Five Graves to Cairo

source: Five Graves to Cairo

Little was know about the real Rommel when this movie was made. Von Stroheim played him as a Prussian arrogant aristocrat, imperious, self aggrandizing, and over confident. This was quite different from the James Mason character, Rommel, in the 1950s, a thoughtful considerate military genius who tried to kill Hitler. Well, surprise, the Von Stroheim character was closer to historical truth. The real Rommel was a Nazi who made his way up in the military by brown nosing Hitler. He was arrogant, overconfident, and disliked by his subordinates (and he wasn't in the plot to kill Hitler). He certainly was a superior general, but no genius. He lost in North Africa and he abandoned his troops when they faced heavy losses. Closer to Von Stroheim than Mason, for sure. This movie is mainly about how this arrogant man who thinks he is a teutonic Napoleon gets his comeuppance from lowly people. As such it is very good. The cast is very superior. I especially liked the easy-to-hate Von Stroheim, Fortunio Bonanova, and Peter van Eyck. Van Eyck played a Nazi officer in so many later movies, that I was surprised to see him in an American film made during the war. Wow! he was really on our side.

I watched this film after reading several positive reviews of it. My expectations were raised, but watching it was a big disappointment. As an average little suspense story, it is OK, not particularly thrilling and with a rather simple storyline. Why do some people praise Franchot Tone for his acting? Balderdash! This "Englishman" doesn't even have an English accent. But apart from that, he only manages to get the job done in a sort of uninspired way (Imagine what Bogart could have done with the role!). His portrayal of a meek, cringing, club-footed waiter is so unconvincing as to be almost laughable. The Turner Classic Movies Network showed this movie as an example of a portrayal of Arabs in a positive light. Gasp! I can't believe somebody down there at TCM considers the character Fareed as a positive image. He's all cowardice, hand-wringing, forever flustered and running in circles, begging not to be hurt, in sharp contrast to the brave Englishman, the tough French woman and the strutting Germans. He borders on being a comic character, certainly a minor one who merely adds local colour and shows how superior the Europeans are. The only thing positive about his image is that he is working against the Germans, although he's pretty much forced into that position after the single act of hiding the Englishman behind the bar when the Germans arrive; afterwards he keeps begging the Englishman to go away and muttering to himself in a trembling voice about being shot against the nearest wall. The TCM presenter thought the Englishman's comment, "You're a great man, Fareed," was a great moment in American cinema, but in fact Fareed had done nothing wonderful at all, simply having opened a drawer and happening to notice that its newspaper lining had a familiar name on it. The Englishman called him great just out of his own excitement, meaning nothing whatsoever about the character of Fareed. It was a complete non-moment. Most reviewers admit that, being made in 1943, it has propaganda elements. But the truth is that it's much worse than that, dealing in the barest stereotypes, so bad as to be cartoonish. An Italian general can't stop singing opera arias and shrinks like a sullen, scolded child when the Germans put him in his place for stepping out of line. The French chambermaid is pretty and offering to trade sex for favours (was that supposed to be a French accent Anne Baxter was speaking with?). The Germans are arrogant and dominating. The English officers are easy-going and likable. The Arab is timorous and cowardly.

It seems that Frank Capra was too busy when this movie was made back in 1943 otherwise this could have been a nice propaganda movie. Of course, goal of such films was to recruit American soldiers and give them motives to fight on other continents which had not been the American practice until that time. Capra was a grandmaster making gems as "Why we fight" serial of propaganda movies (from where Goebbels could learn a lesson) and everything else made during that time was mostly a second class support but apparently very welcomed. This movie is one of these, among the worst I have seen. First of all, General Rommel is presented as a clown in this movie. Man who played with whole ally armies with outnumbered German army, outdated tanks (among them Italian tanks as well) and no logistics. One of the greatest generals in history of world wars is presented as a thug and moron. Person who made ally army commanders look ridiculous was outwitted by a British corporal. Well, do you need to hear anything else? OK. Highly decorated German officer and war hero is a haughty Lovelace and sneaky hoodlum who takes advantage of a woman in greatest pain. List of stupidity never ends in this semi-retarded American propaganda movie whose roots of banality are visible in today movies of that kind made in Hollywood.

