Beau Geste

... which is the kind that takes place somewhere exotic with lots of sand and has hordes of attacking natives. And you never know exactly WHY the natives are attacking so ferociously. But I digress. So I sat down to watch this one not expecting much, but since a 30s Paramount is so rarely shown on TCM, I thought I'd give it a whirl. I'm really glad that I did.

The film opens on a regiment of the French foreign legion coming to the fort that they are to relieve from attack, but they arrive and find not a soul alive. There is a note confessing guilt for a long-ago crime in the hand of one of the dead men, and then, when the regiment is reassembled outside the fort planning their next move, a massive fire breaks out inside. This got me wanting to know how we got to this point.

So the film now doubles back to 15 years before, when the Geste boys - Beau, John, and Digby are growing up on the Brandon estate with Patricia Brandon as a kind of foster mom. One night, after the boys are grown, the theft of an expensive jewel occurs, and the Geste brothers all write notes claiming responsibility, thinking that one of the others is guilty. They all join the French Foreign Legion to escape the reach of the law, and all three end up in the same place with each still wondering if one of the other two committed the crime back in England.

From that point forward, the story shifts to be about surviving the cruelty of one particular officer - Markoff (Brian Donlevy) and each brother trying to remain true to the other brothers while dealing with the fact that both Sergeant Markoff and their fellow legionnaires are not honorable people. Also, Markoff learns about the jewel and thinks that one of the brothers have it in their belongings.

The largest part of the film takes place inside one fort during one battle in which the fort is under relentless attack by a large band of Tuareg, but it's not boring. Donlevy as Markoff makes this part of the film, partly because he seems to enjoy sending soldiers to their death, and partly because of what he does with them after they've died.

If you like a good romance, that is not this film. It is all about comradery. The cast is truly remarkable with many later Academy Award winners -Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Robert Preston, and Susan Hayward. There's also some great character actors such as J. Carroll Naish, Albert Dekker, and Harold Huber. Brian Donlevy never won an Academy Award, but he's deliciously evil as the sadistic Markoff. Also look for Broderick Crawford just starting out. And only in America could Donald O'Connor ( Beau Geste as a child) grow up to be Gary Cooper (adult Beau Geste).

The addition of sound, and a sharper focus, only serves to make this version of "Beau Geste" (1926) seem older, and less European; specifically, the lack of consideration for the change in technology, from silent to sound, does not make this an improvement over the original silent film. And, the ages in the cast do not add up. Still, it's a good adventure story, and a fine Hollywood production. Despite showing the obvious "generation gap", Gary Cooper (Beau), Ray Milland (John), Robert Preston (Digby) are valiant as the brothers Geste, who join the French Foreign Legion for honor and gratitude.

Brian Donlevy's sadistic "Sergeant Markov" (nee "Lejaune"), who promises his men, "I make soldiers out of scum like you and I don't do it gently!" was duly nominated for a "Best Supporting Actor" Oscar. A future nominated J. Carrol Naish (as Rasinoff) is also quite nasty. Donald O'Connor (young Beau) and the opening segments help get the film off to a great start. You'll have to decide whether or not the film proves the Arabian proverb: "The love of a man for a woman waxes and wanes like the moon, but the love of brother for brother is steadfast as the stars and endures like the word of the prophet."

******* Beau Geste (8/2/39) William A. Wellman ~ Gary Cooper, Ray Milland, Brian Donlevy, Robert Preston

The orphan brothers Beau, John, and Digby Geste have been raised in Brandon Abbas by their dear aunt Lady Patricia Brandon (Heather Thatcher) with the also adopted Isobel Rivers and their cousin Augustus Brandon since they were children. Lady Brandon is near bankruptcy paying the debts of the absent Lord Brandon, and the fortune of the family is limited to the valuable "Blue Water" sapphire. When they are grown-ups, Lord Brandon tells that he will arrive in the property to sell the precious stone. Beau (Gary Cooper), John (Ray Milland), Digby (Robert Preston), Isobel (Susan Hayward) and Augustus (G. P. Huntley) ask to see the "Blue Water". Lady Brandon brings the stone, but the lights go out, the sapphire is stolen and Lady Brandon promises to call the police on the next morning. However, first Beau and then Digby write notes confessing the robbery, and they are followed by John. The brothers join the Foreign Legion and are sent to North Africa, Beau and John under the command of the cruel and sadistic Sergeant Markoff (Brian Donlevy) in Fort Zinderneuf in the Sahara Desert. After an unsuccessful mutiny due to the brutal treatment of Markoff, the fort is attacked by Tuaregs and the men have to join forces to fight for their lives.

