Rope of Sand (1949)

A man abused by a sadistic mining company cop before he could tell where on their desert property he'd found diamonds decides to steal them instead.

Director:

William Dieterle

Writers:

Walter Doniger (story), John Paxton (additional dialogue)

Stars:

Burt Lancaster, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Burt Lancaster	...	Mike Davis
Paul Henreid	...	Commandant Paul Vogel
Claude Rains	...	Arthur Martingale
Peter Lorre	...	Toady
Corinne Calvet	...	Suzanne Renaud
Sam Jaffe	...	Dr. Francis Hunter
John Bromfield	...	Thompson (guard)
Mike Mazurki	...	Pierson (guard)
Kenny Washington	...	John
Edmund Breon	...	Chairman
Hayden Rorke	...	Ingram
David Thursby	...	Henry (bartender)
Josef Marais	...	Specialty Singer
Miranda Marais	...	Specialty Singer (as Miranda)

Storyline

Two years ago, hunting guide Mike Davis was with a client who trespassed on diamond company land and found a rich lode; Paul Vogel, sadistic commandant of company police, beat Mike nearly to death but failed to learn the location. Now Mike is back in Diamantstad, South African desert, and manager Martingale has a better idea: he hires delectable adventuress Suzanne to ferret out Mike's secret. But she soon finds she's playing with fire.

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Plot Keywords:

desert | diamond | adventuress | scars on back | shooting a horse | 

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Taglines:

A Mighty Story of Savage Greed and Sultry Love Set in the Dreaded Desert that Guards the Dark Continent's Forbidden Diamond Fields!

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Genres:

Adventure

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Afrikaans

Release Date:

3 August 1949 (USA)

Also Known As:

Blutige Diamanten

Filming Locations:

Yuma Desert, Sonoran Desert, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Wallis-Hazen

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Hal Wallis and screenwriter of "Rope of Sand" saw it as a re-teaming of Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart. The producer of "Casablanca" did not get the stars but managed to recruit supporting players Claude Rains, Paul Henried, and Peter Lorre.

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Goofs

When Vogel tries to kiss Suzanne, the lighting changes completely from one cut to the next.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Narrator: This part of the desert of South Africa, where only a parched camel thorn tree relieves the endless parallels of time, space, and sky, surrounds like a rope of sand the richest diamond-bearing area in the world -- an uneasy land where men inflamed by monotony and the heat sometimes forget the rules of civilization.

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Soundtracks

"Zulu Warrior"
(uncredited)
Written by Josef Marais
Performed by Josef Marais and Miranda Marais

User Reviews

entertaining thriller with a great quartet of male performances

This film is hard to find, but i finally got hold of a decent copy off ebay.co.uk recorded off a satellite channel. I'm glad i finally got to see it, it was very entertaining with numerous plot twists. The quartet of Lancaster, Rains, Henreid and Lorre make great viewing as they try and scene steal off each other at every turn. Claude Rains is smooth, silky and delightfully devious; Lancaster hulks, sulks and looms superbly. There is no discernible chemistry between Lancaster and the 'new' (well to US audiences) Corinne Calvert; which weakens their characters' motivation somewhat. Lancaster seems more in love with himself though, so tough competition for Corinne there. Calvert does a creditable turn here, ( though her French accent can be a little opaque), but she is outclassed easily by the men- Rains wipes the floor with her but she is stunning and exotic enough. Though her final clinch with Lancaster on the ship as they leave the desert hellhole that they've been inhabiting for the last hour and a half, is incredibly drippy and Lancaster looks as if he'd like shot of her big time. But that's the dialogue for you. Henreid is suitably nasty and sadistic and you can almost smell the sweat and feel the heat- so there is much to recommend in Rope of Sand.