The Lion Hunters (1951)

Another corny Bomba tale has our hero, Johnny Sheffield, rescuing some great white hunters after they mistakenly kill some lions on sacred Masai burial grounds. As with most of the Bomba films, they are even more racist in their depiction of native African people than the much derided Tarzan films, and which is again the case with "The Lion Hunters." The only thing to set this Bomba entry apart from others is the presence of the great Woody Strode (credited as Woodrow Strode) in a before-he-was-famous role playing a tribal warrior.

This predictable programmer has Johnny Sheffield once again playing Caucasian jungle boy Bomba, the most pale man to ever be barely covered in the wilds in the heat. But big hearted and caring about the big cats, Bomba is out to save the fury beasts who are being slaughtered or left to die slowly or he captured for zoos. Bomba has already been down this territory, and once again, shares adventures with a photo taking American girl (Anne E. Todd). Bomba visits friendly natives who explain that they only kill lions when being attacked, or as a sign of becoming a man. Some of the scenes with Bomba and the lions are obviously stock footage mixed with Bomba superimposed, although he does appear to be playing with an adorable cub. Never have I seen a series that became so repetitive and run out of ideas do fast. It appears that they are just going to basically just cross out loom and write in either monkey or elephant in future scripts. How Bomba deals with supposed civilized man becomes the main plot point, as does their efforts to stop him from interfering. But at least these do show the fighting for keeping these beautiful mammals free rather than justify the captivity of zoo's that don't emulate the real habitat of each of the creatures Bomba encounters. A little coconut toss between a spider monkey and Bomba, plus his visit with an eagle, show that Sheffield had great rapport with them, even though his acting is entirely one dimensional.

Hunters are trapping and killing lions in Bomba's jungle. Bomba has feelings on this. Fifth entry in Monogram's series is pretty weak with an especially talkative Bomba this time around. The pluses are the animals, particularly the lions, and Sheffield's earnest performance. Morris Ankrum and Douglas Kennedy play the lion hunters. Kennedy is the heavy, which was hardly new territory for him. Ankrum's the nicer one. Ann E. Todd plays his tomboyish daughter who takes a liking to Bomba and vice versa. This was Todd's final movie before an early retirement. Woody Strode appears briefly as a native. This is a fairly standard Bomba movie. Which is to say it's an unremarkable B jungle adventure for kids. Still, a decent time-passer on a lazy Saturday afternoon.

I have seen quite a few of the Bomba movies and the Lion Hunters is one of the better ones.After putting a wounded lion out of its misery, Bomba discovers a group of poachers are trapping lions and planning to take them away for exhibits in a zoo. Bomba doesn't like this idea so he takes action, no messing with him...As well as Johnny Sheffield as Bomba, cast also includes Morris Ankrum (Invaders From Mars) and Ann E Todd (How Green Was My Valley).A good little adventure.Ratin: 3 stars out of 5.