Lost Command (1966)

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

Jean Lartéguy (novel)
Nelson Gidding

Release Date:

May 1966 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot Keywords:

French Soldier | Beautiful Woman | Uniform | Trash | 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 TriStar Home Entertainment (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Columbia TriStar Home Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• LK-TEL Vídeo (Brazil) (video)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

129 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Pathécolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

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

Filming Locations:

Adra, Almería, Spain

Company:

Red Lion

Goofs:

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

Quotes:

Merle:A message from the airforce, sir. In 10 minutes, they will be overhead to drop in reinforcements!
Lt. Col. Pierre Raspeguy:We haven't got enough firepower left to cover them, they'll be slaughtered before they hit the ground, get back on the radio and warn them off.
Merle:Right sir!
[command bunker with radio blown up]
Merle:[picking up broken pieces of radio] Poor devils, they'll be here in a few minutes!
Lt. Col. Pierre Raspeguy:Well, what the hell can I do!

If You Liked "Zulu," You'll Like "The Lost Command"

Perhaps because it came out so soon after Pontecorvo's classic "La Battaglia di Algeri" (The Battle of Algiers), "The Lost Command" got, well, lost. That's too bad, because I saw this movie only once about 20 years ago, but still recall it vividly as a surprisingly well-done action film spiced with social commentary that doesn't overwhelm the whole.

Anthony Quinn is especially believable as a hard-bitten professional soldier who manages to rise to high command in spite of his peasant birth. Alain Delon is his pretty boy right-hand and George Segal has a particularly interesting turn as an Arab serving with Quinn and Delon in Indochina at the film's beginning who is radicalized upon returning to his native Algeria and takes up arms against his former comrades.

The highlight of the film is its retelling of the Battle of Algiers, with Quinn in the role of the real-life para colonel Jacques Massieu.

The battle scenes are well-done and realistic, especially the opening sequence, which is set in the final, desperate hours at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. Despite being well-made and underrated, this film is not often shown on television, so you'll probably have to rent it.