George Redding 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.

kevin olzak 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."

Jerry Miller Reviewers panning the whiteness of the Arabs, the diction of the Arab revolutionist? It's a drama, made in the USA as entertainment, not a documentary. The Arab princess, Marla English,had me excited in the 1950s and I loved how her servant assisted her escape from close confinement. Of course it's all implausible, but I don't watch movies for plausibility. Of course the officers of the Legion are supposed to be French and the enlisted fighters all foreigners. Again, I have to complaint that might demonstrate my 'intelligence' as a critic. The plot is a pan Islamic uprising against the French annexation of North Africa as colonial affront to the locals. The 'bad guy' is a fanatic with murderous ambition to rule as Mohammad had ruled, with an iron fist and discipline. I still prefer Ten Tall Men and Jody Lawrence in that, but this film was delightful in unexpected timeliness, after the Arab Spring. Now I'll go look up Marla English and find out what happened to her.

giorgioom This military adventure/romance contains some mildly interesting action footage of battle scenes, but on the whole, is so poorly cast with Arabs who resemble California beach boys and the biggest array of phony accents you can ever imagine anyone assembling. There is really only one character who is remotely plausible as a Frenchman and very few who are plausible as Arabs. The absurdity of the film is further compounded by stilted, cliché-ridden dialogue and a romantic interest by the Arab heroine that strains credulity, to say the least. All of this results in an unintentionally laughable and ludicrous film which irreparably spoils any chance of the viewer being swept away by its pathetic pretense at being an adventure epic and grand romance. A Lawrence of Arabia or Beau Geste it is not! Positive reviewers are obviously delusionally waxing nostalgic from their memories as 8 year old viewers.