Sahara (1983)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Director:

Andrew V. McLaglen

Writers:

Menahem Golan (story)
James R. Silke (writer)

Release Date:

2 March 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama

Tagline:

She challenged the desert, its men, their passions and ignited a bold adventure.

Plot:

After her father dies, young Dale takes his place in a trans-African auto race, but ends up being abducted by a desert sheik.

Plot Keywords:

Sheik | Desert | One Word Title | Woman Pretending As Man | Auto Racing

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Brooke Shields	...	Dale
Lambert Wilson	...	Jaffar
Horst Buchholz	...	Von Glessing
John Rhys-Davies	...	Rasoul
Ronald Lacey	...	Beg
Cliff Potts	...	String
Perry Lang	...	Andy
Ya'ackov Ben-Sira	...	Mayor (as Yaacov Ben-Sira)
John Mills	...	Cambridge
Tuvia Tavi	...	Bertocelli
Steve Forrest	...	Gordon
Terrence Hardiman	...	Browne
Shahar Cohen	...	Abu
Zehava Twena	...	Yasmin
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gabi Amrani	...	Omar
Joseph Bee	...	Browne Crewman
Rolf Brin	...	Curt
Yehuda Elboim	...	Dramn
Dov Friedman	...	Lindstrom
Caro Henley	...	Mistress
Ezra Kafri	...	Lindstrom Crewman
Barry Langford	...	Conierge
Dina Ledani	...	Ismene
David Lodge	...	Ewing
Paul Maxwell	...	Chase
Dan Muggia	...	Bertocelli Crewman (as Dan Angelo Muggia)
Sam Omani	...	Douvain
Greg Powell	...	Abdullah
Dorit Seadia	...	Laliah
Joseph Shiloach	...	Halef
Shaul Taron	...	Mustapha
Rocky Taylor	...	Kamal
Ran Vered	...	De La Forge Crewman
Ilan Zahavi	...	De La Forge

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

UK | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

England, UK

Company:

Cabal Film

Trivia:

Star Brooke Shields was expected to drive on-location as part of her role, but was too young at the time of filming to do so legally. Special permission had to be arranged with the local government, to allow her to drive for the movie.

Very romantic film!

Okay, so it's no Academy Award winner. The writing is poor, some of the movie is just plain silly, but there is a lot to enjoy. I love the romance, the chemistry between the Brooke & Lambert Wilson, and the sheer seductive nature of their scenes. Lambert Wilson takes my breath away! He did in 1983 when I first saw the film (okay, I'll admit -- a few times). I just finally found a copy recently and watched it again for the first time in 23 years or so, and he STILL takes my breath away! Brooke is beautiful and he is terribly handsome -- his face, his eyes, his voice -- he looks at her as if he's going to drink her. It's incredible. Mesmerizing. In my book, this is one of the sexiest movies ever (and without actually having any sex in it).

I looked up Lambert Wilson on IMDb and realized I didn't recognize him 20 years later in Matrix Reloaded or the newer Sahara (but it had been a long time -- the french accent and lack of facial hair through me off). It looks like he's been working steadily in France all along. I'm thrilled to know he's been a success. I hope he'll do more American films. Oh, and the score was haunting -- memorable. It added a lot to the film. And one more thing: Brooke was practically a child when she did this film. I thought her acting was fine, especially considering her age and the poor script with which she had to work.