Sahara

source: Sahara

"Sahara" is a 1943 film starring Humphrey Bogart, directed by Zoltan Korda, and intended as a propaganda film during World War II. It succeeds. Bogart is a Sgt. Joe Gunn, and after Tobruk falls in North Africa, he leads a tank unit into the desert. He's joined by French, South African, British, and Sudanese soldiers. They come up against a group of Germans that want the water well where the tanks are stationed. Besides Bogart, the great cast includes Bruce Bennett. Lloyd Bridges, Dan Duryea and J. Carrol Naish, and they all do an exemplary job. What I like best about this film is the atmosphere - the sun beating down, the dryness, the filth - you're thirsty just watching it. It was films like this that probably kept people in the U.S. going during the war, I imagine. World War II has been highly romanticized, but despite the pretty songs, there wasn't anything romantic about it. Since there are no women in this film, there's nothing romantic about "Sahara" either. Very good work.

I relied on the glowing mark attributed to this movie on IMDb and wasted an hour and a half watching this predictable propaganda movie. The Germans are dumb or devious caricatural Nazis. The Italian a nice chap who would have liked to be an American. The American sergeant (in Libya in 1943!?) commands the vassals of the US, even a British officer, superior to him in rank. I really could not understand how the Germans could not outflank the small Bogart crew but insisted on frontal attacks. I couldn't quite get either where Bogart was getting his fuel for his gas-guzzling antiquated tank. There is never any suspense or subtle portraits. Only for unconditional patriotic Americans or Bogart fans.

Humphrey Bogart after scoring his big success in The Petrified Forest was signed to a long term Warner Brothers contract and only made two outside films while he was under contract for 12 years. The first was Dead End for Sam Goldwyn and the second was Sahara for Columbia. So Bogey was working with at another studio with a group of unfamiliar players. But this is Bogey post Casablanca when he became very big box office indeed. Harry Cohn must have laid out a lot of cash to Jack Warner for his services. Sahara is a fine allegorical film about a patchwork quilt of allied fighters standing up to Nazism. Humphrey Bogart and his tank crew of Bruce Bennett and Dan Duryea come across a group of British Eighth Army regulars commanded by a medical officer. They get the news Tobruk has fallen and they have to make it back to their lines. First things first though, they need to get water. Along the way this motley crew picks up a Sudanese and his Italian prisoner, Rex Ingram and J. Carrol Naish. Then they shoot down a German plane and capture its pilot Peter Van Eyck. Reaching a nearly tapped out oasis ahead of the Germans they make a heroic stand as the Germans are out of water themselves. They play a deadly psychological game with the Germans and most of them don't survive. Sahara is a curious film. It's a good psychological as well as war film that has absolutely no basis in facts. When Tobruk fell there was not one American GI in all of North Africa. At the end of the film, the survivors hear about the First Battle of El Alamen where General Claude Auchinleck and the Eighth Army held the line against Rommel and stopped his drive to the Suez. What Bogey, Bennett, and Duryea were doing there is beyond me. Usually the gambit is to make Americans, Canadians to explain non-British accents. It wasn't used here however. By the time Sahara was in theaters, a combined British-American expeditionary force had already landed in Morocco and that was September, 1943. I guess our gullible audience thought Bogey was already in the thick of it. Anyway that rather glaring historical inaccuracy has always prevented me from thoroughly enjoying Sahara.

This Zoltan Korda-John Howard Lawson World War II curio is at times a superb war film, with fine pace, excellent location photography and some excellent, unflashy acting. It is a story in the tradition of The Lost Patrol, as experienced U.S. Sgt. Humphrey Bogart, in a tank, helps a motley crew of soldiers, mostly British, in search of either their unit, safety or water, whichever comes first. They wind up at a desert fort and are eventually attacked by a German regiment that is also desperate and thirsty, and some exciting action scenes of fighting and exhausted men are the result. Bogart is his usual charismatic self in the lead, and the supporting cast is nearly as good, especially Bruce Bennett and J. Carrol Naish; the former is quiet and dignified, as was his custom, the latter typically flamboyant, but this time his florid acting is appropriate. Overall I like this movie a lot. Like all the best war films, it focuses on seemingly small things, such as well that has gone dry (or has it?), the glaring sun, the little stories of home life,--for once not corny. There is a black African solider who is treated as an equal, and well-acted by Rex Ingram. Now and again, though, the movie turns preachy, as a certain internationalist tendentiousness creeps in, which, even if one finds its agreeable, detracts somewhat from the exciting story and makes it at times feel like a tract on the need for cooperation among nations.

