Beau Geste (1966)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Douglas Heyes

Writers:

Percival Christopher Wren (novel)
Douglas Heyes (screenplay)

Release Date:

7 September 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War | Action | Adventure

Plot:

Michael "Beau" Geste leaves England in disgrace and joins the infamous French Foreign Legion. He is reunited with his two brothers in North Africa...

Plot Keywords:

Brother | Foreign Legion | North Africa | Beefcake | Sunburn

Cast

Guy Stockwell	...	Beau Geste
Doug McClure	...	John
Leslie Nielsen	...	Lieutenant De Ruse
Telly Savalas	...	Sergeant Major Dagineau
David Mauro	...	Boldini
Robert Wolders	...	Fouchet
Leo Gordon	...	Krauss
Michael Constantine	...	Rostov
Malachi Throne	...	Kerjacki
Joe De Santis	...	Beaujolais (as Joe DeSantis)
X. Brands	...	Vallejo (as X Brands)
Michael Carr	...	Sergeant
George Keymas	...	Platoon sergeant
Patrick Whyte	...	Surgeon
Jeff Nelson

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

West Germany:16 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Yuma, Arizona, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Quotes:

John: For God's sake, Fouchet, what are they doing to him?!
Fouchet: It's better not to know.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Hope Island: Batten Down the Hatches (#1.12)" (1999)

A good movie on its own merits, too often unfairly dismissed

This one always used to appeared in the TV Guide as "a surprisingly good version". That's understandable, given the casting of Telly Savalas and Doug McClure. It's easy to dismiss it outright based on their reputations, but this movie was made when both were doing movies, before their TV careers, well before Telly started sucking lollipops and saying "who loves ya, baby?", and before Doug's string of truly awful B (or C) movies. Guy Stockwell is fine as the stalwart elder brother, and Leslie Neilsen a surprise as the drunken commanding officer. The plot is straightforward and serviceable, the action is exciting, the set pieces and themes well handled. I saw this movie first as a young man, and was taken by the action. I saw it again when I was a little older, and came to appreciate Telly Savalas' performance (indeed, it's about the only performance from him that I liked). I would watch it any time it was on. I tried the original, 1939 version, but found it too slow and talky for my tastes, like a great many old classics. Having never read the book, I was unoffended by the changes made to the story line. On its own merits, it's a good actioner. I admit I played "Beau Geste" with my Airfix soldiers in the sandbox, pitting the Bedouins against the Legionaries. It was one of those movies that left an indelible impact on my young mind. I wish it would get more consideration than it gets, because I would like for it to come on once in a while still, or be made available on VHS, if not DVD.