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The Lost Patrol

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If you're a fan of John Ford his 1934 remake of THE LOST PATROL will fascinate. The time is 1918, World War I rages somewhere over there, an isolated British patrol in the Mesopotamian desert is headed somewhere when their commander is shot and killed by an unseen sniper. Unfortunately for his men, good for an action drama, the patrol's mission dies with the commander. As Sergeant Victor McLaglen remarks shortly after assuming command, the survivors `don't know where we're at, what we're here for, or where we're going.' And it's blisteringly hot, and the water is running out, and those unseen snipers are damn good shots.

McLaglen, as always, is good in the lead role, if a little less of an airtight hero than Ford would later concentrate on. The outstanding actor in this troupe, though, is the gaunt and haunted-eyed Boris Karloff. He plays a devoutly religious trooper who identifies an oasis the embattled men stumble upon as the site of the original Garden of Eden, and seems to believe it, too, before a crawling madness leads him to christen it a hell on earth. Karloff's character's arc is steep and abrupt, and it's a pleasure to report that even in a non-horror role he's able to evoke sympathy while creeping you out.

I assumed this was a young, callow yet precocious director's early film, but a post-viewing `net search taught me different. Ford was 40-years-old when this movie was released, and he already had an imposing 80 movies to his credit. He'd direct another 50-odd more movies before his death in 1973. THE LOST PATROL is something different, though, to us weaned on Ford's movies about the US calvary. It has men on horses, men isolated in a harsh, dangerous environment with a relentless foe pressing them from all sides. That's the familiar stuff. But there are no distracting John Agar/Shirley Temple love story sub-plots, there's precious little comic relief (usually supplied by Victor McLaglen in the later films), and, most glaringingly of all, there's no obvious hero who surmounts the dangers to lead the men to safety. Sergeant McLaglen comes closest, but in the end not nearly as close as John Wayne would in the coming decades. Despite all that, despite the period and dated acting, editing and camera work, too, THE LOST PATROL is somehow one of Ford's most modern and universal films. It holds up well. In place of the comic foils and young lovebirds, who often seem to gum up Ford's later classics, this story is stark and elemental, as lean as a cheetah and, clocking in at just over an hour, almost as fast.

This early John Ford (sound) Production features some of Ford's favorite actors victor McLaglen(as the Sergeant),Wallace Ford(as Morelli and no relation to the director),J.M.Kerrigan(as Quinncannon,a favorite Ford character's name-McLaglen used it twice)and Billy Bevan.
A british Army Patrol is lost in the Mesopatomian desert in 1917,the leader killed by snipers,and he has't left any written orders as to the mission or location of the mounted soldiers,or has he passed them down orally to the next in command,McLaglen.The most touching scene is where McLaglen is talking to new young(19) naive recruit,Pearson,played by Douglas Walton.Pearson is keeping night guard while the Patrol is resting at an Oasis,the Sergeant and Pearson are talking about the young soldier's single mother,back in England, and HER reaction to her(only child) sons' joining the army. Young Pearson is a big Rudyard Kipling fan and has a rather romantized view of war and the militiary!
Boris Karloff(Sanders),as a relegious zealot,Reginald Denny("Brown"),Brandon Hurst,and Alan Hale are included in the cast."The Lost Patrol" has an excellent Max Steiner score.On its own it is an excellent anti-war and(mildly) anti-imperialist motion picture."The Lost Patrol" is one of five Ford films in the recently released "John Ford Collection",which also features "The Informer","Mary of Scotland","Sergeant Rutledge",and his last Western "Cheyenne Autumn"."Bataan",starring Robert Taylor,Lloyd Nolan,George Murphy,and Robert Walker,is a WW2 remake,set in the Pacific.It is good but NOT up to the orginal!With it being WW2,Bataan's message was win the War and kill the enemy!