Many American words are considered oxymoron. The word Sahara for instance is the Arab word for Water. It is in this vast, arid empty nowhere our movie takes place. The film is called " Sahara " and stars one of the finest thespians ever to grace Hollywood. Although, Humphrey Bogart plays Sgt. Joe Gunn, for the benefit of the U.S. Army and it's war time propaganda machine, it nevertheless became part of his highly acclaimed film achievements. Set in North Africa, a U.S. Armored tank crew learns they have been ordered to fall back and regroup with Allied forces. Along the way, they are joined by a British Captain (Richard Nugent) and his men, find and befriend Giusepp, an Italian POW (J. Naish), a Frenchman (Louis Mercier) and a Sudanese soldier (Rex Ingram). The American crew, Bruce Bennett and Dan Duryea, believe they know Gunn well, so they're surprised when he discovers there is no water at a distant Oasis, but further learns a German Armored battalion is also advancing on the Oasis and decides to make a stand. Despite huge odds against survival, the handful of Allied soldiers and their single M3-Tank defend against the enormous wave of tired but thirsty enemy. What the Germans are unaware of, is Gunn and his men although holding the Oasis, are also in great need of water. Who will prevail as Gunn sends for help and the Germans prepare an all out assault against the outnumbered group? It is the desperate drama, the fine script and the pool of characters which makes for an excellent movie and one which earns this film it's status of Classic. ****

I guess this is what you'd call a "man's movie," a tough war story with no female characters in the cast. Humphrey Bogart is an effective tough-guy American sergeant leading an international group of Allies in a tank across the Sahara desert. Eventually they battle huge odds against an onrushing German forces. intent on getting water from a well that was being tapped by Bogart's crew. There are a few lulls when characterizations are made, and the anti-German fervor in here is a little overdone. However, since it made right in the middle of World War II, that's understandable. There is some good photography in here with nice shadows form the sand dunes. Overall, a pretty solid war film that has decent action without overdoing it. Complementing Bogart in he cast are the likes of Bruce Bennett. Lloyd Bridges, Dan Duryea and J. Carrol Naish

There's really nothing great about this movie but I find it enjoyable in so many ways. First of all, how often do you get a chance to see a tank of that vintage. Bogart plays a tough sergeant but being Bogart, there's a human softer side to him. One of the best scenes is watching the German troops moving forward, the survivors at the oasis are sure they are going to be overwhelmed, but the Germans are surrendering, all because they are out of water. "Wasser, Wasser," you can hear them saying as they stumble forward. Good little ending. I enjoy it just for fun. A number of good supporting actors round it out. And like all war movies made during WW II, it's got every kind of character from the tough guy to the disillusioned Italian, to the French African hero, to the sneaky craft Nazi. And did I mention the proper Brit? See it for fun.

Bogart does well as an American tank commander early in WW II coming across some retreating British infantry. They later make a dramatic last stand against the attacking Germans. Two actors make this movie a standout. J. Carroll Naish was of Irish descent, and he never played an Irishman in his long and great career as an actor. Check his movies and look for his great performances. Here he is magnificent as a tormented and disillusioned Italian prisoner (a German ally) who has to fianlly decide if he'll fight with the Germans or stand with the Allies, who could have let him die in the desert. Rex Ingram was a fine black actor who here plays a Sudanese soldier in British colonial service. The depiction of a heroic black soldier was rare during World War Two (see my review of "Bataan"). He too was memorable. It's a fine film and worth catching whenever you can find it.

One thing to know about this enduring minor classic is that it was never included in the Harvard University based eggheaded revival of Bogart films. The super-brains there only recognized Warner-Bogart movies, never those made by Columbia; even though several of Bogart's best were Columbia Pictures and African Queen and Barefoot Contessa were United Artists. Columbia took a B-movie sized budget, a great story, excellent acting and made a classic which had a shelf-life in theaters and TV in excess of 40 years. The story was good enough to be remade as a western in 1953 called Last of the Comanchees. Two years ago, Hollywood used the same title (Sahara) to produce a huge budget color adventure movie (but with an altogether story). With unlimited resources and today's alleged high tech, Hollywood produced a mildly entertaining picture which had a shelf-life, not of 40 years, but way under 40 weeks. The Bogart SAHARA isn't easy to find these days, but have a look on eBay or request it from Turner Classics. Timeless, it won't disappoint even after 63 years.