Ice Cold In Alex Blu-ray Review

• 15th Jun 2011

After the war and in particular throughout the 50s, many British war movies were made relating the heroics of the British servicemen in the armed forces – some fictional and others based on real events. Some of them focused on the individual armed services such as the Royal Navy in The Cruel Sea (1952) and Angels One Five (1951), and The Dam Busters (1955) about the exploits of the RAF. Here it’s the ambulance services that are showcased for their heroic exploits. This is a film I remember from being a small child and watching an afternoon TV matinee. it made quite an impression on me. The drama focuses on a British ambulance crew led by a Captain Anson (John Mills), his faithful driver (Harry Andrews) and a lovelorn nurse (Sylvia Syms) as they make their way across the desert back to British lines as Tobruk is about to fall to Rommel’s Afrika Korps. On the treacherous journey they pick up a man who they believe to be a South African officer separated from his division, Captain Van der Poel (Anthony Quayle). The team then face all manner of obstacles along the way including the heat of the desert, mechanical problems, quicksand and German half-tracks. They soon become suspicious of Van der Poel and suspect that he may be a Nazi spy whilst also dreaming of arriving in British-held Alexandria for the ice cold beer of the title. This film attained a cult status in the 80s when Carlsberg used the end sequence for their advertising campaign (the eagle-eyed among you will notice that the Carlsberg lettering is on the sides of the glass) and this is truly a rewarding thirst-quenching moment right at the end of the film.

Based on writer Christopher Landon’s own experiences during the African campaign and adapted from his novel, this film has all the traits of a 50s post-war World War Two action movie filled with all the British heroics that one would expect from such a film with Mills, a stalwart of these kind of films that included The Colditz Story (1953) and Above Us the Waves (1955). At 130 minutes it’s a long film, but this is necessary to create the right sense of desperation battling Nazis and the hot elements for the ambulance crew (the American release of the film was re-titled with the more colourful title of Desert Attack and runs at just 79 minutes).

It’s nicely shot by Gilbert Taylor and benefits from being released on Blu-ray by Optimum, particularly during the dramatic quicksand sequence. Extras include an interview with Sylvia Syms, a photo gallery, trailer and home movie footage of Sir John Mills.

Chris Hick