I wouldn't say that "The Lost Patrol" is a dated effort but is limited by the early sound technology. That said, director John Ford maximizes the resources at his disposal by ratcheting up a tense action adventure. What Ford intuitively knew is the adversary we don't know is more terrifying than the one we do know. Victor McLaglen is terrific as the stolid sergeant whose job it is to maintain morale among his besieged troops. The only debit here is probably Boris Karloff's religious fanatic who may be a wee a bit over-the-top. I wholeheartedly recommend this film to anybody interested in the genesis of a master filmmaker.

What led me to this movie was Boris Karloff's involvement, and I have to admit that I really had no idea about its place in John Ford's cinematic canon nor what to expect from it. Karloff, of course, was a hot property with his recent triumvirate of terror - Frankenstein's creature, the butler in "The Old Dark House" and The Mummy - and had just been over to England to film "The Ghoul". With well over 80 films behind him, I guess he was keen to avoid being type-cast in horror movies alone (something he signally failed to do). Director Ford also had 80 films on his CV by this time, most of them quickie westerns so he, too, probably leaped at the chance to film this adaptaion of a Philip MacDonald story.

In some ways "The Lost Patrol" is still like a Western but a very unconventional one. The Californian desert easily passes for Mesopotamia, and the viewer is quickly drawn into this almost surreal story of the patrol members being picked off, one by one, by their invisible enemy. This allows for much more of a focus on the individual characters, their strengths and weaknesses, rather than on the action of which there is surprisingly little. Yet the film never loses its tension and dramatic thrust. The all-male cast is exceptionally strong, even Wallace Ford who tended to play goofy characters in later Universal horror films. Karloff is supremely good as the ultra-pious religious fanatic, but the film finally belongs to Victor MacLaglen who gives a career-defining performance as the Patrol's beleaguered leader.

This is the sort of movie that film-discussion groups could spend weeks analysing for its meanings, subtexts, cinematic compositions and so on, but, put simply, it is just a very exciting and disturbing yarn which lingers in the mind long after the final credits. Highly recommended not just to Ford-fans or Karloff-completists, but to anyone who appreciates the art of Western cinema at its finest.

Spare early Ford entry is certainly antique, but worthy nonetheless thanks to a tight script penned by the late, great Dudley Nichols, and a fabulous lead performance from the burly, ever-appealing McLaglen, who would appear in several more Ford entries (and whose son Andrew would also direct Ford protégé John Wayne late in the star's career). For those who only recognize him as the original Frankenstein, Karloff's eye-popping, over-the-top turn as a religious zealot who's been in the sun too long is just another selling point for this early sound classic. Fans of Ford-and war movies in general- should seek out this "Lost Patrol"..

Essential movie for a Karloff collector, especially this authentic region 1 edition. These classic movies and many other classics, like most of the universal horror movies from 1930-1950, are not available in Europe. So thanks to Amazon for the opportunities to obtain these items. And shipment from the US to Europe takes place in less than a week; ordered on a Monday, reveived in good order on Thursday in the same week!

RKO Radio Pictures presents "THE LOST PATROL" (16 February 1934) (72 mins/B&W) (Dolby Digital) --- A tale from the Great War with John Ford at the helm --- Wonderful cast headed by Victor Mclaglen who in my opinion carries much of the film --- Boris Karloff, Wallace Ford and Reginald Denny give a tight performances --- The film copy is good with a few light flaws in the picture midway through the film --- As usual Max Steiner strikes up another powerful score that keeps the adrenaline pumping.

Under the production staff of:
John Ford (Director)
Dudley Nichols (screenplay)
Garrett Fort (adaptation)
Philip MacDonald (story "Patrol")
Merian C. Cooper (Executive Producer)
Cliff Reid - (Associate Producer)
John Ford (Producer)
Max Steiner (Original Score)
Harold Wenstrom (Cinematographer)
Paul Weatherwax (Film Editor)

BIOS:
1. Victor McLaglen (aka: Victor Andrew de Bier Everleigh McLaglen)
Date of Birth: 10 December 1886 - Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, UK
Date of Death: 7 November 1959 - Newport Beach, California

2. Boris Karloff (aka: William Henry Pratt)
Date of Birth: 23 November 1887 - Camberwell, London, England, UK
Date of Death: 2 February 1969 - Midhurst, Sussex, England, UK

