Mister Kingstreet's War (1971)

In 1939 Central Africa, the clouds of an impending war imposes itself on a wildlife reserve run by an American (John Saxon) and his wife (Tippi Hedren). An Italian Major (Rossano Brazzi) attempts to persuade them to allow the Italians the water rights on their property while the British attempt to have him spy for them on the Italians. How long can he remain neutral? Directed by Percival Rubens, the film has good intentions but it wears them on its sleeve. The film has an agenda (which is fine), namely protecting the environment, wildlife as well as being anti-war. But its story line could have been better thought out. Too much time is wasted on a tangled subplot with the conservationist's brother (Brian O'Shaughnessy) that feels like padding. It's clearly a low budget production and the film makers are doing the best with what they've got but a stronger screenplay would have gone a long way in credibility. The film's downbeat ending seems rushed even though I saw it coming. With Kerry Jordan and Joseph Sekatski.