Jackson Booth-Millard

(2013-04-21 07:06:32)

Ice Cold in Alex

From director J. Lee Thompson (Conquest for the Planet of the Apes), Ihad always wondered what this film would be like, and after the deathof the film's lead actor I was even more keen to see it. Set in theNorth Africa during the Second World War, an ambulance crew isseparated from it's unit when evacuating a base. So now, in the commandof drunk Captain Anson (Sir John Mills), the crew attempt a dangeroustrek across the deserts to reach Alexandria, where Anson promises thebest tasting lager in the country in a bar he knows. On their journeythey are joined by a supposedly South African man, Captain Van DerPoel, or Hauptman Otto Lutz (BAFTA nominated Anthony Quayle), theytip-toe and drive over a mine field, get stopped and chased by Germans,suspect Poel of being a German spy, which he is, encounter quick sand,and crank the ambulance up a hill (twice). They do finally reach theirdestination, and you see the most famous and satisfying swig of beer inmovie history, which ends with that line "Worth waiting for", oh, andPoel/Lutz is taken away by the authorities in the end. Also starringSylvia Syms as Sister Diana Murdoch, Harry Andrews as MSM Tom Pugh,Diane Clare as Sister Denise Norton, Richard Leech as Captain Crosbie,Liam Redmond as Brigadier (DDMS) and David Lodge as CMP Captain. Theacting in this film is very good, but Mills of course is the one thatsticks out with his small tantrums, his drunken state, and of course,the long-awaited swig, and it is a good story with some good memorablemoments. It was nominated the BAFTAs for Best British Film and BestFilm from any Source. It was number 87 on The 100 Greatest Films, andit was number 26 on The 100 Greatest War Films. Very good!

GUENOT PHILIPPE

(2013-04-20 15:28:07)

A taxi for Alex...

Another great desert war adventure movie, after so many others, as thecomments about this film say. That's one of the best of Jack LeeThompson's. But I am surprised no one IMDb user has thought of Denys DeLa Patellière's UN TAXI POUR TOBROUK. Yes, I am french, and proud thatwe - froggies - had also made a war desert odyssey, a famous one,starring Lino Ventura, Charles Aznavour and some others. And I thinknot only frenchies may have seen it. I will put the two at the verysame scale. No problem at all. I watched some good US war flicks around the same topic, most of themnot so widely known. The last I saw recently was THE STEEL LADY,starring Rod Cameron.

(2013-04-13 12:49:53)

Ice Cold In Alex

Great Movie, Great actors,They don't make them like this anymore more's the pity! If you want a v/good war story then this is it.Highly recommended.

jkthornley

(2013-04-12 20:02:12)

WW2 drama involving Brits and a German spy

At the beginning of a siege of Tobruk, by the Germans during the secondworld war, a group of army personnel and nurses attempt a dangerous andarduous trek across the deserts of North Africa towards Alexandia,using a military ambulance in poor service.The leader of the team (Anson, played by John Mills) dreams of his icecold beer when he reaches Alexandria, but the problems just won't goaway.The group pick up a South African soldier (Van Der Poel, played byAnthony Quayle) who has become separated from his unit. But there issomething bot quite right about him. Anson decides to take him on,possibly influenced by a large quantity of gin in his pack - Anson hasbecome dependent on alcohol.Once of the nurses dies when the ambulance is pursued by a Germanpatrol and Mills feels, and largely is, responsible for her death.Van Der Poel, seems able to negotiate with the Nazis and gets the groupout of a scrape more than once. Suspicions thicken and eventually VanDer Poel is seen making a radio transmission.As the journey progresses, more problems beset the group andultimately, Van Der Poel does turn out to be a German Spy.The group make it to Alex, and get that ice cold beer.

(2013-03-18 06:14:30)

one of my favorite WWII Movies ever . . . .

