Lion of the Desert

Lion of the Desert (1981)

Genres - Action, Adventure, Drama, War  |   Sub-Genres - War Epic, Biopic [feature], Combat Films, Historical Epic, Propaganda Film  |   Release Date - Apr 17, 1981 (USA - Unknown)  |   Run Time - 163 min.  |   Countries - United Kingdom  |   MPAA Rating - PG
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Synopsis by Paul Brenner

Libyan leader Moummar Quaddafi financed this desert epic about a Libyan hero who helped his nation fend off an Italian invasion in 1929. Anthony Quinn stars as Omar Mukhtar, who organizes Libyan forces to hold off the encroaching Italian troops under General Rodolfo Graziana (Oliver Reed), who are trying to gain a foothold on Libyan soil under direct orders from the Italian dictator Mussolini (Rod Steiger). With the persistence of Mukhtar, the Libyans, battling the tanks and guns of the Italian army with their Bedouin troops on horseback, managed to hold off y the Italians for twenty years, until Mukhtar was finally captured and executed.

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Keywords

war, against-all-odds, Bedouin, capture, desert, guerrilla, lion, militia, nationalism, patriotism, territory, warrior