"Elephant Walk" has pretty scenery, nice Technicolor photography, opulent sets, a luscious Liz, but a tedious (non-) story and an uninspring romance. The entire film is almost fast-forward-worthy until the last 6 minutes, a spectacular elephant stampede where nature justifiably punishes human vanity and stupidity. ** out of 4.

Elizabeth Taylor looked ridiculous in those boutique clothes. Not the sort of clothing to be worn at tea plantation in a tropical environment. The film seemed like a comedy without any laughter from a bored audience. The only realistic scenes were of the elephants.

I'm not a particular fan of Elizabeth Taylor, although that's not to say I didn't like her performances. And, in my view, it was the first half of the 1950s (when this film was made) in which she did her most pleasing work. I have to say that at this point in her life, she was extremely beautiful.One of the interesting things about this film is that it originally starred Vivien Leigh, who had to drop out due to her bi-polar disorder. Taylor was a substitute, and I think a very good one. Some scenes, although not the ones with Taylor, were filmed in Sri Lanka. When the film was mostly re-shot with Taylor, her segments were filmed in Hollywood. There are a few scenes where, from a distance, you can see Vivian Leigh...particularly the beginning of the scene at the Buddhist temple. Some of the on-location scenes are quite stunning, and you get a glimpse of a real tea plantation.Peter Finch is very good in this film. You're not supposed to like him too much, and he played that just right. Taylor is exquisite. Perhaps better than Finch's role is that of Dana Andrews (who completes the triangle); Andrews is a much underrated actor, possibly due to problems with alcohol.I like this story -- a marriage between two people who have lived very different lives, and then the jungle and another man come in between them. My only criticism is the scene where the elephants tear down and set fire to the mansion...not as convincing as the rest of the film. But this is definitely worth a watch, although it may not end up on your DVD shelf. The print shown on TCM is nicely restored.

The scintillating Elizabeth Taylor stars in this lesser-known classic as a young girl from London who falls in love with a tea plantation owner from British Ceylon (current day Sri Lanka). Upon arrival she instantly feels out of place and is forced to adapt to the new culture as well as be in constant awareness of the angry elephant herd. William Dieterle, who also directed The Life Of Emile Zola and Portrait Of Jennie , does a masterful job of bringing a somewhat dark, and almost eerie, undertone to this romance and the setting is one of the most beautiful I've seen with the black and white themed mansion and the gorgeous island scenery.