Ten Tall Men *** (1951, Burt Lancaster, Jody Lawrance, Gilbert Roland, Kieron Moore, George Tobias) – Classic Movie Review 7487

Director Willis Goldbeck’s 1951 Technicolor adventure Ten Tall Men is an engaging, light-hearted send-up of French Foreign Legion movies like Beau Geste.

It finds Burt Lancaster evidently enjoying himself as the US sergeant, Mike Kincaid, who leads his magnificent nine buddies against the marauding Riffs, commanded by the villainous Kayeed Hussein (Gerald Mohr). Kincaid kidnaps Mahla (Jody Lawrance) when he learns Hussein is planning to marry her to unite opposing tribes, and of course and Mahla is falling in love with Kincaid.

It also stars Gilbert Roland as Corporal Luis Delgado, Kieron Moore as Corporal Pierre Molier, and George Tobias as Londos.

This carefree, madcap adventure is a splendid, thoroughly entertaining showcase for the young, athletic Lancaster.

Also in the cast are John Dehner, Mike Mazurki, Nick Dennis, Ian MacDonald, Mari Blanchard, Donald Randolph, Robert Clary, Henry Rowland, Michael Pate, Stephen Bekassy, Raymond Greenleaf, Paul Marion, Henri Letondal, Philip Van Zandt, Nick Cravat, Gregory Gaye and Mickey Simpson.

Ten Tall Men is written by Roland Kibbee and Frank Davis, based on a story by Willis Goldbeck and James Bellah.

Jody Lawrance was a foster sister to Marilyn Monroe. By 1955 she needed to work as a waitress in an ice cream parlour near the UCLA campus. Lancaster was one of her customers and he helped her by introducing her director Michael Curtiz, who re-sparked her career with his film noir The Scarlet Hour (1956).

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7487

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com