Desert Victory

Harold Alexander
Claude Auchinleck
Henry Harwood
Adolf Hitler
Winston Churchill

Desert Victory (1943), originally had the working title of "The Battle of Egypt", the AFU North African footage was being edited by Roy Boulting at Pinewood when the project was taken out of his hands by his superior, Major Bryce. Bryce's draft for the film, however, was not well-received by the MoI, and Arthur Calder Marshall, a production specialist in the Films Division. The Films Division put David Macdonald in charge of production, with Roy Boulting as director and supervising editor, using a commentary written by James Hodson, a Lancastrian journalist.

Completed in late-1943, Desert Victory was previewed at the War Office to considerable praise. The film is undoubtedly a powerful and accurate account of military operations in North Africa from the military build-up in Egypt to the Battle of EI-Alamein, which stopped Rommel's eastward advance, and the subsequent 80-day counter-offensive that culminated in the British capture of Tripoli. Desert Victory opens with a dedication to the "Desert Rats" - the affectionate name for the 8th Army - who destroyed the "myth of Rommel's invincibility". The first twenty minutes or so establish the background to the desert campaign, and detail the military build-up in preparation for the October 1942 offensive. We see the barren North African landscape. Unable to retreat further, General Auchinleck, then commander of the desert army, decided to make his stand at El-Alamein only 60 miles from Alexandria - a natural line of defence as it centred on a 40 mile gap between the sea and the Quattara Depression.

The visual images onscreen demonstrate the military power that the enemy brought to bear as Panzers roll forward accompanied by swarms of dive-bombers. But the line held, and, as the narrator indicates, "after several days of attack and counter-attack, the British, Australians, Indians and South Africans were still there, fighting as doggedly as our infantry at Waterloo". Winston Churchill visits Egypt bringing "inspiration and vigour' and reinforcements begin to arrive along with new leaders - General Alexander as Commander-in-Chief, Middle East, and Montgomery as Commander of the 8th Army. There follows a long sequence showing the preparations undertaken: weapons and war material pouring from the factories in Britain and the USA; the long journey to the Middle East. Later, during the battle and subsequent advance, we catch the occasional glimpse of "Monty" forging ahead in his tank.

Nor are the other services ignored in the film. During the vital build-up period, the importance of the RAF and RN is stressed, as are their efforts to prevent the resupply of the Afrika Korps. The contribution of the Desert Air Force is noted throughout the film, and footage from the AFU is effectively used. The success of the desert offensive and the capture of Tripoli came at a time when morale in Britain was low. Desert Victory was necessary to reassure the public, around the world, that Britain was still in the ring and fighting back. Desert Victory remains one of the most successful wartime documentaries.

The influence of Desert Victory can be seen not only in post-war British feature films such as Ice Cold In Alex (1958) and Sea of Sand (1958), but also in American features such as Tobruk (1966) and The Desert Fox (1951). The sequel, Tunisian Victory (1944), was to be called Africa Freed, again made by Roy Boulting and written by Hodson, and was apparently shown in a rough cut in London in July 1943. When it was learned that Frank Capra was making a similar campaign film, he was apparently asked to decide if, after viewing Africa Freed, a joint production could be fashioned. After much delay and many disagreements between Capra and the British, a joint film, now to be called Tunisian Victory, was set in production.
Review© Michael Paris, The Boulting Brothers: The Family Way.