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The Desert Rats

The Desert Rats

War · Action · 1953

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.

Movie details

The Desert Rats

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

1953 War · Action 1h 28m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.3 / 10

Community rating

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.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Desert Rats?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Robert Wise

Written by

Richard Murphy

Richard Burton

Richard Burton

Captain "Tammy" MacRoberts

James Mason

James Mason

Field Marshal Erwin von Rommel

Robert Newton

Robert Newton

Tom Bartlett

Robert Douglas

Robert Douglas

General

Torin Thatcher

Torin Thatcher

Col. Barney White

Chips Rafferty

Chips Rafferty

Sgt. "Blue" Smith

Charles Tingwell

Charles Tingwell

Lt. Harry Carstairs

Court is in session

Put The Desert Rats on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Adrenaline Seeker

“Momentum is a formal choice.”

The velocity sharpens instinct and tension, making every beat land before self-importance can settle in.

The prosecution The Auteur Devotee

“Speed as an alibi.”

The film races past its weak spots and hopes acceleration will keep the audience from inspecting the evidence.