Customer Reviews

The Desert Song [VHS]

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I love those old musicals, and Gordon Macrae's wonderful baritone makes this one of my favorites. Macrae is a Clark Kent-ish anthropologist: mild, scholarly, and uninterested in love, also disguised as "the man of action" El Khobar, the secret Riff leader, dedicated to protecting the desert people in time of need. To spice up the plot enter Margot: the vibrant and capricious general's daughter who is searching for excitement and love. Add to this the hilarious gossip columnist who will risk anything to get his story, a jealous palace dancer rival for El Khobar's love, a dastardly villain, and a hauntingly beautiful musical score, along with the backdrop of the beautiful African desert. This operetta acheives a wonderful balance of romance, comedy, action, and music that you just don't see anymore!

This movie I enjoyed the most the songs are wonderful, The color great, Fun musical for the whole family. Love the music, costumes and the dancing. GREAT! GREAT!

the only thing that was a little disappointing was some of the backdrops when not being shot on location. It was very refreshing to watch a movie that had good old fashion romance and was just wonderful etertainment without all the gore, blood and guts, foul language and no-talent actors.

This movie was as I remembered seeing it in the 1950's. Gordon Macrae is the handsome dashing hero, who happens to have one of the greatest singing voices ever. (He was Curly in Oklahoma.) So the movie is a bit smuchly! It is still one of the most romantic movies ever. If you want all the music of the operetta, you'll have to buy an audio recording. But still all the favorites are here. Pop some popcorn, light the fire, put your feet up, and enjoy.

Great fun; great kitsch. The opening scenes with the obvious rear-screen projection, matte paintings, and intercut desert footage are laughable from a directorial point of view. The plot is stereotypical, but perfect, with unctuous baddies, a mustachioed rival, and uppity leading lady. As soon as Gordon and Kathryn begin to sing, however, we are transfixed, and all of the cinematic hoo-ha dissolves in the schmaltz of Sigmund Romberg. In short, it's delicious, and you succumb to it because the songs are so wonderful. And with Ray Collins as the wise general who helps sort out Arabia, what more could you ask? Note, there really were riffs and they really did have a legendary leader--in Morocco.

If you love light opera you will not go wrong with this one. Gordon McRae and Kathryn Grayson at their best

The music of Sigmund Romberg are lovely romantic ballads and the operetta "The Desert Song" is no exception. What better person to sing them in the third movie version than Gordon MacRae with his magnificently rich baritone/tenor voice. He is joined by Kathryn Grayson, who sings with him on a couple of songs as well as by herself. The movie story is exciting and also includes some humorous sequences. For those who like comparing musical performances, Gordon MacRae also performed music from "The Desert Song" with both Dorothy Kirsten and Lucille Norman, both from The Metropolitan Opera, for vinyl record releases. I personally feel that his partnering with Dorothy Kirsten is the superior version, but for those not familiar with Romberg operettas, Warner Brothers' "The Desert Song" is an excellent starting point. I do not think this movie is available on dvd at this time.

The tape was reminicent of years gone by..played tape for a group of Senior citizens.
they left humming the songs. The tape was well recorded and the colors were fine. this
movie came out in 1992. I saw it then and always had a fond memory of both actors..although
they never made another movie we thought they sang together beautifully...LOVE IT...

I love Ali Baba and Sinbad movies and also musicals from the past cause there were so many great singers like Nelson Eddy and Jeanette Macdonald. This is due
to my Mom that was a great fan of those musical movies. Having just bought the
Desert Song, i have to say that its one of those wonderfull movies that came
to our television with great Arabian sceneries and great songs. It was as good
as when i saw it many moons ago...and will now be a keeper for a yearly view.
Lets just hope someone makes a right decision and puts it on DVD.
A Keeper for sure.

I saw "The Desert Song" when it was first released. I am a fan of Gordan MacRae and Kathryn Grayson. If you like light opera and romantic story settings this is great. The one thing I didn't like is it is not on DVD. My VHS copy was very good, however. It's a collector's item for sure.