3. Wallace Ford (aka: Samuel Jones Grundy)
Date of Birth: 12 February 1898 - Bolton, Lancashire, England, UK
Date of Death: 11 June 1966 - Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California

4. Reginald Denny (aka: Reginald Leigh Dugmore)
Date of Birth: 20 November 1891 - Richmond, Surrey, England, UK
Date of Death: Unknown - 16 June 1967

5. John Ford (aka: John Martin Feeney) (Director)
Date of Birth: 1 February 1894 - Cape Elizabeth, Maine
Date of Death: 31 August 1973 - Palm Desert, California

the cast includes
Victor McLaglen ... The Sergeant
Boris Karloff ... Sanders
Wallace Ford ... Morelli
Reginald Denny ... Brown
J.M. Kerrigan ... Quincannon
Billy Bevan ... Hale
Alan Hale ... Cook
Brandon Hurst ... Bell
Douglas Walton ... Pearson
Sammy Stein ... Abelson
Howard Wilson ... Aviator
Paul Hanson ... MacKay

Just picked up this title --- Totally recommend this flick to all John Ford fans --- The Lost Patrol is a character study of the men who served during these troubled times of the Great War I --- Ford weaves this tale of helplessness within the confines of a small arena at an oasis, you can never guess the next move of the hidden enemy that never shows himself --- One must hope that this fighting among ourselves on this planet will end some day with all men striving for freedom, but so far we haven't learned.

Total Time: 72 min on DVD ~ RKO Radio Pictures ~ (06/06/2006)

Stereotypical characters & hammy performances, but so what? The tension builds & builds as the patrol (lost in Iraq) is picked off 1 by 1 by an unseen enemy. 1 of John Ford's own favorites, & it's such a treat to see (British) Victor McLaglen *not* play an Irishman. Relentless in showing the soldiers being killed by their own stupidity. Grim stuff. 7/10

"The Lost Patrol" is a WW I film made in 1934 from a 1927 novel that was originally produced in England as a 1929 silent film starring Victor McLaglen's brother, Cyril. Victor stars in the remake. I think Victor McGlaglen's best performances were in "The Quiet Man" (1952) and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949). Both these films were directed by John Ford and in both of them McGlaglen played supporting roles to John Wayne. While he was nominated for an Academy Award for "The Quiet Man", he won it for his portrayal of Gypo Nolan in "The Informer" in 1935 (and he was competing with Clark Gable and Charles Laughten for their work in "Mutiny on the Bounty").

McLaglen does a fine acting job, perhaps aided by the fact that he served in the Irish Fusiliers in Mesopatamia during World War 1. He is unusually restrained in the film, and most of the time successfully adopts a British accent.

John Ford (1894-1973) directs. He won the Academy Award the next year for "The Informer," the first of his 4 awards for best director (he won his last one with McLaglen and Wayne in "The Quiet Man"). He worked often with McLaglen, in silent films and in talkies. In addition to "The Informer" (1935), "The Lost Patrol" (1934), and "The Quiet Man (1952) there was "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" (1949), "Rio Grande" (1950) and "Wee Willie Winkie" (1937) among the talkies.

Also present are Boris Karloff, Wallace Ford, Reginald Denny, and Alan Hale. By 1933 Boris Karloff (1887-1969) was already a big star and he receives 2nd billing next to McLaglen. Karloff had been doing small parts in nearly 100 silent and early talkies, but shot to instant fame in James Whale's 1931 classic "Frankenstein." He followed that in 1932 with "The Mask of Fu Manchu" and "The Mummy" and the rest is history. Thankfully his reputation was already secure, because his over the top performance as the lunatic religious member of the troop is annoying, to say the least.

Wallace Ford (1898-1966) got 3rd billing. He was another John Ford regular, appearing in more than a dozen Ford films. He provides his usual fine supporting role, as does Reginald Denny and Alan Hale, who is barely on the screen.

