From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Zoltan Korda (3 June 1895 – 13 October 1961) was a Hungarian-born motion picture screenwriter, director and producer. Born Zoltán Kellner, Kellner Zoltán in Hungarian name order, of Jewish heritage in Pusztatúrpásztó, Túrkeve in Hungary (Austria-Hungary), he was the middle brother of filmmakers Alexander and Vincent Korda. Zoltan Korda went to work with his brother Alexander in their native Hungary and in the United Kingdom for his London Films production company. Initially Zoltan Korda functioned as a camera operator then for a time worked in film editing and as a screenwriter. In 1918 and 1920 in Hungary, he directed two silent film shorts and a feature-length silent film in Germany in 1927. In London, he made his English-language directorial debut with the sound drama Men of Tomorrow (1932) then gained wide respect for the adventure film Sanders of the River (1935), starring Paul Robeson and Leslie Banks. The film proved a significant commercial and critical success, giving Korda the first of his four nominations for "Best Film" at the Venice Film Festival. Korda and Robert Flaherty won the Venice festival's "Best Director" award for Elephant Boy (1937). A former cavalry officer, Korda made a number of military action/adventure films, many of which were filmed in Africa or India. As someone with a social conscience, his film projects often reflected that perspective when dealing with the indigenous peoples of the British Empire. Of his directorial efforts, 1939's The Four Feathers starring Sir Ralph Richardson is considered his greatest cinematic accomplishment. Of lasting significance, the film was nominated for the Palme d'Or at the 1939 Cannes Film Festival and was presented again by the Festival committee in 2002 in retrospective. In 1940, Zoltan Korda joined brother Alexander in Hollywood. Working through United Artists, he served as executive producer of The Thief of Bagdad. Zoltan Korda spent the rest of his life in southern California, making another seven films including the acclaimed 1943 World War II drama, Sahara (1943), for which he wrote the screenplay and which starred Humphrey Bogart, and A Woman's Vengeance (1947) with Charles Boyer and Jessica Tandy. Korda was married to Joan Gardner (1930 - 13 October 1961) till his death and had a son, David. The entire family's colorful history is the subject of a book by Zoltan's nephew Michael Korda, Charmed Lives. Poor health, brought on years earlier from a battle with tuberculosis, forced Zoltan Korda's retirement in 1955. He died in 1961 in Hollywood after a lengthy illness and was interred there in the Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery. Description above from the Wikipedia article Zoltan Korda, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
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Biography from TMDB.
- June 3, 1895
- October 13, 1961 (aged 66)
- Pusztaturpaszto, Túrkeve, Austria-Hungary [now Hungary]
- Director, producer and writer
- 8 on MovieCove · 20 credits in all
What are Zoltan Korda's films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 8
Light 1 · Serious 6 · Dark 1
A split, not a type: Grounded 5 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 1
Gentle 0 · Charged 4 · Intense 4
Steady 2 · Shifting 6 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 7 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1
Casual 1 · Engaged 7 · Full focus 0
A split, not a type: Easy watch 4 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 3
Resolved 6 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Happy5
- Bittersweet2
- Ambiguous1
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Zoltan Korda's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on The Criterion Channel (4).
- ZEE5
Subscription and free streaming for Zoltan Korda's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
20 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.
Storm Over the Nile(1955)
Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all films
Cry, the Beloved Country (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)
A Woman's Vengeance(1948)
Midcredits score: 75th percentile of all films
The Macomber Affair(1947)
Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films
Counter-Attack (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1945)
Sahara(1943)
Midcredits score: 93rd percentile of all films
The Jungle Book(1942)
Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films
The Thief of Bagdad(1940)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
The Four Feathers(1939)
Midcredits score: 90th percentile of all films
The Drum (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1938)
Elephant Boy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)
Forget Me Not (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)
Sanders of the River(1935)
Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films
Cash (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1933)
Men of Tomorrow (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1932)
The Conquest of the Air (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1931)
Women Everywhere (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1930)
The Eleven Devils (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1927)
A Csodagyerek (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1920)
Károly bakák (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1918)
Career shape
A full career of 20 titles from 1918 to 1955.
Biggest box office
The Jungle Book (1942)
Highest rated
Sahara (1943)
Most popular right now
The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.
How do Zoltan Korda's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 73rd percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 71st percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up4
- 50th to 74th2
- 25th to 49th1
- Below 25th1
Shape of the crowd
None of their 8 titles divides audiences: 3 are Universally Loved.
- Universally Loved3
- Crowd Pleaser3
- Broadly Agreed1
- Mixed1
Reviewers score the atmosphere 76/100 and the pacing 54/100 in their films, across 8 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Zoltan Korda work with?
People who share at least 2 of Zoltan Korda's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Miklós Rózsa shares the most, 6.
Writers
- Lajos BiróShared titles: Storm Over the Nile (1955), The Thief of Bagdad (1940), The Four Feathers (1939), Sanders of the River (1935)See all 4 shared titles with Lajos Biró
- Arthur WimperisShared titles: Storm Over the Nile (1955), The Four Feathers (1939), Sanders of the River (1935)See all 3 shared titles with Arthur Wimperis
- A.E.W. MasonShared titles: Storm Over the Nile (1955), The Four Feathers (1939)See all 2 shared titles with A.E.W. Mason
- R.C. SherriffShared titles: Storm Over the Nile (1955), The Four Feathers (1939)See all 2 shared titles with R.C. Sherriff
Actors
- Carl HarbordShared titles: The Macomber Affair (1947), Sahara (1943)See all 2 shared titles with Carl Harbord
- Rex IngramShared titles: Sahara (1943), The Thief of Bagdad (1940)See all 2 shared titles with Rex Ingram
- SabuShared titles: The Jungle Book (1942), The Thief of Bagdad (1940)See all 2 shared titles with Sabu
- June DuprezShared titles: The Thief of Bagdad (1940), The Four Feathers (1939)See all 2 shared titles with June Duprez
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Miklós RózsaShared titles: A Woman's Vengeance (1948), The Macomber Affair (1947), Sahara (1943), The Jungle Book (1942), The Thief of Bagdad (1940), The Four Feathers (1939)See all 6 shared titles with Miklós Rózsa
- William HornbeckShared titles: The Jungle Book (1942), The Thief of Bagdad (1940), The Four Feathers (1939), Sanders of the River (1935)See all 4 shared titles with William Hornbeck
- Georges PérinalShared titles: The Thief of Bagdad (1940), The Four Feathers (1939), Sanders of the River (1935)See all 3 shared titles with Georges Périnal
- Jack WheelerShared titles: A Woman's Vengeance (1948), The Macomber Affair (1947)See all 2 shared titles with Jack Wheeler
Producers
- Alexander KordaShared titles: Storm Over the Nile (1955), The Jungle Book (1942), The Thief of Bagdad (1940), The Four Feathers (1939), Sanders of the River (1935)See all 5 shared titles with Alexander Korda
