Lion Of The Desert Details

Financed by Colonel Gaddafi, this paean to Libya's national hero, Omar Mukhtar, is often stirring stuff, shot in stunning desert scenery and with hordes of extras not seen since the days of Lawrence of Arabia. Mukhtar was a fervent nationalist and Bedouin peasant who resisted Mussolini's annexation of Libya in the 1930s. Scenes in which Mukhtar's army of Arab horsemen charge the Italian tanks set the right patriotic mode and prepare us for the inevitable martyrdom. As Mukhtar, Anthony Quinn is predictable but believable; Rod Steiger is very Rod Steiger as Mussolini; while Oliver Reed is often chilling as Musso's muscle man. There's a silly love interest patched in, but overall this is a fine film that must have been a physical and logistical nightmare to make.

Whitewashed account of the activities of a patriarchal partisan who was hanged in 1931. Of interest primarily to Arab zealots.