Michael Batson

Cambodia has proved a challenge for film makers over the years. For most movie goers, the enduring cinematic image is that of Roland Joffe’s The Killing Fields, set during the Khmer Rouge era, though the film itself was shot entirely in Thailand, and slated for its Hollywood depiction of events.Other films however, did make it to the kingdom. Joseph Conrad’s novel Lord Jim was twice made into a film, the second time in Cambodia. Directed by Richard Brooks and starring Peter O’Toole as Jim, it was mainly shot in the temples and jungles at Angkor near Siem Reap in 1964.  Another of Conrad’s works, Heart of Darkness, was the basis for Apocalypse Now, a film whose climax was set in Cambodia. O’Toole’s character is a disgraced sea captain who redeems himself on a remote island saving the local inhabitants from bandits and marauders, and acquiring the title “Tuan” or “Lord” from the locals in the process. Screenwriter and director Richard Brooks bought the rights for Conrad’s work for a mere $6,500 in 1958. He was obsessed by the idea of turning the story of a British merchant sailor into an epic film. Brooks spent three years writing the screenplay. He coaxed $9 million from Columbia Pictures, persuaded Peter O’Toole and James Mason to star in the movie, and travelled through Asia to find exotic locations. O’Toole, at his Adonis best, played Jim squeezed between a number of films including his more famous roles as the heroic Lawrence