In June 1942 things looked bleak indeed for the British Eighth Army. It was beaten, scattered and in flight. Tobruk had fallen. The victorious Rommel and his Afrika Korps were pounding the British back and back toward Cairo and the Suez Canal. In one such skirmish, Corporal JJ Bramble falls from his tank and is left in the desert. He stumbles forward and eventually comes to a British fort/hotel. Sadly he has been caught up by the advancing German troops and it is only the kindness of hotelier Farid that keeps him hidden and safe from Lt Schwegler and his men. Assuming the identity of dead waiter Davos, Bramble flukes his way into Rommel's inner circle as he discovers that Davos was actually a deep cover spy. However can he use his new identity to help his fleeing colleagues? Taking huge liberties with history, this film is a reasonably enjoyable piece of piece of flag waving propaganda that sees one man taking the chance to do whatever he can to help the British war effort. The plot is built on some unbelievable developments and as a result it struggles whenever the plot harks back to its roots (which is sadly a bit too often). The odds of Bramble stumbling into the identity of a spy working for Rommel (but yet completely unknown to everyone by sight) are so slim that the plot doesn't ever convince. Of course being this genre made at this time, this doesn't matter too much because it surges forward with an effective plot that serves the film pretty well. It is never as complex or dark as it could have been but it works well enough to do a wet Sunday afternoon in. The themes below the surface (including the approach of Mouche – using sex to win over whatever side happens to be in the ascendancy) are interesting but are unfortunately left behind by a film that doesn't seem to have that much interest in this side of things. The cast work well enough for the genre. Tone's accent is hardly what you expect for an Englishman but he is a good lead presence and carries the plot well despite everything. Baxter is given a great character on a plate but then has to do the best she can as the director takes it away from her scene by scene. Stroheim is a bit heavy and hammy but he is carried by a solid performance from van Eyck. A great little addition to the cast is Tamiroff, who provides a character and humour without it contrasting with the main plot to the detriment of the film. Overall then a reasonably enjoyable propaganda thriller that will easily fill the matinée slot in your day. The plot is built on some very unlikely premises and the performances aren't that great but generally it holds together for what it is.

Got to see FIVE GRAVES TO CAIRO recently; saw it last about 20 years ago. The same thing that I'd forgotten bothered me then came back to bother me once more: I simply could not get past the fact that Franchot Tone's accent was never taken into account by the German characters in the story. Of a sudden, Tone, a British Armoured sergeant (with a "suspect" British accent), adopts the identity of the spy Davos, with no noticeable change of accent. Nor does Wilder, the film's director, account for the nationality of Davos. Is Davos multilingual? Are we to assume he's addressing Rommel in German? English? French? This inexplicable glitch compromises the verisimilitude of the entire film and strains the viewer's credulity. As a result, I could not enjoy other elements of the film to the fullest, despite a charming performance by Akim Tamiroff. Furthermore, Von Stroheim is totally miscast as Rommel who, by all accounts, was a svelte, elegant, and heroic figure, not a vainglorious, pompous, and porcine caricature.

From the music begins you get the feeling that you're listening to 'Ivanhoe'. This is because the composer of 'Ivanhoe', Miklos Rosza is also the composer of this film. Anne Baxter plays a French woman who sounds more like a German woman and turns out to be liaising with the Nazis. I'm not sure if I'm convinced by her French accent, but it is a different role for her. The performance of Rommel with a pudgy bald head is magnetic, and Franchot Tone does have a good voice. However, I'm not sure if he's star quality as a leading man. He can act, but not as a lead. Only as a co- star. The direction is good, and you can tell that it is handled well by Billy Wilder. Despite this, it's not a good film.

I really enjoy WWII films made during the war because the movies always end with the future unknown except that the Allies will keep fighting to save the world. In "Five Graves to Cairo", there is that spirit but Billy Wilder also showed the cost of the fight. The film also shares with "Beau Geste" the most eerie of beginnings. The only sore spot is that I think the ending should have been left unknown, to me that is more like war. Just memories. Other than that one the best WWII movies ever made.

I'm lucky to live very close to a wonderful video store which has an incredible stock of VHS films. I read a description of the film here at the data base and put it on my list. It blew me away from the very first moment. Sadly , I've been unable to show it to many people since it seems to exist on DVD only in a PAL version although it has made its way to Divx recently . I can only compare it to Casablanca and The Desert Fox in terms of plot and the quality of the writing and acting. It was a pleasure to watch this actor Tone who was a complete novelty for me walk the tightrope that this story truly is. His history seems to suggest he lived life as he wanted to without much regard for fame .For once I'm glad not to see Cary Grant in a film (I never thought I would say that!).

In June 1942, the 8th British Army Corporal John J. Bramble (Franchot Tone) is retreating from Rommel's Afrika Korps and has sunstroke, reaching a remote hotel in Sidi Halfaya. He is helped by the Egyptian owner, Farid (Akim Tamiroff), under the protest of the French chambermaid Mouche (Anne Baxter) that is afraid with the imminent arrival of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel (Erich von Stroheim) and the Germans that are heading to Alexandria and Cairo. John assumes the identity of the deceased Alsatian lame waiter Paul Davos that has clubfoot to survive, but he discovers that Davos is a German spy. Further, he needs to disclose the secret about Professor Cronstraetter and the five graves mentioned by Rommel to Lieutenant Schwegler (Peter Van Eyck) that can change the fate of the British Army in Egypt. Billy Wilder is among my top four directors of all times, but "Five Graves to Cairo" is a deceptive war propaganda of this great master. This film could have been a great war movie, but the problem is that it presents Field Marshal Erwin Rommel as a stupid commander instead of one of the greatest and most respected military leaders of history. Further, a single British Corporal is smarter than German officers and together with an Egyptian owner of an isolated hotel and a chambermaid, they are capable to lure the German troops. But maybe the most ridiculous is the language spoken by people of different nationalities in this movie. The Alsatian Davos is performed by an American actor in the role of a British Corporal that speaks in English with the German officers. The American actress Anne Baxter performs the role of a French woman and speaks in English with the other characters. And Rommel switches from English to German like a clown. My vote is four. Title (Brazil): "Cinco Covas no Egito" ("Five Graves in Egypt")