A Graham Greenesque love quadrangle in the midst of turmoil in the British colony of Malaya.the 7th dawn is an exotic film starting with the beautiful titles that has Malayan landscapes, the workers, water bodies and culture set to Riz Ortolani's heavenly soundtrack.William Holden plays an American solider who is attached to the land and stays back after the war with Japan to become a successful plantation owner. He is involved in a love triangle with a Malayan rebel leader and an activist played by the beautiful Capucine. Holden effortlessly exudes authority and manliness. The so called macho actors of today look like chumps when compared to an actor like Holden. Capucine plays a stoic principled solider who is passionate about the rights of the Malays. This is the first time i'm seeing her in a film. She is a damn good actress and looked great too. Sussanah York, the daughter of a British dignitary covets holden. She is introduced wearing a bikini and bathing in the sea. She is a female white liberal character straight of of a VS Naipaul novel. The plot resolution at the end is thanks to her silly liberal antics. She surrenders herself as a hostage to the malayan reactionaries in the hope that the British authorities would refrain from hanging Capucine who is falsely accused of planting grenades.But the film is an action adventure film that doesnt really take political sides and mostly present facts as they are. i enjoyed it. Ortolani's score deserves special mention.(7/10)

In post-WW2 Malaya, political tensions rise between the British rulers and the revolutionaries. This is one of a series of clunkers that Holden made in the 1960s, when he unwisely chose film roles based on shooting locales rather than script. Here he looks disinterested playing a wealthy American business man who tries to broker peace between the warring factions. Coming off her success in "Tom Jones," York plays the daughter of a British commander who throws herself at Holden. Holden is apparently attracted to her but also has feelings for Capucine, an earnest school teacher who is sympathetic to the revolution. Holden and Capucine had an off-screen romance going at the time. The film's not as bad as its reputation would suggest.

William Holden, Capucine, Susannah York, and Tetsurô Tanba star in "The 7th Dawn," a 1964 film done on location in Malaysia. At the end of World War II, Major Ferris (Holden) decides to stay in Malaysia, where he becomes a land baron. The woman who fought alongside him, Dhana, moves in with him. The third member of their trio, Ng (Tetsuro Tanba) who is like a brother to both of them, leaves to work with the communists.Over the years, it becomes more dangerous to live in Malaysia due to Communist terrorism as the British prepare for Malaysian independence. As the situation worsens, Major Ferris and Ng ultimately have a difficult and painful decision to make."The 7th Dawn" is visually stunning, with some absolutely magnificent photography throughout, with an interesting story that was overshadowed in history by Vietnam. William Holden is perfectly cast as the world-weary Ferris, and Capucine gives a very dignified performance as the highly regarded activist Dhana. Susannah York plays a beautiful young woman who falls for Ferris, and handsome Tetsuro Tanba gives a powerful performance as the dedicated Ng.Very good script without a typical Hollywood ending. I'm not quite sure why this film isn't more regarded.

The Seventh Dawn seemed a natural for William Holden given the spectacular success he had in that part of the world with The Bridge On the River Kwai. Unfortunately Seventh Dawn doesn't quite live up to the David Lean classic.What The Seventh Dawn is, is a sincere attempt to look at the issues confronting Southeast Asia during the Fifties. Three people, American William Holden, and natives Capucine and Tetsuro Tamba have been involved in resistance to the Japanese. Holden like the country so much, he's going to settle down as a rubber planter. Capucine is going back to teaching school and agitating for eventual independence from Great Britain. Tamba is going to school himself, a scholarship awaits him at a university in Moscow.Fast forward seven years or so from V-J day and all of them have succeeded more or less in their chosen paths. Unfortunately their paths put them on a collision course with each other.Holden's a free-wheeling hedonist who just won't settle down and marry Capucine and he's got a new distraction in the form of Sussanah York the daughter of the new British administrator. Her role is the weakest here and the dumbest. Her offer of sacrifice to bring peace to Malaya just doesn't ring true at all.I do like what Tetsuro Tamba did with his part. His people as he's been taught in Moscow can't feed themselves, let alone govern themselves. They need Red style tutelage and he's going to see they get it.Measured against The Bridge on the River Kwai, The Seventh Dawn falls far short. Still it's nicely photographed in the Republic of Malaysia and the cast is earnest enough in their roles. William Holden fans will like it.