edited byFergus McDonell
Music byFrank Cordell
Distributed byUnited Artists
Release dates
  • 9 June 1966 (1966-06-09) (World premiere, London)
Running time
134 minutes
128 minutes (US)
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Budget$6–8 million[1][2]
Box office$3 million (est. US/Canada rentals)[3]

Khartoum is a 1966 British epic war film written by Robert Ardrey and directed by Basil Dearden. It stars Charlton Heston as British General Charles "Chinese" Gordon and Laurence Olivier as Muhammad Ahmed (a Sudanese leader whose devotees proclaimed him the Mahdi), with a supporting cast that includes Richard Johnson and Ralph Richardson.[4] The film is based on historical accounts of Gordon's defence of the Sudanese city of Khartoum from the forces of the Mahdist army, during the 1884–1885 Siege of Khartoum.[5] The opening and closing scenes are narrated by Leo Genn.

Khartoum was filmed by cinematographer Edward Scaife in Technicolor[6] and Ultra Panavision 70, and was exhibited in 70 mm Cinerama in premiere engagements. A novelization of the film's screenplay was written by Alan Caillou.[7]

The film had its Royal World Premiere at the Casino Cinerama Theatre, in the West End of London, on 9 June 1966, in the presence of Princess Margaret and the Earl of Snowdon.[8][9]

Khartoum earned Robert Ardrey an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay.[10][11] The film also earned Ralph Richardson a BAFTA Award nomination for Best British Actor.

  1. ^ Canby, Vincent (11 January 1966). "Film Producer Lists Trials in Egypt". The New York Times. p. 19.
  2. ^ Wright, Ian (26 December 1965). "'Khartoum,' a Smallish Epic, Has Heston, Olivier, Camels". The Washington Post. p. G3.
  3. ^ "Big Rental Pictures of 1966". Variety. 4 January 1967. p. 8 – via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ "Actor Richard Johnson dies at 87". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  5. ^ Duiker & Spielvogel 2015, p. 621.
  6. ^ Santas et al. 2014, p. 307.
  7. ^ Alan Caillou (2000). Khartoum. iUniverse. ISBN 978-0-595-09145-4. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  8. ^ Burton and O'Sullivan, 2009, p. 300
  9. ^ "CINEMA 9". The Spectator. 9 June 1966. p. 18. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Britain was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Alex von Tunzelmann (12 November 2009). "Khartoum: blackface Olivier scrapes the bottom of some macabre barrels". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 July 2016. Incredibly this screenplay was nominated for an Oscar.