I'm quite sure The Wages of Fear inspired this film brilliant WW2 and it is just better for it. It is almost as good IMO. Great suspense, characters and a journey. My only problem in the film was the love story. Why would she fall for him?

Tense, but uneven.

I'm quite sure The Wages of Fear inspired this film brilliant WW2 and it is just better for it. It is almost as good IMO. Great suspense, characters and a journey. My only problem in the film was the love story. Why would she fall for him?

Anthony Quayle hams it up a bit Man!

An interesting war film that sees a fatigued commander try to get an Ambulance and his crew to Alexandria through Nazi occupied desert in North Africa. The ending is specifically famous and has been parodied several times so you will probably recognise this.

Overall it loses a bit over time it is 55 years old and parts of it still hold up, some of the tension is lost as you can imagine what will happen but I can imagine back in 1958 it would have been very powerful and moving.

If you enjoy war films or older thrillers then this is well worth a watch for you.

A wonderful cast, John Mills, Anthony Quayle, Harry Andrews and Sylvia Syms, star in one of the great British WW2 dramas.

"A wartime journey across North Africa towards an ice cold beer in Alexandria. This is a very unusual war film - no battles, just man (and woman) coping with adversity. Beautiful b/w photography."

Tense and well written war film about an ambulance crew trying to get to Alexandria ahead of Rommel's Afrika Korps in the early days of the North Africa Campaign. The dialog and the pacing are taut and the performances are all first rate. John Mills plays the crew leader who has seen too much time on the front lines and is dire need of rest, while Anthony Quayle plays a South African whom they meet on the way, but are not quite sure of his authenticity as an Allied soldier. The only time this film falters is near the end when all of a sudden they make Sylvia Syms character instantly fall in love with Mill's character. It comes out of nowhere and it doesn't not work at all. Aside from this little blip, the story keeps your attention for its entire duration. I'll definitely be re-visiting this one again in the future.

Had never heard of this film before listening to a discussion of it on Terry Frost's Paleo-Cinema Podcast. A wonderful discovery.

Tense, but uneven.

Suffers a little from an over-long, sagging midsection, but it's difficult not to like this rousing WW2 epic with wit dry enough to rival the desert itself.