The decade of the 1920s saw the arrival of prohibition to America. That era became a boon for enterprising people and bandits to profit from the smuggling of liquor to a thirsty society which could not do without its drinking habits. Creative ways for getting the prohibited booze to drinkers in the United States is the basis of this story,

Captain Cornelius Von Zeelinga, is a naval captain that is surprised as this tale begins, by the U S Coast Guard, and his precious cargo of rum is destroyed. Corny, as he is otherwise known, begins to wander through Mexico, the Caribbean, and Panama, after he has made a small fortune in a game where wealthy Americans, looking for fun, fire at him on a dark room.

Cornelius discovers a screen goddess, Linda Larue, a luscious woman who becomes the object of his love. Wherever Corny goes, finds an excuse for watching one of Linda's epics, which begin with silent fare, graduating to the "talkies". Not only does Linda get the best of his imagination, he manages to meet her in person! His passion for the silver screen star will consume him to the point that smuggling becomes an after thought.

This 1971 French production, directed by Robert Enrico, showed up on a cable channel recently and we watched as a curiosity. Obviously a vehicle for Lino Ventura, who played heavier roles, was a change of pace for the actor, who showed great flair for comedy. The surprise though was the beautiful Brigitte Bardot,one of the sexiest film stars of the French cinema of all times. She plays the larger than life, Linda Larue, with gusto. Although the film has not "aged" well, it has some good moments. Shot in Almeria and Belize, it is a pleasant excuse to spend some time in the company of Mr. Venura and Ms. Bardot.

"Rum Runners" could be taken as an experiment: is it possible to make an 80-minute film with apparently no script at all? Well, it is possible....that doesn't mean it is desirable, though. Virtually nothing happens in this movie. I don't mean nothing interesting, I mean NOTHING. Lino Ventura is a likable actor, and Brigitte Bardot still looks great in one of her last screen appearances, but they are both defeated by this non-existence of a script. Bardot has an unusual introduction - projected on a theater screen as a silent-film star - but has little to do from that point on. What's more, the film has fallen into public domain, which means that if you do find a copy it will probably be dubbed, cropped, and faded in color. Don't go out of your way to search for a copy, in any case. * out of 4.

Brigitte Bardot's later movies are generally not considered as good as her earlier ones, but 'Boulevard du rhum' is an exception to that. Aged 36 at the time, Brigitte plays a strong supporting role to leading man Lino Ventura. He plays an important runner, smuggling liquor in the time when this was prohibited by some very strict US laws. Unpleasant contacts with the US Coast Guard are part of the story.

With her singing and dancing Brigitte certainly adds a big dimension to 'Boulevard du rhum'. She also provides an element of twenties fashion, thus strongly contributing to this movie's lovely mix of Charleston and Carraïbean moods.

Just sit back, relax, and enjoy 'Boulevard du rhum'. This movie is worth 125 minutes of your time.