Feature1940·64m·5.5

Drums of the Desert

TEMPESTUOUS ROMANCE IN THE HEART OF THE BURNING SAHARA!

Adventure

On his way to a post as special adviser of the new parachute troops of the French Foreign Legion in Morocco, Paul Dumont meets the beautiful Helene on the ship. A romance ensues, but the two decide to part when Paul learns that Helene is the fiancée of his best friend and fellow officer Raoul. Raoul is wounded during an Arab attack and the wedding is postponed, and Helene and Paul are thrown together and find it impossible to hide their feelings. The meet in the tent of Hassan, a fortune teller, not knowing the tent is a storage place for arms and ammunition belonging to Addullah, an Arab leader determined to avenge the death of his brother Ben Ali.

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Cast

Ralph Byrd

Paul Dumont

Lorna Gray

Helene Laroche

George Lynn

Captain Jean Bridaux (as George Peter Lynn)

Willy Castello

Addullah (as William Castello)

Mantan Moreland

Sergeant 'Blue' Williams

Jean Del Val

Colonel Fouchet (as Jean Del-Val)

Ann Codee

Mme. Fouchet

Boyd Irwin

Captain Andre

Neyle Morrow

Ben Ali

Alberto Morin

Hassan

Jack Chefe

Steward

Bud Harrison

Bobo

DeForest Covan

Tribesman

Donald Kerr

Hospital Attendant

John Stark

Bartosh

Charles Townsend

Sergeant Duval

Details

Status
Released
Original language
English
Languages
English
Budget
Revenue
Age rating
Quality
4K UHD · HDR10 · Dolby Vision
Production
Monogram Pictures

Crew

Director

George Waggner

Writers

John T. Neville, George Waggner, Dorothy Davenport

Gallery

Reviews

CinemaSerf

6/23/2022

6.0

Ralph Byrd is really pretty poor here as "Lt. Paul Dupont", an officer in the French Foreign Legion sent to Morocco to train an elite squadron of paratroopers. On his way across on the boat from France, he meets "Helene Laroche" (Lorna Gray) and they have a brief romance before they realise that she is engaged to his best friend George Lynn ("Capt. Bridaux") who is also stationed at the same fort. When some local tribesmen attack the camp, and "Bridaux" is injured, their wedding is postponed and the ringleader of the attackers - the brother of the local Sheikh - is executed. Needless to say, that causes some resentment and the Sheikh vows to avenge the death of his brother. The star of the film is undoubtedly Mantan Moreland as "Sgt. Williams" - he injects bags of charisma and some humour as his officers become just a bit too preoccupied with their love triangle. The ending is never in doubt, indeed the film seems to wrap up with an almost undue haste, but it's at the better end of these sandy action films that is just about worth the hour it takes to watch.