I can’t be the only person who thought of Indiana Jones while reading about Allan Quatermain. I can’t. But in case I am, I… do. (And after a few google searches, so does wikipedia.) True, Allan is not an Archaeology Professor who goes treasure hunting over, I assume, summer break. But he is a mans man, a man of adventure and heroism, who narrowly escapes danger but ultimately gets his treasure. Indiana Jones ALSO gets the girl, but Allan is a bit too timid for that. Allan is also an expert marksman, while Indiana Jones is… not. (Though he’s pretty great with a bullwhip/versus a sword.) Also, Indiana Jones is a pretty attractive man, while Allan Quatermain never describes himself or gets described as a very pretty man. But I think that’s just a sign of the times. Allan Quatermain isn’t attractive because that’s not the kind of man who would be knee deep in the jungle fighting lions and finding lost civilizations. In Hollywood, we want all of our men rugged AND handsome (and note: I’m not complaining.)
But again, at their cores, they are very similar. Bachelors seeking thrills in the wildest of places, meeting wild people and women, and finding treasure and adventure. Especially King Solomons mines, which is set up almost the exact same way that an Indiana Jones film is. Take Raiders of the Lost Ark. The movie starts (after the scene with the rolling rock and the golden idol and stuff) with Indiana Jones getting approached by army intelligence guys who want Indy to go find his old mentor, who has something the nazis want to gain ultimate power (It’s always the damn Nazi’s…). King Solomons mines starts with Allan getting approached by Sir Henry Curtis and Captain Good, who want HIM to find Sir Henry’s brother, who’s gone to a fabled place that Allan happens to have a map too. So Indy and Allan get sent on an a quest to find someone, that ends UP leading to MORE MYSTERY and TREASURE.
Without good books, we wouldn’t have good movies. Even if the movie isn’t based on any one specific book, its concocted in the brains of people who have read bunches of them, who think of their own stories or adaptations. Which is really what League of Extraordinary gentlemen is. Its a tribute to classic literature, and in it’s own special, often graphic and perverted and wonderful way, a way of breathing life into those old characters once again.
