Lion of the Desert

Lion of the Desert

(Moustapha Akkad, 1981)

Rating: 4/5

Reviewed by Dave Lancaster

Summary: Lush and intelligent WW1 Libyan resistance epic 'Lion of the Desert' matches its big budget with big performances.

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We are introduced to Mussolini (Rod Steiger) in a performance that seems almost like a caricature. Suddenly shouting and pacing his grandiose office, he calms as he sits to issue threatening warnings. Only then do you realise that his feet don't reach the floor and he's swinging them like a child, dwarfed by his powerful surroundings.

Steiger seems to have liked his own performance so much that he recycled it later for Tim Burton's 'Mars Attacks!' but as silly as it is, he offers relief and power in a long film that sways confidently between both camps.

Contrasting Mussolini is our introduction to the calm Omar Mukhtar, an Arab Muslim rebel (played by the sedate, quietly charming Anthony Quinn) whose followers are content him, not in fear of him. It's easy to see where director Moustapha Akkad's alleigance lies.

Bridging the gap is Oliver Reed's General Rodolfo "The Butcher" Graziani who leads the Italians (under Mussolini's reign) against Mukhtar's Libyan resistance between 1911 and 1931. Like the similarly epic 'Lawrence of Arabia' most of the action takes place in the baking unforgiving desert, occaisionally offering sharp contrast with scenes set in oppulent indoor wealth. And yet, despite that, the film's greatest scene is also its quietest: an extended negotiation between the two sides from within a tent - Quinn's performance here is sublime.  

With all its budget on the screen, 'Lion of the Desert' is a brilliant, somewhat forgotten epic, that benefits from numerous diverse performances and a wonderfully cinematic setting. Hailed as being historically accurate and charged with driving action sequences, 'The Lion of the Desert' still has plenty of growl left in it. Check out Anchor Bay's new Blu-ray for the real deal.   

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