La figlia dello sceicco

1955's "Desert Sands" is a long forgotten United Artists programmer benefiting from its colorful action sequences. The legendary John Carradine stands out in a decent cast, as Arab wine merchant Jala, who ruthlessly targets his own brother for murder, done by marauders disguised as French Legionnaires. His niece (Marla English) and nephew (Keith Larsen) grow up just as he wanted, hating the French and constantly in attack mode. Keith Larsen's career virtually tanked by the next decade, such titles as "Women of the Prehistoric Planet" and "The Omegans" giving way to self-directed items like "Mission Batangas," "The Trap on Cougar Mountain," "Run to the High Country," "Young and Free," "Whitewater Sam," and his cult classic "Night of the Witches." In between hard bitten turns in "Big House, U. S. A." and the iconic "Kiss Me Deadly" (as Mike Hammer), Ralph Meeker actually gets to play a more likable hero. In just her second starring role, the gorgeous Marla English disappeared from the screen as quickly as she lit the fire, in a pair of low budget AIP horrors, "The She-Creature" and "Voodoo Woman." Philip Tonge would reunite with Carradine in his last film, 1959's "Invisible Invaders," but this was John's final appearance opposite J. Carrol Naish, from "Ramona," "Blood and Sand," "Waterfront," and "House of Frankenstein."

While this 1955 Foreign Legion movie from United Artists may not be in the category of "Beau Geste" (which starred Gary Cooper) it is nonetheless drawing. Personally, I felt the cast was well-chosen. Ralph Meeker, noted for playing Mike Hammer in "Kiss Me Deadly", here played David Malekom, a sometimes cold yet always a no-nonsense officer who was definitely strict toward the men under him. The very pretty Marla English was an unusually pretty lady who was in love with Malekom. John Carradine was perfect for the role of Jala the wine merchant who was a very ruthless man; he in the movie was the uncle of Princess Zara. Keith Larsen, who played the brother of Princess Zara, El Zanel, was mean-spirited and ruthless, a man who was so anxious for power that he wanted to possess the Sahara Desert. John Smith, who would later be known for "Laramie" fame was his same cowboy self from Texas; he played Pvt. Rex Tyle, a pugnacious and brave soldier. The drama starts off with Jala having some of his own men, who were disguised as Legionnaires, kill his own brother who was the father of Zara and El Zanel, and the killing caused Zara and El Zanel to hate the Foreign Legion with a passion; they were very young when the killing took place. Thus there were several attacks on the outpost in North Africa. Yet the strange thing was that when Jala confessed that he had killed El Zanel's father, he said that men of power must do such things sometimes; no, El Zanel did not care about human lives. What will happen now to Malekom, El Zanel, Jala, and Zara? There are points where there is romance between Zara and Malekom, but will this have a great effect on how Malekom will be toward Zara after a very climatic battle? The movie was a "Sahara western" replete with handguns and machine guns. Yes, it was a very exciting movie of any kind.

Ralph Meeker gets to take a break from playing poachers to play a gamekeeper in the form of a megalomaniac captain in the French foreign legion of whom its said "He could lead a hundred grandmothers through the Boxer Rebellion without disturbing their coiffure".

The story suggests the twenties but his arrival by helicopter shows it's actually set much later. People get massacred but director Lesley Selander makes it all seem rather tame, with characters just standing about and talking.

The cute little fortress is quite striking in a Germanic sort of way. Conspicuous by their absence are any actual Frenchman: Aussie Ron Randall assuming an English accent to boast about his expulsion from Sandhurst and the University of Cambridge Medical School; while John Carradine invests the Arab chieftain with the sort of accent only a Shakespearean actor could manage.

I saw this film only once in 1957 at a local cinema when I was nine years old. The plot outline is a little dim after the passage of time but I recall that the story centred upon a misunderstanding that took place between the son and daughter of an Arab chieftain and the local garrison of the French Foreign Legion. War ensues and Ralph Meeker as the commander of the garrison, fights heroically against the Arabs.

I recall that the colour was very good and the actors portraying the legionaires seemed quite authentic. The actor portraying the French sergeant was very affecting. Marla English as the Arab princess was beautiful and sensual.

I would enjoy seeing this film again and it is a pity that the copyright holders have not released it as a video or a DVD. I hope that it may be offered to television networks to take up and show in future.

My cherished memories of "Desert Sands" still remain after 26 years. It played on the bottom of a double-bill (can't remember the main feature--a forgettable 'A' big-studio stinker, I'm certain) but was a swift, beautifully photographed, Foreign Legion humdinger of escapism with a memorable cast--Ralph Meeker at his most stalwart, gorgeous Marla English, John Carradine & J. Carroll Naish at their outlandish best, and young, dashing John Smith poised for stardom (after charming supporting roles in "The High and the Mighty," "We're No Angeles" and the forthcoming "Friendly Persuasion"). But the film seems to have vanished after playing on TV in the early '70s. Dismissed in its time as a 'B' programmer, "Desert Sands" was a sweeping, actionful treat--the actors seemed to be having as much fun as the cheering audience (and when has that happened in today's zillion-dollar stinkers? The stars seem to be wincing and working almost as hard as the audiences do trying to keep awake while enduring these "blockbuster" bombs). Come on, Turner Classic Movies. You've got the rights to these UA programmers of the '50s. Granted, most of them aren't worth reviving, but "The Desert Sands" definitely is. A throwback to the days when even medium-budget films could be class-A efforts, depending on the talents of all those (director, actors, script, cinematographer, etc.) involved. In this instance, "The Desert Sands" comes up trumps! Suffer thru other expensive big-studio adventure epics of the time ("Beau Brummel," "Prince Valiant," "The Egyptian," etc.) and you'll relish the unpretentious, lighthearted "Desert Sands" even more. An unheralded gem of 1955, long-overdue to be recognized as a heralded gem of any day. And it demands to be letterboxed in Superscope. A dazzling wide-screen delight--for precarious adventurers of all ages and times!