(1955)
1
Craig Butler
The script may tell you that Bengazi is about a fight between Arab tribesmen and Western treasure hunters, but your ears will tell you otherwise. After a few minutes, it's clear that the real battle in Bengazi is between Victor McLaglen's Irish brogue and Richard Carlson's Scottish burr. The two actors spend the film seemingly trying to prove which accent is the more indecipherable -- and Carlson wins by a fair margin. McLaglen's is thick, but it at least has some basis in reality, unlike Carlson's. It may seem odd to focus so much attention on a matter of accents, but if one does so, one doesn't have to concentrate on the flat, boring, lifeless and tedious script that sinks Bengazi almost from the start. Director John Brahm tries intermittently to inject some life into the proceedings, but to little avail. And Joseph Biroc's cinematography manages to provide some moments of beauty and drama. But then the script rears its head again, and McLaglen and Carlson start making those awful sounds, and it's all one can do to notice that Richard Conte is actually managing to turn in a pretty good performance, or that Mala Powers looks quite lovely when given half a chance. It's not enough to make Bengazi good, but it helps.
Bengazi on AllMovie
Bengazi (1955)
