The Desert Rats
The Desert Rats is a 1953 American black-and-white war film from 20th Century Fox, produced by Robert L. Jacks, directed by Robert Wise, that stars Richard Burton, James Mason, and Robert Newton. The film's storyline concerns the Siege of Tobruk in 1941 North Africa during World War II.
Plot
German field marshal Erwin Rommel (James Mason) and his Afrika Korps have driven the British Army back toward Egypt and the vital Suez Canal. Standing in Rommel's way is Tobruk, a constant threat to his supply lines. The 9th Australian Division are charged with holding the port. The defending Allied general (Robert Douglas) chooses British Captain MacRoberts (Richard Burton) to take command of newly arrived, untried Australian troops. The no-nonsense MacRoberts, disliked by the undisciplined Australians, is surprised to see in their ranks his former schoolmaster, Tom Bartlett (Robert Newton), an alcoholic dismissed from education for drunkenness. MacRoberts offers to transfer him to a safer billet, but Bartlett refuses. The troops are sent directly into the front lines, where they dig in and prepare for Rommel's assault. The Allied general masses his artillery where he guesses the Germans will strike. His gamble pays off. Under cover of a sandstorm, Rommel's tanks and infantry attack where the general predicted and head directly at MacRoberts' men. But the Germans are beaten back. As a result, MacRoberts is made lieutenant colonel and battalion commander.
More details
| author | Richard Murphy |
|---|---|
| contentLocation | Libya |
| director | Robert Wise |
| editor | Barbara McLean |
| events | World War II |
| keywords | 9th australian division afrika korps allied line bagpipe british army capture commando commando raid dust storm egypt erwin rommel sandstorm spitfire suez canal supermarine spitfire tobruk wound |
| musicBy | Leigh Harline |
| nomination | Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay |
| producer | Robert L. Jacks |
| publisher | 20th Century Fox |
| recordedAt | California San Diego |
| theme | war |