Spotlight

Spotlight Date: 8-January-12
Spoiler Rating: Medium

Desert Sands (1955)

Desert Sands starts out as an average military action flick and then morphs into a lesser episode from original Star Trek. It's set in a Saharan outpost of the French Foreign Legion where a motley battalion is kept in line by a bustling sergeant (played by J. Carrol Naish from Sahara, another movie in this month's "Desert Dreams" Spotlight series*). Several classic types are in evidence, including a drunken Englishman (Ron Randell) and a hotheaded Texan (John Smith). They await the arrival of a new captain and fresh troops who will take their positions so they can go home, or at least somewhere less sweaty and boring. Unbeknownst to anyone in the fort except the treacherous Arab wine merchant (John Carradine), their dreams of relief are in vain and their boredom will end abruptly.

Captain David Malcolm (Ralph Meeker) arrives alone, having traveled a different route than the other new soldiers. He barely has time to establish himself as a tough guy before all hell breaks loose. A local tribe announces its presence by setting a cross on fire amid the mutilated bodies of the expected Legionnaires; then it concludes sham peace talks by attacking the fort. After a rousing battle, the air of real peril is broken by the appearance of the victorious Arab leader. This is El Zanal (Keith Larsen), who might have walked out of Disney's Aladdin except that he lacks all animation. With him is his sister Zara (Marla English), a Scarlett O'Hara look-alike who runs around in tight pants and bright red lipstick (quite unlike my image of a Bedouin lady, but what do I know?). Zara lashes Malcolm with her whip out of a hatred for white men, but she melts when his muscular arms help her down from her horse. Alas, Malcolm can't match James Kirk for charm; even so, in no time Zara is making out with him to the accompaniment of Trek-ish siren music. Of course, the captain is not so beguiled by her that he fails to exploit her feminine weakness. His primary motivation for making love is securing the release of his men and preventing another battalion from walking into a trap. By the time he orchestrates the Legionnaires' last stand, matters have become too silly and predictable for true drama.

*See the Index by date for a list of other films in this month's series.

Copyright © 2012 The Jujube (M. I. Kim). All rights reserved.