Valley of the Kings (film) Valley of the Kings (film) Valley of the Kings is a 1954 Eastmancolor adventure film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was written and directed by Robert Pirosh from a screenplay by Robert Pirosh and Karl Tunberg, "suggested by historical data" in the book "Gods, Graves and Scholars" by C. W. Ceram. The music was by Miklós Rózsa and the cinematography by Robert Surtees. The title of the film refers to the valley on the west bank of the Nile River in Egypt, where the tombs of the Ancient Egyptian kings are located. The film was based on an original story by
Ursus in the Valley of the Lions pepla of the time (Alberto Lupo as Ajak, and Gerard Herter as his henchman Lothar). The director definitely spiced up the elephant scene by decorating the elephants in imaginative circus raiments and having them pull the villagers toward the fire in a tightly choreographed, theatrical series of steps synchronized to resounding drumbeats. The most frightening scene in the film involves the 4 ravenous, rabid-looking hyenas that attack Ursus in an underground tunnel; the creatures really do look rabid and appear to be "seriously" trying to kill Ed Fury; yet the actor is shown very physically grabbing the ghastly animals by