The Desert Rats

1953 88 min ★ 6.3 War, Action

In North Africa, German Field Marshal Rommel and his troops have successfully fended off British forces, and now intend to take Tobruk, an important port city. A ramshackle group of Australian reinforcements sent to combat the Germans is put under the command of British Captain MacRoberts. The unruly Aussies immediately clash with MacRoberts, a gruff, strict disciplinarian, however this unorthodox team must band together to protect Tobruk from the German forces.

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Cast

Richard Burton

Captain "Tammy" MacRoberts

James Mason

Field Marshal Erwin von Rommel

Robert Newton

Tom Bartlett

Robert Douglas

General

Torin Thatcher

Col. Barney White

Chips Rafferty

Sgt. "Blue" Smith

Charles Tingwell

Lt. Harry Carstairs

Charles Davis

Pete

Ben Wright

Mick

Patrick Aherne

English Officer (uncredited)

Details

Director

Robert Wise

Tagline

"They crawled their way across the blazing sands of Africa... to turn disaster into victory!"

Status

Released

Original Language

EN

Production

20th Century Fox

Reviews

J

John Chard

April 16, 2014

★ 7/10

Come out of your holes you desert rats! The Desert Rats is directed by Robert Wise and written by Richard Murphy. It stars Richard Burton, Robert Newton, Robert Douglas, Torin Thatcher, Chips Rafferty and James Mason. Music is by Leigh Harline and cinematography by Lucien Ballard. The follow up to The Desert Fox (it's not a sequel) from two years earlier, was in essence an attempt to readdre...

C

CinemaSerf

August 3, 2024

★ 7/10

With Rommel (James Mason) bearing down heavily on the beleaguered allied garrison of Tobruk, it falls to "Capt. MacRoberts" (Richard Burton) to try and galvanise some war weary ANZAC troops for one last defence against the wily Desert Fox. He's not exactly puritanical, but he doesn's suffer disobedience and that sets him, initially, against his new troop when he over-reacts to behaviour from their...

H

Henry | The Reel Verdict

January 2, 2025

★ 8/10

Movie Review: The Desert Rats (1953) The Desert Rats (1953), directed by Robert Wise, is a war film that brings to life the courage and perseverance of soldiers during the defense of Tobruk in World War II. While the film offers a Hollywood take on this significant chapter of history, it balances its historical inaccuracies with strong performances, especially from Richard Burton and James Mason, ...