Not just used for the Carlsberg beer advert (which is actually a scene directly from the movie!!! Fancy that!!) this movie captures everything you want in a Brit War flick -- Brit soldiers who know about trucks, nurses, double agents and Rommel-type German soldiers, death, love and stirring music that makes you feel very patriotic. Ice Cold in Alex is a quintessential psychological thriller part action/drama, part chickflick with timeless social issues addressed (namely alcoholism and espionage)all rolled into a Good vs Bad with a twist adventure.Without giving away the plot the setting is the 1942 Libyan war zone. Sir John Mills is a British ambulance officer who together with his sergeant major driver and nurse (the love interest - Sylvia Sims) escape the German's seige of Tobruk and drive across the hot Western Desert in an ambulance. In a race against time and the elements of the desert the objective is to get to the safety of Alexandria to meet up with the allies and,in true British fashion, have an "ice cold" beer at this little bar!!! The gang get waylaid by Germans who tradeoff a South African officer (Anthony Quayle) for the trip (could he be a spy?) After getting into a couple of scrapes and tight spots along the way all ends well for the group, or does it . . . well, you'll just have to watch the ending for yourselves. Ice Cold in Alex is a brilliant WWII movie - a classic and my own all time fav - definitely a movie worth having in your collection. NOTE: Check out Amazon.co.uk. You can get this movie for about 4 quid but it'll be in PAL format not NTSC -- Hey, so watch it on your computer!!! It's worth it!

terencelucas-268-639583

(2013-03-17 19:28:25)

Personal review of "Ice Cold In Alex"

I read a review that made me join IMDb and post "this" review. Mybrother and I absolutely LOVE this movie. We have "Movie" nights athome in Sydney, Australia. Some of the classics like "Ice Cold In Alex"aka "Desert Attack". We also love old war movies like "The Long and TheShort And The Tall", "The Hill", "Yesterdays Enemy"..just to name afew. You should see My brother and I watching the part of "Ice Cold InAlex" where Captain Van Der Pol is in desperate trouble...man we are onthe edge of our seats...every time we watch it! And the end where theycheers, in the Canopus bar, My brother and I always put down ourglasses at exactly the same time as Anson does....get a life I can hearyou saying...man we love it. The atmosphere is brilliant, the actingsuperb and the story line well it's one of the best. I've personallywatched Ice Cold In Alex about 30 times and I'll never stop watchingit. Do yourself a favor check this one out....you can't go wrong.Enjoy!! Terry

sandra small

(2013-02-22 01:06:46)

Human vulnerabilities in a hostile environment

I am not a great fan of war genre, but this film is brilliant forseveral reasons. First of all the film is well acted by a cast who knowwhat good acting is. This can be particularly said of the late Sir JohnMills; a dedicated actor who really knew how to play all his characterswell.The film is also great for its suspense, which kept me gripped all theway to Alexandria.However, what makes the film stand out, is how the adversity of ahostile environment, such as the dessert brings out the positivequalities of human nature, which serve to unite man -and woman -kind.This puts the idea of war into perspective as insignificant when facedwith nature's raw and hostile conditions. It illustrates that as humanswe need to unite and work together to combat adversity, whilerespecting the power of nature.

Gareth Baglow

(2013-02-21 18:06:22)

Great performance by Anthony Quayle

What a great film. The mysterious South African ( Anthony Quayle) wasplayed to perfection. It really shows how enemies can work together and,when it boils down to it, that human survival is paramount. I liked thewaythat the woman was portrayed, especially when she let go of the handbrakebyaccident. You almost expected her to start knitting or something such wasthe female stereotype at the time.

MAC-16

(2013-02-03 02:52:57)

Typical great understated British war movie

Another example of the British film industry doing what they did bestmake character based movies that let the story do its job.No hero'shere just four people with various reasons for being there working toget themselves out of the desert.The actors play their parts with warts and all and without glorifyingthe part i.e. how many times have you seen actors playing drunks whoactually seem more able bodied after having a skinful ? . Classic stuff.I've always had the query about the beer being served in a Carlsbergclass . Would a Danish beer be available in Egypt during WWII ? ,either way the beer pouring at the end certainly is an endearing andlasting image .

