Top 250 Challenge: 140

The African Queen (1951)

Number 139 on IMDb's Top 250
Nominated by Dad

At the start of World War I, Charlie Allnut (Humphrey Bogart) is using his old steamer, The African Queen, to ferry supplies to villages in East Africa. When the Rev. Samual Sayer dies, Charlie agrees to take Sayers' sister, Rose (Katharine Hepburn), back to civilization. But Rose convinces him to commit to what amounts to a suicide mission against the germans. But then they fall in love. Hilarity ensues.

Trivia: This is the role that won Humphrey Bogart the only Oscar of his career. Originally offered to Bette Davis in 1938, the film would have co-starred David Nivenas Charlie. It was offered to Bette Davis again in 1947, this time to co-star James Mason, but she had to pull out of the project due to pregnancy. In 1949, Bette Davis tried again to make the film, but by that time plans were under way for Katharine Hepburn to star.

Once again, it is proven that you get two extraordinary actors and put them in a situation that allows them to really do what they were meant to do and you get an extraordinary movie. Bogart and Hepburn are on the screen by themselves for literally over 90% of the movie, and you are left wanting more. It took me a while to get this movie to watch, it is out of print in DVDs (I hear there is a special addition on the way) and netflix didn't have it, so I was afraid I was going to have to go to extremes, but my TiVo came to the rescue and recorded it off of Turner Classic Movies. Thanks Dad.