"Beau Geste" is a dramatic adventure about brotherhood, leadership and gratitude. I have never watched the original version, but this remake is a great movie. The screenplay is intelligent, with two initial mysteries (what has happened in Fort Zinderneuf?, and why Beau Geste stole the stone?) and reveals the mystery in the fort in the end and the reason why Beau Geste stole the jewel in the very last scene, showing how honorable and gentle he was. Brian Donlevy is amazing and together with Gary Cooper, Ray Milland and Robert Preston, they have unforgettable performances. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Beau Geste"

Three brothers join the Foreign Legion following the mysterious disappearance of a valuable sapphire.

This movie came out the same year (1939) as that other masterpiece of colonial adventure, The Four Feathers. Both make first-rate use of family bonds and family honor to create a strong emotional context to all the colorful combat. Those bonds really work here, establishing a strong sense of one for all and all for one. Plus the fact that the brothers have been adopted by the kindly Lady Brandon (Thatcher) not only lends poignancy, but makes the central twist work really well.

As good as Cooper-Milland-Foster are, it's really Donlevy's movie. His cruel martinet has stayed with me over the decades—the military haircut, the perfectly squared shoulders, the command voice. He not only commands his legionnaires, he commands the movie, as well. And, when he falls, I still have mixed emotions, despite his many acts of cruelty. It's a crackling good story, but it's his imposing presence that makes the adventure memorable. No wonder Donlevy was Oscar-nominated, a near-perfect blend of character and actor.

Two minor reservations. Cooper's fine in Beau's role, more animated than usual. However, at nearly forty, he appears a shade too old for the youthful part. Also, I've never been able to reconcile to the relative ease with which the mutiny is put down. There's like five guys with guns facing a hundred guys who stand to be executed for their planned mutiny, yet they meekly give up, especially after Schwartz (the great Albert Dekker) has so powerfully roused them to action. To me, director Wellman's staging here is less than convincing.

Nonetheless, the mix of mystery, emotion and action remains superbly entertaining, and is ironically, one of the few movies that actually lives up to its title.

The three Geste brothers, wards of their Aunt Patricia, go off to the Foreign Legion because they are suspected of stealing a family jewel, the Blue Water sapphire. It's a question of family honor and pride back in the day when this was thought to be a real virtue.

Beau Geste continues as a story about the Geste brothers in the Foreign Legion. Since they are all adopted wards with no clue as their real origins, that might account for the distinctly non-British speech of Gary Cooper as Beau and Robert Preston as Digby. Ray Milland as the youngest brother John was presumably influenced by British speech at a young enough age.

Though the three brother leads perform more than adequately, Beau Geste is truly a film where the character actors take over. Brian Donlevy was given his one and only Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor as the sadistic Sergeant Markov. You won't forget him, I promise you.

Three others that also stand out are Albert Dekker who leads a mutiny against Markov at the distant outpost of Fort Zinderneuf and Stanley Andrews as Maris who tries to prevent the mutiny. And last but certainly not least is J. Carrol Naish who is Rassinov the eyes and ears of Markov among the men. Naish was an amazingly versatile character actor who played just about every ethnic type you could name. He blended into his characters so well he almost has no identity of his own on screen. And that hyenish high-pitched cackle that he uses for Rassinov will linger with you forever.

Susan Hayward is in this also as the love interest for Ray Milland. She's young and pretty wasted in a thankless role in a male dominated film. No hint at all here of the characters she later portrayed like Lillian Roth or Barbara Graham.

Beau Geste is the kind of adventure story for those who like their heroes gallant and romantic as so many of us do.