M Perry

(2013-02-02 20:21:04)

My favourite war movie

Ice Cold in Alex used to show up on the late show on CBC years ago, and ithasalso been on some of the cable channels. It gets better with eachviewing.When the subject of war movies comes up, I always tell people this is myfavourite war movie, and, in my opinion, one of the best - and usuallyget ablanklook. They recognize the cast when I list them, though. And it is a greatcast -Mills, Andrews, Quayle. And I am totally in love with Sylvia Sims in this.(Iguess I must have a thing for beautiful women, with no makeup, sweating inkhakis. I loved Juliette Binoche in Canadian battledress in The EnglishPatient,too - but I digress).This is simply good storytelling and great character drama in a settingthattests character, with an authentic look and feel and superb B&Wphotographyofthe kind that distinguished so many post-war 'neo-realist'films.There are so many great moments such as van der Poel lifting theambulance,the'surprise' encounter with the SAS (?) man, the Blimpish officer'sencounterwithan 88-mm shell in his Humber staff car, Mill's moments of crisis, stunningcloseups of Sylvia Sims, and and especially that moment in the bar whichmakesyou want to run out for a tall frosty one. Next time I view it, I willindeed have acold Carlsberg waiting in the fridge. Years ago, I was sailing across LakeWinnipeg to Gimli on a slow, hot July day, with little wind, I promisedwewouldenjoy beer and pizza when we finally made it to harbour, and I wasthinkingofthis movie.I am also a bit of a military vehicle buff, and I like this movie forthat,too - forme, the ambulance - I think it's an Morris-Commecial CS11/30F, or maybe aFord WOT2, but I'd have to see the movie again to be sure - is also oneofthestars. Cranking-up-the-sand-dune is probably my favourite scene with it.TheWages of Fear /Scorcerer comes to mind as a comparablevehicle-as-charactermovie.Vehicle buffs will also enjoy the anachronism of seeing a Land Roverparkedonthe street in the background of the final shot - the car wasn't inproduction until1947.

James Hitchcock

(2013-01-29 04:45:50)

