Ten Tall Men

Breezy Technicolor hokum from Burt Lancaster's second phase between his first few films as a tough guy and his later work as a serious actor as a grinning, thigh-slapping action hero leaping across the sceen as the fifties answer to Douglas Fairbanks; well matched by Jody Lawrence's spunky young heroine

When I originally encountered this film on TV aged about ten when I took it all very seriously, only later realising George Tobias's constant refrain "My father, my mother, my brothers, my sisters" was actually a running gag.

Typical Oriental adventure movie set during the Riff War in Morocco , the French Foreign Legion governs an outpost in the middle of desert. The threatened outpost is usually attacked by the Muslim natives . Then the valiant sergeant Kincaid : Burt Lancaster schemes a plan to to vanquish the Muslims by kidnapping a bride : Jody Lawrence about to marry an Arab chief . As the Sergeant along with his underlings : George Tobias, Nick Dennis , Mike Mazurki , John Dehner , Kieron Moore , Michael Pate , among others carry out a dangerous mission.

Thrilling movie following the mould of the Oriental Adventures in Universal Pictures style . Being produced by the tandem Harold Hetch- James Hill-Burt Lancaster from Norma Production that financed a lot of nice films , most of them starred by Burt Lancaster . This Ten Tell Men 1951 contains noisy action , frisky adventure , enjoyable humor , impressive feats , thrills , go riding , sandstorm sequences and breathtaking chases . Howevever , this fun and amusing flick can't really disguise the fact that it is the ordinary Oriental Adventure Here Burt Lancaster was still in his all-action period when he turned out this moving and enjoyable Foreign Legion tale , such as "The Flame and the Arrow", "The Crimson Pirate" , "His Majesty O'Keefe" , "The Kentuckian" , though he formerly performed Noir Films such as: "Criss Cross" , "Sorry Wrong Number" and "The Killers" .

Here stands out a great and large support cast , as you can spot several secondaries with formidable characters as Gerard Mohr , John Dehner, Nick Dennis , Mike Mazurski, Michael Pate, Ian McDonald , Kieron Moore , George Tobias. And other up-and-coming stars as Ricardo Montalban and the extremely charming Mari Blanchard in a small character . The motion picture was competently directed by Willis Goldbeck . Rating : 6.5/10. Better than average adventure movie . Well worth seeing . The movie will appeal to Burt Lancaster fans .

In those last years before the French finally cleared out of North Africa, Foreign Legion films seem to have been popular with the movie going public. Ten Tall Men is a typical example of such a film. Even though ultimately and soon the French would be driven out of the area the Foreign Legion patrolled before the decade ended.

Burt Lancaster is a sergeant of American background in the Foreign Legion and typically we don't know what drove him to join. His two corporals are Gilbert Roland and Kieron Moore and a bit of lese majeste involving Mari Blanchard got these guys some stockade time. Still they and others break out and hear of both an impending attack by the Riffs while the regiment is away on their post. It will be at the conclusion of a marriage between Jody Laurence the daughter of one sheik and Gerald Mohr another sheik. Once these tribes are united nothing stands in their way.

What to do but kidnap the daughter and hold her until the regiment returns. That proves easier said than done and once done a lot harder to tame this desert wildcat. But Burt with that smile and those pecs is the guy for the job.

None of the players in Ten Tall Men took this one real seriously and neither should we. Ten Tall Men is like a combination of The Desert Song and The Road To Morocco without songs.

Don't believe me, well check out the end and you can't tell me The Road To Morocco didn't inspire that.

Somewhere in the 1950's Hollywood discovered a simple formula for superior entertainment. Around that formula, any major star worth his salt could inspire a group of characters to create a magical memory. Thus this movie called " Ten Tall men " became a hit. Burt Lancaster, plays Sgt. Mike Kincaid, a French Foreign Legionnaire, who, while in a military stockade, learns of an impending attack on the city proper while the main garrison is away. Volunteering for what some consider a suicide mission, he and nine other prisoners ride into the desert to impede the attack for five days. During that time, the small group creates havoc among the gathering tribes to get their attention. Further they kidnap Mahla (Jody Lawrance) a tribal princess, which prevents the evil Khalif Hussein (Gerald Mohr) from caring out his attack. The entire film is fun to watch as great actors like Gilbert Roland, Kieron Moore, George Tobias, John Dehner and Mike Mazurki establish a wonderful and fun filled afternoon of creative enjoyment. A solid family offering for all ages. Easilly recommended. ****

An impressive 38 year old Burt Lancaster appears in this mediocre film. He was a perfectionist when it came to working with ambitious amateurs who had more aspiration than talent. Although there is no one film that I like about Lancaster, he was impressive at 38.