Lost Command (1966)

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

Jean Lartéguy (novel)
Nelson Gidding

Release Date:

May 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot Keywords:

Street Shootout | French Soldier | Soldier | Uniform | Algeria

Cast

Anthony Quinn	...	Lt. Col. Pierre Raspeguy
Alain Delon	...	Captain Phillipe Esclavier
George Segal	...	Lt. Mahidi
Michèle Morgan	...	Countess Natalie de Clairefons
Maurice Ronet	...	Capain. Boisfeuras
Claudia Cardinale	...	Aicha
Grégoire Aslan	...	Dr. Ali Ben Saad
Jean Servais	...	General Melies
Maurice Sarfati	...	Merle
Jean-Claude Bercq	...	Orsini (as Jean-Claude Berq)
Syl Lamont	...	Verte
Jacques Marin	...	Mayor
Jean-Paul Moulinot	...	De Guyot
Andrés Monreal	...	Ahmed
Gordon Heath	...	Dia
Albert Simono	...	Sapinsky (as Simono)
René Havard	...	Fernand
Armand Mestral	...	Administration Officer
Burt Kwouk	...	Viet Officer
Al Mulock	...	Mugnier
Marie Burke	...	Mother Raspeguy
Aldo Sambrell	...	Ibrahim (as Aldo Sanbrell)
George Rigaud	...	Priest (as Jorge Rigaud)
Roberto Robles	...	Manuel
Emilio Carrer	...	Father Mahidi
Carmen Tarrazo	...	Mother Mahidi
Howard Hagan	...	Pilot
Mario De Barros	...	Geoffrin
Walter Kelly	...	MP Major
Robert Sutton	...	Yussef
Simon Benzakein	...	Arab Customer
Héctor Quiroga	...	Bakhti
Félix de Pomés	...	Aged Speaker
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
José María Caffarel	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
Manuel de Blas	...	Minor Role (uncredited)

Directed by
Mark Robson

Writing credits
Jean Lartéguy		(novel "The Centurions")
Nelson Gidding

Produced by
Mark Robson	....	producer
John R. Sloan	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Franz Waxman

Cinematography by
Robert Surtees

Film Editing by
Dorothy Spencer

Casting by
Harvey Woods

Art Direction by
John Stoll

Set Decoration by
Vernon Dixon

Costume Design by
Tanine Autré		(as Janine Autré)

Makeup Department
Harold Fletcher	....	makeup artist
Francisco Puyol	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Mac Davidson	....	production manager
Claude Hudson	....	unit manager (as Claud Hudson)
Luis Roberts	....	production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
José María Ochoa	....	assistant director (as Joe Ochoa)

Art Department
José Algueró	....	assistant art director
Harry Arbour	....	construction manager

Sound Department
Alfred Cox	....	sound editor
Jack Haynes	....	sound
Wally Milner	....	sound
Harry Fairbairn	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Manuel Baquero	....	special effects
Kit West	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Fred Tuch	....	visuals

Camera and Electrical Department
Bruce Surtees	....	camera operator
Jack Willoughby	....	additional photographer

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Ron Beck	....	wardrobe
John Wilson-Apperson	....	wardrobe (as John Wilson Apperson)

Music Department
Leonid Raab	....	orchestrator

Other crew
René Lepage	....	military advisor
Apolinar Rabinal	....	location manager
Antonio Sanz Ridruejo	....	military advisor
Elaine Schreyeck	....	continuity
Jean-Étienne Siry	....	poster designer (french version) (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Red Lion

Distributors

• Columbia Pictures (1966) (USA) (theatrical)
• Columbia Films (1966) (France) (theatrical)
• Columbia-Bavaria Filmgesellschaft m.b.H. (1966) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (video)
• Videosonic Arts (1988) (Greece) (VHS)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:Unrated | West Germany:16 | Singapore:PG | Australia:PG | Iceland:16 | Ireland:15 | Norway:16 | South Korea:15 | Portugal:M/12 (DVD rating) | Portugal:(Banned) (original rating) | Portugal:17 | Netherlands:18

Filming Locations:

Adra, Almería, Spain

Company:

Red Lion

Trivia:

Movie was banned in France for over 10 years. Subsequent French releases were heavily edited until the full DVD-release in 2002.

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Vietminh Commander played by Burt Kwouk is speaking Cantonese, a southern Chinese dialect, and not Vietnamese.

Quotes:

Capt. Phillipe Esclavier:Nobody goes into the village, I'm in command here and that's an order!
[takes out service pistol]
Verte:If that was you, sir, all chopped up, we'd do the same for you.
Capt. Boisfeuras:We must avenge the mutilation of our three comrades.
[turns to others]
Capt. Boisfeuras:Go!
Capt. Phillipe Esclavier:Stop!
[shoots near Capt. Boisfeuras feet]

A Thinking Man`s War Film

Remember that Henry Fonda movie THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE ? That`s the war movie that was set in the fog shrouded snow bound forests of the Ardennes in December 1944 but for some reason the movie`s big set piece battle takes place on an arid desert plain . LOST COMMAND starts with a very similar error in geography involving the battle of Dien Bien Phu where the French built a heavily fortified base in the middle of a mountainous jungle in 1954 , except this film would have us believe that the battle took place in the middle of a desert !

But I`m more than willing to forgive this goof as LOST COMMAND is a good film , it`s maybe not a great film but if you like action adventure / war films you`ll hopefully enjoy this as much as I did and director / Producer Mark Robson should be congratulated for making a film showing the French fighting man in a good light . Say what you like about French political leaders but France does have a long noble military tradition with a glorious defeat being every bit as courageous as a glorious victory . But the screenplay doesn`t glorify conflict and rightly points out that violence breeds violence , it pits former friends against one another , and it`s always the most innocent who suffer the most