Outpost in Morocco

This does have a couple of good action sequences, but overall it is too predictable to be anything more than average, at best, for its genre. The Foreign Legion setting is fairly interesting, at least as a reflection of its time, and it provides for a couple of relatively interesting possibilities.

George Raft stars as a Legionnaire who combines a hazardous mission with a romantic involvement with an Emir's daughter. Once things get started, Raft is good enough in the role, but the first several minutes of the movie are wasted trying to portray his character as an incurable skirt-chaser, which doesn't really work. Marie Windsor plays the Emir's daughter, and while there's nothing wrong with her performance, she doesn't really fit the part, and she and Raft never quite seem to click together. The script is straightforward enough, but it could have used some sharper dialogue to pick up these scenes in particular.

Once Raft's character gets his assignment and meets the daughter, the story follows a pretty standard formula. The action sequences are the highlights, which include a good chase scene with Raft trying to elude a palace full of pursuers. Otherwise, there are only occasional moments of good drama to hold your attention.

This effort shows that, if Raft and Windsor had had better luck of the draw, he may have gotten more light romantic lead parts (rather than tough guy things) and she might have done Kubrick-style films more and science fiction less. Raft shows a flair for underplayed humor and Windsor, clearly no fool, outclasses the usual female leads (she later served as a director of the Screen Actors Guild).

When I read the book The George Raft File I was shocked to learn that this Foreign Legion epic was actually shot in Morocco in actual locations with the cooperation of the Moroccan Royal Family and the Legion. If the French were looking for a recruiting tool for the Foreign Legion, they'd have been better doing a remake of Paramount's Morocco or Beau Geste.

Some elements of those two films get into Outpost in Morocco. The story such as it is has George Raft in a role that should have been Tyrone Power's if it had been a better script seducing lovely Marie Windsor, daughter of one of the local sheiks. Windsor's father is Eduard Franz who's stirring up rebellion against the French. Can Marie stop it and save her beloved Raft at the same time. If you care you might give this a look.

This film has the look and feel of a tax write off. Everybody here just goes through the motions. Raft is too wooden to seriously be considered as a romantic figure and Windsor does so much better when she's playing bad girls. Akim Tamiroff as a transplanted Cossack in the Legion comes off best, a dubious distinction for this film.

I guess the American cast also did it for a free trip to Morocco. Good a reason as any.

A fading George Raft nearing the end of his studio career finds himself wooing Arab chief's daughter Marie Windsor in a backlot Moroccan outpost in this very ordinary adventure movie. Fortunately Akim Tamiroff is on hand to inject some life into proceedings. The downbeat ending comes as something of a shock coming after all the routine that came before it.

So far, now in 2024, and as a movie buff since fifty years now, I can consider this movie as one of the best movies ever made about French Foreign Legion, just after William Wellman's BEAU GESTE - and not its TV remake. And I still research since forty years Charles Marquis Warren's DESERT HELL, also about French Foreign Legion, but I still can't find it. And I guess I am not the only one. So, back to this one, yes, it is a solid film, pulled by a solid cast, direction and story too. Jawdropping action scenes, mindblowing for such a film. George Raft is excellent in this role for which he was not too used too, if you consider his filmography. Also among of the best roles for Marie Windsor. One of my favorite from director Robert Florey. The story itself is not that interesting though, I prefer BEAU GESTE of course, but that's on another scale.