One of the Greatest British War Films

Most British and American war films made during World War II itself areessentially propaganda films, made with the express purpose of keepingup morale and persuading the public to support the war effort. Inpeacetime, however, filmmakers were able to regard the subject moredispassionately. Certainly, some war films from the late forties,fifties and sixties are simply patriotic adventure stories, but otherssee the war more in terms of human drama than in terms of "us againstthem". A good example is "Bridge on the River Kwai" from 1957, which ismuch more than a simple tale of British heroes versus Japanesevillains; the main British character, Colonel Nicholson, is shown asflawed, and his Japanese counterpart, Colonel Saito, is treatedsurprisingly sympathetically."Ice-Cold in Alex" from the following year takes a similarlydispassionate look at the conflict. It is set in North Africa duringthe summer of 1942, a time when the campaign was running in favour ofthe Axis and the Allied armies were in retreat. During the evacuationof Tobruk, a small group become separated from the British forces andare forced to flee cross-country in an ambulance. The group consists ofthree soldiers, Captain Anson, Sergeant-Major Tom Pugh and SouthAfrican Captain van der Poel, and two nurses, Diana Murdoch and DeniseNorton. The film works on two levels. On one level it is simply an excitingadventure story, narrating the various obstacles and difficulties thegroup encounter on their way to the safety of the British base atAlexandria- a minefield, a broken suspension spring , the dangerousterrain of the Qattara Depression and German patrols. There are anumber of tense sequences, such as the scene in the minefield and theone where the jack collapses and van der Poel uses his immense strengthto support the ambulance while Pugh repairs the broken spring. Some ofthese were reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock, and it is no surprise thatJ. Lee Thompson was later responsible for the very Hitchcockianthriller "Cape Fear". On another level, however, it is also a complex human drama. Denise isa fairly minor character; she is killed early on when the ambulance isfired upon by German troops. The drama arises from the interaction ofthe other four in the group, especially Anson and van der Poel. Duringthe war itself, and in many films made after it, British officers wereportrayed in the cinema in a straightforward way as stiff-upper-lipheroes. John Mills had played a good example three years earlier in"Above Us the Waves", but Anson is a much more complex character. Badlyaffected by the stresses of war, he has become an alcoholic. Hismotivation for carrying on is not patriotism or hatred of the Nazis butthe thought of the ice cold lager he will enjoy when they finally reachAlexandria (hence the title). Another motivation is the romance whichdevelops between himself and Diana in the course of their journey.Anson can also be rash and impetuous- he was largely responsible forDenise's death as she was shot while he was trying to outrun a Germanpatrol, having disregarded the German officer's command to halt.During the journey the others, especially Pugh, begin to suspect vander Poel may not be what he seems. (What initially arouses Pugh'ssuspicion is van der Poel's lack of knowledge of army tea-brewingtechniques, tea being a subject dear to any Englishman's heart). The"Afrikaner" van der Poel is eventually revealed to be a German, OttoLutz, who is attempting to infiltrate the Allied lines on an espionagemission. This leaves Anson, Pugh and Diana with a difficult dilemma; byrights they should hand Otto over to the Military Police to be shot asa spy. On the other hand, they have come to respect a man whoseresourcefulness and physical strength have been invaluable in enablingthem to survive their trek across the desert. In the end they decide to spare Otto's life by telling the MilitaryPolice that he was a German soldier whom they captured after he hadbecome separated from his unit. This means that he will be treatedhonourably as a prisoner of war, rather than executed as a spy. Even, Ithink, the most ardent British patriot will recognise that this was theright decision. There is an instructive comparison to be made between"Ice Cold in Alex" and "Sahara", a film from 1943 about the desert warwhich also concerns a group of Allied soldiers who have captured aGerman prisoner. In that film the German, von Schletow, is portrayed asa stereotypical Nazi, arrogant, ruthless and treacherous. By 1958,however, the war had been over for more than a decade and West Germanywas now a British ally. The Germans could therefore be viewed in a moreobjective light; Otto is not portrayed simply as "the enemy", or evensimply as "a German", but as a human being capable of decency. It isperhaps appropriate that "Ice Cold" was a prizewinner at the BerlinInternational Film Festival. All four of the main actors- John Mills, Harry Andrews, Anthony Quayleand Sylvia Syms are excellent. Syms was one of the loveliest Britishactresses of the fifties, although the fact that most of her films weremade in Britain rather than Hollywood meant that she never achieved theinternational fame of contemporaries such as Joan Collins or JeanSimmons. Of her films that I have seen, "Ice Cold" is probably thebest. Thompson was later to achieve fame in Hollywood as the directorof the likes of "The Guns of Navarone" and "Cape Fear", but he can alsobe remembered as the director of two of the best British films of thelate fifties, both of which starred Mills- this one and "Tiger Bay".9/10

henry-girling

(2013-01-29 03:19:29)

Red hot in Alex

'Ice Cold in Alex' is an absorbing story of a British ambulance trying toget to safety in the North African desert. There is the heat, minefields,enemy troops, more heat, shifting sands and human weaknesses to contend withand at the end of the film (over two hours)one feels exhausted. The maincharacters are an army captain on the verge of a breakdown, a determinednurse, a solid sergeant major and a South African soldier whom they pick upon the way. With simple heroism they try making their way to their goal,which in this case is a glass of ice cold beer in Alexandria on thecoast.The interplay between the characters and the growing bond they have inadversity is well played by the actors. John Mills' deeply troubled captainis particularly well acted. Harry Andrews, Anthony Quayle and Sylvia Symsare fine too. The other main character is the ambulance itself, graduallycoming to pieces on the way, steaming and bumping along.J. Lee Thompson was a very able director and there are some excellent sceneshere. The minefield scene near the beginning and the hill scene near the endare great, tense and emotional. The beer scene is moving and uplifting. Thebest British films about the Second World War are generally about a smallgroup of ordinary people who faced with crisis and peril just get on withit.

screenman

(2013-01-25 03:09:01)

Stirring Stuff For The Austerity Generation.

