Adventure in Iraq

This turkey has not aged well. It will be a tough bird to swallow. The Iraq in this film is from the backlot of some studio and the Sadaam of this Iraq is a silly British-speaking nincompoop, who looks like he got lost for the audition of a card-reading game on a boardwalk machine. (Like the one in Big). The final scene is a real hoot (if you last that long). Don't waste your time.

When their plane makes a forced landing in the wooded mountains of Iraq, three b-movie types find themselves at the mercy of a charming, but thoroughly evil Nazi-loving ruler of a population of Satan worshipers living in British-run Iraq. Will our two heroes and heroine survive to tell about their ADVENTURE IN IRAQ?

This lame-o remake of the entertaining George Arliss movie, The Green Goddess, can be enjoyed on a certain kinetic level, if one's sensibilities do not object to the depiction of Iraqis as being devoted to the worship of Satan, and one does not mind a hero who seems to believe that what most people need is a punch in the snout. The thing, like most Warners movies, is very briskly paced, which means that events can be silly or senseless, but they are rarely boring.

But, the problem is, there is not much to like in the leads (one guy is a drunk, for no particular reason, the other guy thinks he's John Wayne and Jimmy Cagney combined, and the gal is cute, competent, and forgettable). But the best illustration on what's gone wrong in this remake is the change in villain from first lead George Arliss (a genuine great actor) to fourth lead Paul Cavanagh (charisma free actor trying desperately not to yield to the ham acting the script cries for). Cavanagh gets plenty of screen time, but he comes across as someone trying to play Tod Slaughter playing a black-hearted Victorian villain, and not quite getting there.

So, one spends a lot of time while watching this film marveling on the insults being dispensed on the Iraqi people and Iraq from folks who clearly know little about it, and could care less. One could almost think some of those folks helped advise W in developing his foreign policy. Because the movie, and Bush's first four years of war have the same level of callous incompetence about it.

A cheap B-movie lasting one hour in length and about a group of downed US airmen stranded in the desert with only a sinister sheikh for company. Based on a stage play, so this is incredibly talky and almost singularly lacking in suspense or interest.

What a rather surprisingly pleasant way to spend 65 minutes. Who cares if the plot is a bit far-fetched? Who cares if this takes place in a part of Iraq that is not desert? The premise is rather simple. Three Allied citizens are flying a small plane towards Egypt. Of course, the plane runs out of gas and is forced to land in the wilds of Iraq. The trio is afforded the hospitality of a local sheik, who may not be in sympathy with the Allied cause. To me, the highlight of this film is Paul Cavanagh's acting as the sheik. It may have been hammy, but he has a few marvelous lines and is a delight to watch. The trio does survive, etc. Oh, can someone tell me how five soldiers can fly in what appears to be a two-seat plane? Minor detail!! Nice 'B' flick!

The Usually "Nervous" Over-Lords and Protectors of "Citizens" Against Anything They Saw as Offensive, or Anything that Violated "The Code"...

Were Now on "High-Alert" During WWII and Dictated to Hollywood that in this War-Time Movie the British Received a Few Lines of "Criticism" and the Arab World, Specifically Iraq Wouldn't Take Being Called "Devil-Worshipers" Lightly and We Americans could Use All the Allies We Could Get.

Also, Mentioned, as per Usual, was the Females Exposing "Skin", and for the "Holier Than Thou" "Code" and its Gate-Keepers, that was a Firm No-No.

So, even though, its 1943 and the World was at War...Concern about Protecting the Public from Titillation was Still On Their Minds and were Ready to Power-Play Films that had a "Hint" of the "Forbidden" and Strayed an Inch from the Required Restraint.

This Bit of Behind-the-Scenes Machinations is just a Reminder of How Stringently Enforced "The Code", that Began in Earnest in 1934, was Still, 10 Years Later, while the World was On-the-Brink, Would Die on a Hill of "Christian-Fundamentalism", Neglecting the 1st Amendment.

This Movie is a Low-Budget Warner-Brothers Back-Lot "Programmer" that is Played Mostly Tongue-in-Cheek, Witness Paul Cavanaugh's "Sheik".

The Film Tries to Make-Up for its Lack of "Adventure" in the Outdoor-Sense with a Love-Quadrangle,...

and an Aloof Attitude that Coats the War-Time Effort with Outrageous Jingoism On the Confinement of 2-Sets,

and a Calvary to the Rescue (Flying-Tigers) Ending that is Radio-Ready and Uses Over-the-Air Communications as "Weapons of Mass Destruction".

For Fans of B-Movies or Movies Set During War-Time, it's...

Worth a Watch.