1939 Directed by William A. Wellman
When three brothers join the Foreign Legion to escape a troubled past, they find themselves trapped under the command of a sadistic sergeant deep in the scorching Sahara. Now the brothers must fight for their lives as they plot mutiny against tyranny and defend a desert fortress against a brutal enemy.
Gary Cooper Ray Milland Robert Preston Brian Donlevy Susan Hayward J. Carrol Naish Albert Dekker Broderick Crawford Charles Barton James Stephenson Heather Thatcher James Burke G.P. Huntley Harold Huber Donald O'Connor Billy Cook Martin Spellman Ann Gillis David Holt Harvey Stephens Stanley Andrews Harry Woods Arthur Aylesworth Henry Brandon Barry Macollum Ronald R. Rondell Joseph E. Bernard George Chandler Joseph William Cody Show All…
Tricolorens helte, Drei Fremdenlegionäre, מחווה יפה, Kék csillag, 보 게스티, Красавчик Жест, 火爆三兄弟
USA
USA
I can see why Beau Geste might delude some into thinking it is indeed a 'true motion picture classic' like the Letterboxd description suggests. Yes, it is an 'epic adventure in the scorching Sahara' and yes, it stars 'Academy Award winners Gary Cooper and Ray Milland', but the plot is at worst inconsistent, at best plain dull, and the actors (including Robert Preston) are criminally underused. The title and the ending, which revolve around a mysterious jewel theft, are in stark dissonance with the movie's actual depiction of camaraderie and brotherly love. The former two endeavor to teach an additional moral lesson, making Beau Geste look like an intelligent movie when it is anything but, and only manage to destroy…
I wasn't expecting to like it so much. Gary Cooper gives a fantastic performance, and in the desert, the images becomes spectacular and mesmerizing. The depiction of brotherhood is quite beautiful and during the last moments of the film, I could almost get the feeling I had when watching "Paths of Glory". Kubrick did it much much better (concerning the hierarchy of the military and injustice), there is no argument there, but for a few moments, it was almost as good.
Also, there were some moving shots on the desert that showed real cinematic boldness that I wish was more present on more american films of the time.
They pretty much steal most of the lay-out from the 1926 silent version, so there is not much difference narratively. That doesn't matter much because the Beau Geste (1939) story is one of the classics, and made even more classic by Hollywood's wonderful treatment of the book. I prefer the casting of the silent film (Ronald Colman, Neil Hamilton, William Powell, Victor McLaglen, Noah Beery, among others), so while a lot points in favor of the original, the 1939 production give a more rounded experience thanks to the evolution of sound and the polished William A. Wellman treatment. Simply a thrilling adventure which kept me glued to the screen!
Three brothers are adopted by wealthy Lady Patricia Brandon. When they grow up, they are forced to flee their home and join the Foreign Legion after a diamond, which was a family heirloom, disappears in their presence.
Good but definitely not great exotic adventure, with a star-studded cast but a pretty humdrum story to tell. Wellman gives us some terrific desert shots, an exciting prologue and a thrilling siege. But the script is full of cliches and predictable "twists", while with the exception of the sadistic sergeant all the other characters are pretty uninteresting. Mind you, the film never becomes boring or bad. But it certainly doesn't blow you away like you'd expect from such a talented cast and crew.…
"Beau Geste... gallant gesture. We didn't name him wrong, did we?" ~ Lady Patricia Brandon
Director William A. Wellman brings us a talking remake of Herbert Brenon's 1926 silent film, based upon Percival Christopher Wren's 1924 adventure novel. Gary Cooper stars in the titular role, Michael "Beau" Geste, joining the French Foreign Legion in the years before World War One with his two adopted siblings, younger brother Digby Geste (Robert Preston) and John Geste (Ray Milland), the youngest.