On the DVD case, it is suggested that this is the greatest war movie ofall time. I suspect that most would consider the statement a grossexaggeration. Nevertheless, despite its evidently limited budget, 'IceCold In Alex' is still an excellent work. Unusually; John Mills gets toplay against type. This time he's a leader on the edge of failure. Onestep away from a nervous breakdown, and another from chronicalcoholism; the stiff-upper-lip is definitely quivering in a way thatwould never have been allowed a decade or so earlier. It would havebeen too bad for morale.He and a tight little foursome including excellent Harry Andrews,Sylvia Sims, and Anthony Quayle, endeavour to cross the hostile SaharaDesert in a military ambulance. They carry an increasing suspicion thatQuayle is not the allied Africaaner he claims to be.It's taut and tense, with lots of nicely observed touches of drama. Allthe usual desert issues of sand, water and fuel are touched upon. Thereare encounters with enemy patrols and so on. A romance beginsdeveloping between Mill's character and that of Sims. It may or may notcome to anything.At over 2 hours, the movie is much longer than it seems when watching,and that gives a clue to how well the plot and its characters are spunout. The title refers to chilled beer at a bar in Alexandria, Egypt, towhich Mill's character has offered to stand treat if they make it.One or two details are a little contrived. It would be impossible for aman to sink up to his head in quicksand because the human body is morebuoyant than the saturated material. And in any case, the vibrationsfrom a steadily-thrumming engine would almost certainly send a nearby2-ton truck to the bottom in double-quick time. Also, I don't know ifit is possible to hand-crank such a vehicle up a steep slope, but Iwould have thought it well worth the time to scout around for an easierroute. A detour of several miles would surely have been preferential tosuch a labour-intensive and risky enterprise. Long shots appeared tosuggest less severe terrain within a few minutes' drive. However...Nitpicking aside, it's a great little movie about a few people inserious trouble who must forget their differences and utilise theirrespective strengths to overcome hardship. And it accomplishes the taskvery well. You are rooting for them all the way. Compare it with 1965'sequally successful but more complex 'Flight Of The Phoenix'.

llareggub

(2013-01-24 07:39:34)

Educational

Very few movies teach one any worthwhile practical skills, but I mustsay, Ice Cold gave a very valuable lesson. Some years ago, a friend andI drove an ancient London Bread Van through the middle of theAustralian desert, from The Alice to Hall's Creek. When we wereinevitably hung up on one of the sand dunes, I remembered the scene inthis movie, took out the plugs, inserted the crank handle, and woundher out of the hole. It may have saved two young and stupid hippies'lives, it certainly saved our face, and gave us something to drink onwhen we reached civilisation, if that is what Hall's Ck is.By the way, the rest of the movie is one of those quiet Britishmasterpieces that they used to do so well. John Mills does not defeatthe Afrika Corps single handed, in fact he has a full time job beatinghis own demons. For that, he is much closer to the sort of hero towhich I can relate than John Rambo. Tony Quale is near perfect, andHarry Andrews is masterful. Joan Sims provides another uniqueviewpoint, a sympathetic female lead in a war movie, actually in theaction; although I must say I would have done the American thing andbitch-slapped her when she took her hands off the crank!

(2013-01-17 20:45:13)

An unusual war story

This film is about a small group of people who try to get back to Alexandria after being cut off by german desert troop advances in world war II. It features a group of very different people thrown together through accidents of war. They are two nurses, a drunken commander and his side-kick. Later on a south african engineer joins thems and helps them out of some serious trouble a number of times. However is the south african all he says to be? Sylvia Syms is the surviving nurse and looks fabulous even though she's in a desert with little water. It appears there are a number of scenes that were single takes. One classic is when they are trying to push an ambulance up a sand dune. Sylvia slips and the drunk helps her up and attempts to help her back to the ambulance. However they get their timing wrong and the guy accidently slams her head into the rear door of the ambulance! Sylvia recoils and briefly holds her head but then remembers that this is a single take and gets back to pushing. It is obvious that she really did have her head pounded into the door and she wasn't acting!The film has nice depth to it with a good twist and resolution at the end. A good example of an english war film.