Merian Cooper (1893-1973) was the Executive Producer. He was nominated for an Oscar for "The Quiet Man" (1952), one of several films he made with John Wayne (e.g., "The Searchers", "Rio Grande", "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon", "3 Godfathers", "Fort Apache"). His other notable films include "King Kong" (1933) and "Wagon Master" (1950). John Ford called Cooper his favorite producer. Among his other talents, Cooper was a pioneer in stop motion animation, Technicolor, and Cinerama as well as a war hero, an aviation pioneer, and one of the first real life documentary makers.

The plain fact is that it was Cooper's faith in Ford than transformed him from a director of silent B westerns to a major film director.

Dudley Nichols (1895-1960) did the screenplay. Nichols and Ford had a long and fruitful collaboration, beginning with "Men Without Women" (1930) and including "Judge Priest" (1934), "The Informer" (1935), "Mary of Scotland" (1936), "Stagecoach" (1939), and "The Battle of Midway" (1942). Nichols was nominated for an Oscar 4 times and won for "The Informer" (1935). After WW 2 Ford dropped Nichols and used Frank Nugent for most of his films.

FWIW - Nichols was the first person to refuse to accept an Oscar.

The black and white RKO print is good, although the sound is a little sketchy. The problem with the film is, dare I say it, Ford's direction, which is mediocre at best. There is none of the great staging that we associate with Ford, nor the stunning captures of movement that he was so capable of. Instead we have endless droning on of men talking to each other, with little or no suspense. Ford is not helped by an in-your-face musical score by Max Steiner, which, amazingly enough, received an Oscar nomination for best musical score (the winner was "One Night of Love").

1934 was an OK year for films. The top box office slots went to "Viva Villa", "Cleopatra" and "The Barretts of Wimpole Street" and "It Happened One Night" was the big Oscar winner. That year "The Thin Man" series began, Karloff and Legosi appeared in "The Black Cat", Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers danced in "The Gay Divorcee", Laurel and Hardy laughed it up in "Babes in Toyland", and Howard Hawks' "Twentieth Century" came out.

Variety gave the film a luke warm review saying it "tips the scales favorably as entertainment". The NY Times said the film was "highly effective from a photographic standpoint, but the incidents are often strained." They praised the actors, calling McLaglen's performance "praiseworthy" and said Denny "does expert work as a gentleman soldier", but "It is a pity that the dialogue is too forced and often far from natural in the circumstances."

Fortunately the film was successful at the box office and RKO asked Ford and McLaglen to make "The Informer" the next year, which was a huge critical and commercial success and helped launch both their careers.

This early John Ford Adventure flick is one that set a standard for countless genre films. The plot is the old story about how a group of soldiers lose there leader and find themselves lost and outnumbered by enemy soldiers.
In this film they find there way to an oasis, a seemingly perfect hideout only to discover there in a trap set by arab snipers who pick them off one by one.

Ford directs the film with a high sense of tension and a terrifically fast pace that modern viewers may be surprised by. The first shot in the movie is the Patrol's Lieutantant getting shot off his horse. From there on in the action comes randomly and quickly as one by one each man in the Patrol bites the bullet.

The cast is outstanding led by Victor Mclaglen as the Sarge, who while likeable and well meaning has led his men to complete disaster. He would be a Ford regular and win an Oscar the following year in Ford's "The Informer" but he's fine here as well.

Several cast members may look familiar including Errol Flynn's favorite sidekick, Alan Hale. The usually Brooklyn accented Wallace Ford as a nervous soldier afraid of being alone and handsome Reginald Denny as a ladies man who tells elaborate stories to the group.

The film however is easily stolen by Boris Karloff as the maniacal Sanders. He is a religious fanatic who goes mad in a most memorable way as he first finds the Patrol's Oasis spot as the Garden of Eden and later a gate to Hell.
Made during the era of his greatest films, this film is one of his more neglected.

This is an excellent "lost" Ford film and a must see for the Action/Adventure enthusiast. Unfortunately, it's only avaiable on the Ford film set unless you happen to find it seperately like myself.

Happy hunting film fans. Just don't raise your head too high. Those arab snipers barely miss.