Year of Release: 1951Country of Origin: USA
Director: Henry Hathaway
Cast: James Mason, Cedric Hardwicke, Jessica Tandy
Plot outline: The life and career of the respected World War II German General Erwin Rommel (IMDb).
What you get from The Desert Fox is that while being an acknowledged tactical genius, Rommel was either not too bright in other areas; i.e., unable to see Hitler’s true character despite his abandonment of perfectly good armies in Africa and at Stalingrad, or a flagrant opportunist; as long as he's OK, to hell with everything else. This is where I think the screenplay is too forgiving. Rommel may have been a heckuva soldier, but he served one of the worst tyrants in modern history. Nevertheless, the characters are vivid. James Mason is stellar as Rommel. Sterling support from Cedric Hardwicke as Dr. Strolin, Jessica Tandy as Frau Rommel, and familiar faces George Macready, Everett Sloan, Richard Boone, and Leo G. Carroll as German officers, with savoury (and animated) Adolf Hitler impression provided by Luther Adler. Directed by Henry Hathaway, with cinematography and music by Norbert Brodine and Daniele Amfitheatrof, the movie contains quite a bit of actual WWII footage to placate action fans while the bulk of it plays out in conversations between the various parties. Sets and costume were very impressive with good attention to detail. I noticed that Rommel correctly wore both the Pour le Merite (Imperial Germany's highest decoration) and Iron Cross at his collar. I would have liked to see more of the events that established Rommel’s credentials as a great tactician and warrior, but we are required to take this for granted. All in all it is a good watch, but don’t be too sure you’re getting good history here, more like beatification. (GC)
My judgement: *** out of 4 stars
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