Rommel, Desert Fox (1951)
"The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel" (original title)

The life and career of the respected World War II German general.

Director:

Henry Hathaway

Writers:

Nunnally Johnson (screenplay), Desmond Young (biography)

Stars:

James Mason, Cedric Hardwicke, Jessica Tandy

Cast

Complete credited cast:
James Mason	...	Field Marshal Erwin Johannes Rommel
Cedric Hardwicke	...	Dr. Karl Strolin
Jessica Tandy	...	Frau Lucie Marie Rommel
Luther Adler	...	Adolf Hitler
Everett Sloane	...	Gen. Wilhelm Burgdorf
Leo G. Carroll	...	Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt
George Macready	...	Gen. Fritz Bayerlein
Richard Boone	...	Capt. Hermann Aldinger
Eduard Franz	...	Col. Klaus von Stauffenberg
Desmond Young	...	Himself, Lt. Col. Desmond Young

Storyline

This biopic follows Rommel's career after the Afrika Korps, including his work on the defenses of Fortress Europe as well as his part in the assassination attempt on Hitler, and his subsequent suicide.

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Plot Keywords:

rommel | suicide | hitler | general | prologue | 

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Genres:

Action | Biography | Drama | History | War

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 October 1951 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Desert Fox

Filming Locations:

Borrego Springs, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Color:

Black and White (archive footage) Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 27 November 1951 edition of the 'Hollywood Reporter' stated that allegedly on the direct orders of studio mogul Harry M. Warner, the Warner Brothers exhibition theatre chain has "cancelled all bookings and even terminated some runs on 'The Desert Fox'".

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Goofs

During the opening scene where British commandos are raiding Rommel's headquarters at night, none of the automatic weapons being fired ejects any empty shell cases.

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Quotes

Field Marshal Erwin Johannes Rommel: You've been uncommonly fortunate, I see, in deathbed confessions.
Gen. Wilhelm Burgdorf: It's all perfectly legal, I assure you, sir.

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Connections

Followed by The Desert Rats (1953)

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Soundtracks

"The Caisson Song"
(uncredited)
Music by Edmund L. Gruber
Heard during the scenes of D-Day and the ensuing battles

User Reviews

Not A Fully Reliable Portrayal

This is a pretty solid attempt to portray a soldier's great dilemma - balancing loyalty to the state and obedience to orders with the higher calling of loyalty to what's right and just. Erwin Rommel was one of the great German generals of World War II (a hero in Germany and respected by the Allies.) In the end, he also became involved with the conspiracy against Hitler. The movie shows us some of that development, beginning with his incredulousness at Hitler's orders that the Afrika Korps stand and fight to the last man in Africa rather than withdrawing to fight another day. According to the movie, it was this "stand and fight to the last man" attitude of Der Fuhrer that finally pushed Rommel over the edge. That makes Rommel consistent with what I know of most of the leaders of the "resistance" (such as it was) to Hitler. The opposition wasn't political; it wasn't based on a rejection of Nazi ideology or distaste for Hitler's racial policies - it tended to be based simply on the belief that Hitler was leading Germany to defeat in the war. That's the overarching sentiment portrayed here. That being the case, Rommel may not have been the sympathetic character this movie makes him out to be - maybe he just had the smarts to realize that Germany was fighting a losing war. There's also no mention of his performance during the German invasion of France in 1940, in which Rommel - as a panzer commander - received some German criticism for both his tactics and his tendency to exaggerate his achievements.

James Mason was very good as Rommel. His portrayal was believable, although I wish there had been more exploration in the story of where Rommel came from rather than simply starting us abruptly in Africa. Made only 6 years after the end of the war, the movie is also somewhat courageous in presenting a German general (even one who was unsympathetic to Hitler) in such a sympathetic light. I didn't find this to be structured particularly well. There was too much narration involved, which seemed put an end to any flow the movie might have been trying to develop. Some scenes (particularly of the Allied landings on D-Day) featured a little too much patriotic American and British and French music as the troops went ashore (frankly, listening to the Marine Fight Song or The Marseillaise in a movie about Rommel seemed a bit silly.)

It's an interesting movie, but doesn't seem to completely capture the man it portrays.