Tobruk Reviews

This action-filled WW II drama places Maj. Donald Craig (Rock Hudson) in command of a small special force, whose mission is to cross the Libyan desert and destroy the fuel depot at Tobruk, thus slowing the advance of Rommel's Afrika Korps on the Suez Canal. The detachment of 90 men is made up of German-born Jews and British commandos; the former pose as Nazis, the latter as prisoners of war being transported through Axis territory. En route, the brave column cunningly outwits German and Italian contingents, and also discover a traitor in their midst. Competently directed by the uneven Arthur Hiller, this well-paced and frequently exciting effort nearly overcomes the deficiencies of its script, written by Leo V. Gordon, who is also featured in a small role. Yuma, Arizona, and El Centro, California, stood in for the North African desert. The scenes of mass mayhem and destruction in TOBRUK were borrowed to generate the only moments of interest in the execrable Richard Burton desert opus RAID ON ROMMEL (1971). Nominated by the Academy for Best Special Visual Effects.