The Comedians

The Comedians is a 1967 American political drama film directed and produced by Peter Glenville, based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Graham Greene, who also wrote the screenplay. The stars were Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Peter Ustinov, and Alec Guinness. Paul Ford and Lillian Gish had supporting roles as a presidential candidate and wife, as did James Earl Jones as an island doctor. The role played by Elizabeth Taylor was originally intended for Sophia Loren. Set in Haiti during the Papa Doc Duvalier regime, it was filmed in Dahomey (Benin since 1975). The film tells the story of a sardonic white hotel owner and his encroaching fatalism as he watches Haiti sink into barbarism and squalor. Plot A ship arrives in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Four of the alighting passengers are: Major H. O. Jones (Alec Guinness), a British businessman with a letter of invitation to do business with the government; Mr. and Mrs. Smith (Paul Ford and Lillian Gish), an elderly American couple who wish to set up a vegetarian complex for education and nutrition for the locals; and the central character, a cynical, washed-up hotel owner named Brown, portrayed by Richard Burton.