Rope of Sand *** (1949, Burt Lancaster, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Peter Lorre, Corinne Calvet) – Classic Movie Review 9688

‘A Mighty Story of Savage Greed and Sultry Love Set in the Dreaded Desert that Guards the Dark Continent’s Forbidden Diamond Fields!’

Director William Dieterle’s 1949 film noir-style action adventure thriller Rope of Sand is a punchy, rough-edged affair, in which Burt Lancaster stars as a diamond thief called Mike Davis, who tries to beat the usual suspects (such as a femme fatale, a corrupt cop, a crooked dealer) to the South African desert hideaway of the much sought-after gems.

A great cast supports the main star, with Peter Lorre as ‘Toady’ and Claude Rains as Arthur Martingale, the smooth boss of the sadistic bad guy, mining company cop Commandant Paul Vogel (Paul Henreid), while Paris-born Corinne Calvet makes her Hollywood début, as delectable adventuress Suzanne Renaud. Mike knows where the diamonds on Martingale’s desert property and Martingale hires Suzanne to discover Mike’s secret, but Mike decides to steal them.

Also in the cast are Sam Jaffe, John Bromfield, Mike Mazurki, Kenny Washington, Edmund Breon, Hayden Rorke, and David Thursby.

Rope of Sand is directed by William Dieterle, runs 104 minutes, is made by Wallis-Hazen, is released by Paramount, is written by Walter Doniger  (story and screenplay) and John Paxton (additional dialogue), shot in black and white by Charles Lang, produced by Hal B Wallis and score by Franz Waxman, with Art Direction by Franz Bachelin and Hans Dreier.

Calvet could not understand what Dieterle said because of his strong German accent so she asked Lancaster to translate for her.

The Rope of Sand refers to the Sahara Desert in the north but the setting is ‘Southwest Africa’ and Capetown in the south is mentioned several times.

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 9688

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