In order to halt the German advance, they need to destroy the Nazis’ fuel dump at Tobruk.
To do so, they enlist topographer Donald Craig (Rock Hudson) to help a team of British commandos from the Long Range Desert Group, and German Jews from the Special Interrogation Group cross the desert to Tobruk.
By total coincidence, the second George Peppard war flick I am reviewing, Tobruk is a good example of how to match a performer to a role.
The oddest thing about it is that it feels a couple years behind the times.
I once caught the end of Tobruk on TV and wanted to go back and watch the whole thing - it is probably the best way to watch it.
Like Operation Crossbow, Tobruk is a bit baggy but it fits the template of its genre, and has even less interest in historical accuracy (the mission it is based on was a failure).
The oddest thing about it is that it feels a couple years behind the times.
This movie was Rock Hudson’s attempt at a new star persona - thus we are introduced to Hudson with stubble and a sullen scowl, one face in a row of stubbled, sullen faces (although none as movie star handsome).
Hudson is pretty low key in this movie - he brings a quiet intensity and intelligence which work for the role, and he fits in with the rest of the lead players.
The highlight of the cast for me was Nigel Green, who is great as the no-nonsense old-school British officer.
If Tobruk has anything to write about, it is as a test case for George Peppard.
I had just watched him in Operation Crossbow, in which he played the hero - but Peppard never clicked. I remember feeling a bit underwhelmed by him in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
Because he was tall, blonde and handsome, Hollywood thought he was a movie star.
But there is a sullen, volcanic quality to Peppard - he does not draw you in.
As the chilly, ambiguous Bergman, he is perfect.
It also helps that he is a third of the leads rather than the star.
Peppard’s crew add an interesting tension to the group’s dynamic - the British do not trust them either because they are German, or because they are Zionist fighters who previously fought the British in Palestine.
The film is better in its second half, when the two groups distrust each other but still need each other to get into Tobruk.
The finale feels like a couple of missions in one: (i) an attack on a radio tower, (ii) an attempt to sabotage the beach defences, and (iii) destroying the fuel depot.
It is a little staggered in terms of pacing, but all these set pieces are terrific - Peppard sacrifices himself; Hudson hijacks a tank, and Green kills the traitor and is himself killed.
It is not the best example of its genre, but it is a lot of fun.
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