Sword in the Desert
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. (April 2008) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
| Sword in the Desert | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | George Sherman |
| Produced by | Robert Buckner |
| Written by | Robert Buckner |
| Starring | Dana Andrews Jeff Chandler Märta Torén Stephen McNally Philip Friend |
| Music by | Frank Skinner |
| Cinematography | Irving Glassberg |
| Editing by | Otto Ludwig |
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
| Release date(s) | August 24, 1949 |
| Running time | 101 mins. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Sword in the Desert is a 1949 American war film directed by George Sherman.
[edit] Overview
The film presents the moral struggle of an American Captain, played by Dana Andrews, who ferries illegal immigrants into Palestine to fight against the British authorities there.
The Evening Standard claimed that the film was "not for the eyes of Britons" and the Daily Telegraph insisted that British audiences would be surprised to see the unwonted harshness with which the British troops in the film treated Jewish civilians. There were demonstrations and disturbances outside the New Gallery, London, when the film opened there on 2 February 1950, and pamphlets supporting the Union Movement were distributed to people wanting to see it. Five days later, the Public Control Committee of London Country Council followed the advice of the Home Office and prohibited further public showings of the film in order to prevent further scenes of rowdiness by what it termed fascist elements. It ignored the protest from the National Council for Civil Liberties that its action constituted a ban on free speech.
