Ice Cold In Alex

J. Lee Thompson, UK 1958, 132 minutes

Ever moaned about walking to the pub in the rain to get your pint - well then to be honest you're a softy. Ice Cold In Alex tells the story of four people during the Second World War who drive across Africa, through deserts, sandstorms, Nazi attacks, ambushes by killer washing machines (well maybe not the last one) in order to have a pint - an Ice Cold (pint of beer) In Alex(andria).

In many ways this is a very different view of the desert from the one shown in Lawrence Of Arabia (largely because it is in black and white and therefore the desert is a sort of greyish colour). However it is also a tense psychological drama with some superb performances - especially from John Mills (who basically plays the character he always plays - but does it bloody well) and Anthony Quayle (hugely underrated).

Superficially from the plot description, this sounds like a gung-ho war movie about brave Brits keeping their pecker up and concentrating on the lighter side of life (like a beer) in order to get through the war. However in many ways this is a profoundly anti-war film, pointing out how humans can get stupidly divided by superficial military sides when in reality they can be very good friends. And the moral of the story: Never park your lorry at the top of a sand dune.

"Captures the stark, pitiless atmosphere of the desert superbly" - Variety

Review by Alicia Forsyth
Taken from EUFS Programme 1996-97