(2013-01-17 08:21:14)

A journey film set in War and another proof that Carlsberg is probably the best beer in the world

Ice Cold in Alex is a reference to a cold beer at the journeys end through the hostile desert of North Africa, Alex being Alexandria. The beer is actually a Carlsberg, interesting since the movie is British. The film is a journey style story where a group of unlikely people join together in a perilious journey and come to rely on each other even when one is suspected to be an enemy spy.What sets it apart and allows it to age well is the strong preformances of all the lead actors and presence of the Desert itself to the point where going to get a cold beer as a viewer seems to be a good idea.Some of it has been done better at a later date, like the desert scenes in Lawerence of Arabia and the English Patient. But here the closer and smaller group add a sense of humanity that the other epic movies lose in scale and therefore the film ages well.So if you are the type that appreciates this type of old b/w movies then this one is for you. If you are not, well give it a miss but you are missing out on one of the better such movies.If you do watch it, keep a cold Carlsberg in the fridge. You will be wanting it :)

ajs-10

(2013-01-16 21:09:58)

One of the best WWII black & white films I've seen...

This is another one of those films I remember watching at a young ageon TV on a wet Sunday afternoon. There are only certain scenes Iremember clearly, but having re-watched it today I realised for thefirst time just what a tremendous film it is. It's not your traditionalwar film, there is very little fighting but that doesn't matter, it'smore about the characters and their battle for survival against thedesert. But more of my thoughts later, here's a brief summary first(summary haters and those that don't wish to know anything about theplot please help crank that ambulance up the slope while I write thenext paragraph).I guess I'd better give you a bit of background first. The film is setin North Africa in World War II, The British army are being pushed backalong the coast of Libya towards Egypt by the Germans. Captain Anson,MSM Tom Pugh and two nurses, Sister Diana Murdoch and Sister DeniseNorton are somehow left to find their own way to safety in an ambulancecalled 'Katy'. On the way they pick up a South African officer, Captainvan der Poel, who at first seems OK, but later they become suspiciousof. Amongst all this intrigue, Captain Anson comes to terms with hisalcoholism and vows not to touch another drop until they get toAlexandria, where he will have an ice-cold lager, hence the title'Ice-Cold in Alex'. There is so much more I would like to say aboutthis one, but, in the interests of not giving spoilers away, I'll stopthere.This is very much a character driven piece, and as such you are easilydrawn into the story. For the most part the four main characters aretotally captivating and you will be surprised how quickly the timepasses… and it is quite a long film for its day. So, excellentperformances from John Mills as Captain Anson, Sylvia Syms as SisterDiana Murdoch, Anthony Quayle as Captain van der Poel and Harry Andrewsas MSM Tom Pugh.In some parts of the world I believe this film is known as 'DesertAttack', a pretty bad title I'm afraid. It conveys nothing of what thefilm is about and may have either misled or put some viewers off. It'snot perfect, there are some technical issues and one moment that justdidn't quite fit (for me). But at the end of the day, it's all aboutwhat they discover about Captain van der Poel and what they decide todo about it that makes this film so good. It's one of the best filmsI've seen that were made about World War II back in the days of blackand white and so highly recommended.My score: 8.6/10

tomgillespie2002

(2013-01-16 10:31:59)

