The Picture About the Marabunta!

Starring: Charlton Heston, Abraham Sofaer, William Conrad, Eleanor Parker, Romo Vincent, Douglas Fowley, John Dierkes

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆ - good

"Marabunta. Soldier ants. Billions and billions of them on the march. For generations they stay in their anthills. Then, for no reason, they start to move, gathering up others as they go, until they become a flood of destruction." - Commissioner

Why watch this? It's a nice Heston film, with the added bonus of ravaging army ants.

Plot Summary: In 1901, a wealthy and arrogant plantation owner in South America, Christopher Leiningen, marries a beautiful New Orleans widow, Joanna, by proxy. When Joanna arrives at his isolated estate, Christopher is displeased to discover she is a widow and seeks to send her back. Before Joanna can depart, a massive column of army ants threatens to destroy the plantation, forcing the estranged couple to confront both nature and their complicated relationship.

Dad's Preview: A motivated South American plantation owner is forced to take on a new arranged bride. When she arrives, it's nothing but cold shoulder. Things heat up when word reaches them that army ants, called "marabunta (followed by intense music)", are on the move and heading their way. The destructive insects are an unstoppable force against the feeble efforts of man... but they have never come up against Chuck Heston! This is a good film will occasionally make your skin crawl.

Paramount Pictures