Lion of the Desert

Lion of the Desert (1981) is an extraordinary film. Moustapha Akkad's smart historical epic is a fine celebration of a country's struggle for independence, a depiction of imperial cruelty and a first-rate war epic.

In 1912, Italy, a late-comer to the Scramble for Africa, invades Libya, overwhelming the weak Turkish client state and establishing authoritarian rule. Twenty years later, however, armed resistance led by teacher-turned-guerilla Omar Mukhtar (Anthony Quinn) lingers on. Benito Mussolini's (Rod Steiger) Fascist regime sends in the ruthless General Rodolfo Graziani (Oliver Reed) to crush Mukhtar once and for all. Despite Graziani's technological advantage and incredibly brutal tactics - concentration camps, decimation and use of poison gas - Mukhtar refuses to submit.

Lion of the Desert was probably doomed for failure. Made at a hefty price of $35 million, it sank like a stone at the box office. A movie with a Muslim protagonist could not be well-received two years after the Iran Hostage Crisis, and the fact that Muammar Gaddafi, at the height of his America-hating, terrorist-sponsoring phase, funded the film surely didn't help. (Indeed, the film was banned in Italy until 2009.) This is a shame, as Lion's refreshing take on the Middle East is definitely worthwhile.

Lion in the Desert serves as a strong corrective to Hollywood Orientalism. The first shots of Libya are of beautifully verdant countryside, not the foreboding desert, and the depiction of Libyan families at play provides an unusually human portrait of Arab culture. Mukhtar's religion is emphasized, so we know he's not just a nationalist hero but a Muslim one. No doubt the film's portrayal of Mukhtar is one-sided and idealized - he refuses to execute prisoners or attack Italian civilians - but this shouldn't bother any but the most reactionary viewers.

Hollywood typically depicts Fascist Italy as Hitler's bumbling sidekick but Lion of the Desert shows them as evil enough on their own. The megalomaniacal Mussolini fancies himself a new Caesar with ambitions far in excess of his competence. Italy's justification is laughably based on Ancient Rome's regional dominion and they have no qualm with using extreme tactics. Men and children go to concentration camps, rebels are sprayed with mustard gas, the country is threaded with a "Hadrian's Wall" of barbed wire, and in a particularly gruesome scene, Italian tanks crush wounded rebels. An interesting sequence has Graziani arranging a peace conference with Mukhtar that he knows will fail, giving him time to strengthen his forces.

To be fair, Akkad doesn't demonize the Italian people: Raf Vallone's diplomatic Colonel and Stefano Petrizi's hero-turned-conscientious objector show that good men existed under Fascism. Even Graziani is shown as a human character who respects Mukhtar and regrets his fate. But Italy's atrocities speak for themselves, belying Italian notions of "civilizing" Libya. It's one of the most searing indictments of imperialism outside of Gillo Pontecorvo's Battle of Algiers and Burn!

Moustapha Akkad (killed in a 2005 terrorist attack) is best-remembered for producing the Halloween films, but he'd previously directed Anthony Quinn in the sensitive Mohammed, Messenger of God (1977). He mixes beautiful Libyan landscapes and period detail with battle scenes that are both exciting and viscerally brutal. A rebel stand at a desert village, and a huge set-piece ambush near a bridge, are really impressive, Akkad using thousands of extras, horses and period vehicle for exhilarating spectacle. H.A.L. Craig's script is thematically on the nose, but the story structure and characterizations are sound. There's also a superlative score by Maurice Jarre that somehow avoids resembling Lawrence of Arabia.

Anthony Quinn gives a superlative performance. The usually-boisterous Quinn is remarkably restrained, making his protagonist thoughtful and religiously devout, but a tough fighter in the clutch: Gandhi with a jezail. Oliver Reed's (Royal Flash) is equally impressive, making Graziani a restrained yet ferocious villain. Raf Vallone (El Cid) has some choice scenes as an Italian with a conscience. International stars Rod Steiger (On the Waterfront), John Gielgud (Becket) and Irene Pappas (The Guns of Navarone) have brief cameos.

Lion of the Desert is an unfairly overlooked gem. Its pro-Arab viewpoint is certainly unique, and it's a handsomely shot, exciting epic to boot.