Gritty war films with a terrific performance by Mills

Battle-weary alcoholic Captain Anson (John Mills) sets out across theLibyan desert after his British base is evacuated. Joining him is TomPugh (Harry Andrews), Anson's square-jawed and loyal friend, and twonurses Diana (Sylvia Syms) and Denise (Diane Clare). Joining them earlyon the road is Afrikaan-speaking Captain van der Poel (Anthony Quayle),a colossal man who seems rather attached to his bag who he claimscontains bottles of gin. In their way are mine fields, thirst, swampysalt mines, the desert heat, and those bloody Nazis. Anson promises toquit drinking until he gets to Alexandria, Egypt, where awaiting him isan ice cold lager.Possibly the best thing about this very good film is the real feel ofthe desert. Many of the old films glam it up a bit, but Ice Cold InAlex revels in the sweat, dust and dirt of the perilous desert. You canliterally taste the dryness of their lips and the scorching heat ontheir back, and really feel their struggle. Also refreshing is the lackof token gunfights and action scenes that plagued many of the old warfilms. It is more concerned with the individual mental and physicalstruggle of the characters, and draws up tension in the small moments,such as Anson biting his lip and breathing hard as he slowly makes hisway across the mine field. Another film that came to mind during thesetense scenes is Henri-Georges Clouzot's The Wages Of Fear.I never realised just quite how terrific an actor John Mills was untilI saw this. Even though his male co-stars tower over the little man, heis a raging mountain of frustration, anger and fierce dedication. It isa sublime performance. His co-stars are impressive too, with Quayleanother standout as a man who may not be quite who he claims to be.Combining this with the impressive cinematography and intelligentscript, it makes for an exciting and absorbing war film that manages tobe quintessentially British yet as gritty a war film that I've seenfrom this era.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

(2013-01-13 21:01:32)

Still Great After All These Years

When the movie was first shown in Hong Kong in the late fifties,it received very good review.My father used to like this type of film and he took me to see itin the cinema.All I could remember was all these sand and the last vivid sequencein a bar in Alexandria, Egypt.I bought a PAL version of the dvd from Amazon.UK and watchedit recently.It was an early film directed by Lee J. Thompson who later directed "Guns of Navarone" and many other Hollywood hits.It was release in the US under the name of "Desert Attack", such adreadful name.Watching it now, the film doesn't age a bit.It remains a very well-made WWII movie from a novel with John Mills played a troubled officer, Harry Andrew as his dependable fellow soldier,lovely Sylvia Syms as a nurse who came along for the ride and Anthony Quayle as a mysterious South African the group met in the desert.The film is obviously made with a low budget but the sequence with the grouptrying to drag the truck over the sand dune recalls Werner Herzog'sefforts in dragging the boat over the hill in "Fitzcarraldo".The final scene with the group's downing the ice cold Carlsberg in the bar in Alexafter their arduous track in the desert still holds up and finishing off with a satisfying ending afterwards.Almost a flawless film, if you count there's no frost on the beer glasses.

maddylangham

(2013-01-13 02:56:29)

Dames and mines....lovely party.....

Although best known as the film where John Mills orders the most famousdrink of beer in history,there is more to it than that.It's a tensetale of survival against both the odds and nature.Directed by J.Lee Thompson this British classic is based on a trueSecond World War story of courage and survival penned by novelistChristopher Landon.Here Landon joins T.J Morrison in writing the tenseand gripping screenplay,with some fine location camera work provided byGilbert Taylor.Ice Cold In Alex begins in Tobruk,Africa in 1942,during the height ofRommell's desert campaign.Nervous and boozy Ambulance driver CaptainAnson(John Mills)is ordered by his commanding officer to take hisambulance and head East.He's joined by loyal mate MSM Tom Pugh(theoften underrated Harry Andrews)and two young nurses DianaMurdoch(Sylvia Syms)and Denise Norton(Diane Clare)who were leftstranded when they were fired on during an evacuation attempt at theHarbour.Anson was recently captured by the Germans and escaped (which forcedhim to walk through the desert for a couple of days without water) andis now reliant on alcohol.When their convoy is attacked the four arealone and he must try and stay sober to find a way of leading them toAlexandria and safety.Things get complicated when they are attacked by Germans and Denise isshot and killed.And they pick up a stranded African soldier Captain VanDer Poel(Anthony Quale)who they begin to suspect is a German spy.AndAnson realises Diana is falling in love with him.The performances are the highlight here with Mills perfect as brave andcynical Anson,slowly snapping under intense pressure and trying to stayoff the booze.And he's matched well by Quale as the super strongenigmatic Captain Van Der Poel.Highlights include a nail biting walkand drive through a live minefield(which was an improvised sequence bythe director),Van Der Poel getting trapped in a swamp and of coursethat famous ending in the bar.This is without a doubt one of the bestsurvival stories ever filmed.