The story opens with Major Henri de Beaujolais (James Stephenson) discovering a massacre at remote Fort Zinderneuf in the Sahara Desert, and then flashes back 15 years to the boys growing up at Brandon Abbas, England. We meet their aunt, Lady Patricia…
Starts out with a bang, then slows down to give the back story, then picks up the pace again. Gary Cooper, Robert Preston, and Ray Milland are the Geste brothers. Brian Donlevy is one mean SOB of a Sergent. He does great, veering toward over the top only once.
The young brothers Geste in the flashback include a young Donald O'Connor who you'll recognize from Singing in the Rain. He looks exactly the same. The brothers crave excitement and when a jewel is stolen and circumstances force them into the French Foreign Legion they love it. But the Sergent makes life hard and then they are attacked.
Not bad, but not great. The flashing back too long and took too much out of the story. The kids enjoyed it though.
I am shocked by how much I loved this! Such an utterly gripping drama! William A. Wellman directs this fantastically and I love the way its written. So fantastically paced. And its gorgeous too. I'm not sure how worth recommending this is, considering most of my friends are pretty meh on it, but god I loved this!
A rip-roaring adventure yarn with spectacle and sweep to boot, Wild Bill Wellman combining action and melodrama in his typically forceful fashion, the loyalty of brotherhood being the immovable force that propels the narrative forwards through action, suspense and heroic tragedy.
1939 was arguably the greatest year in Hollywood history and the pinnacle of studio filmmaking, so whilst not the best thing to come out in that legendary year, Beau Geste is an exemplary bit of storytelling—opening with an intriguing mystery set piece to grab the audiences attention, then taking in a quick flashback to establish characters, before finally returning back to thrilling action which culminates in a brutal final siege. Gary Cooper is way too old for the titular…
Watching the two Beau's about the Foreign Legion. Last night it was this Hollywood nugget, and tonight it's Beau Travail. Manly man entertainment doncha know.
OK, this may star Gary Cooper as the title character, but neither he, nor his brothers, John, (Ray Milland) or Digby, (Robert Preston) are the real calling card here. The minute Brian Donlevy's evil Sergeant Markoff opens his mouth, he claims ownership of this one. He looks great too. The three supposed stars stay fairly low key, and Preston disappears about half an hour in, and doesn't return until the ending, so Donlevy makes full use of the evil villain role, and he's delightfully unhinged once he takes command of the fort following the death…
An honestly stunning piece of propaganda-like filmmaking. It's not overt. It's insidious. It's all-consuming. It's the frog in the pot of water happily splashing about as it's slowly being brought to boil.
The technical aspects of the film are really something: a perfect score (which one of my viewing-partners Jessica aptly called "eerie"); an excellent sense of space and confinement in the isolated fort setting; and some truly evocative moments of lighting and shot composition.
A mass of arms reach for a man and shadows and humans tangle up. The wind blows and heat rises. Men cackle and laugh and squeal in haunting discordance. The death scene of a man rolling through the sand was purely cinematic. I gasped.
The…
Brief Synopsis: Three brothers (Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston) join the Foreign Legion to escape disgrace.
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Verdict: William A. Wellman's stirring interpretation of P.C. Wren's famous adventure yarn is probably the finest of several filmed versions, though no one will ever convince me Coop in the title role - quiet, gentle, taciturn, boring - is an improvement on Ronald Colman from the 1926 Silent offering. The movie is very nicely photographed, contrasting beautifully designed studio work with location footage containing rousing action sequences of the undermanned desert fort - under the sadistic command of Brian Donlevy, in an Oscar-nominated performance - being raided by Arab forces. Great fun. I do not 'jest' when I say how much I…
Vista ahora puede parecer clasista por su manera de mostrar que los mejores personas son de clase alta, xenófoba porque todos los malos son rusos o tuaregs, colonialista por motivos evidentes, militarista por tres cuartos de lo mismo...
Pero si eso es lo primero que uno piensa ante esta maravillosa película de aventuras es que no ha entendido nada.
