Sirocco (1951) User Reviews

Cavern To Cavern

[telegonus · 7/10 · 25 August 2002]

This 1951 Bogart vehicle, produced by the great man himself, and directed by the estimable Curtis Bernhardt, is a slow-moving rehash of some of Bogart's better known films, going back to Casablanca. This one's set in 1925 Syria, with the Trenchcoated One working both sides against the middle. He's a gun runner selling arms to the Arabs, which at the time was illegal, since Syria was controlled by the French. Bogart had an affinity with the Levant, and was most at ease in an occupied city, with terrorists, revolutionaries and criminals,--often hard to tell apart--running around, blowing up things, and making life difficult for the authorities. As usual, Bogart couldn't care less who wins as long as he gets paid.

Sirocco is a back lot picture, yet an attractive one. It was made at a time when movies of its type were getting either a whole lot bigger or a whole lot smaller. As such it was somewhat of an anachronism when it came out, and its box-office was modest. This was really the end of the line for the old-style Bogart pics, which it is the last of; and Bogie's next movie, The African Queen, filmed on location and in color, would open up a whole new career for him. I like this one better than most people do, for its cast (Marta Toren, Lee Cobb, Everett Sloan, Gerald Mohr), and its shabby fatalism. A good deal of the picture is set indoors, in cafés, hotel rooms and warehouses. There is a circular, labyrinthine aspect to the movie, as it seems at times as if all the action were taking place literally underground, with the various characters moving from cavern to cavern.

"How can anyone so ugly be so handsome?"

[danielj_old999 · 7/10 · 29 September 2006]

(Marta Toren to Bogie)....what a great line! I'm surprised it hasn't gone down in the lexicon of great movie quips...and it captures perfectly the paradoxical mystery of Bogie's eternal charm, as well as the mystery of how an essentially mediocre film can be redeemed by its own dry, sardonic charm (due largely to help from fine supporting players as much as from Bogie), some great B/W photography, and a persistently downbeat refusal to push any sort of patriotic agenda.(adding greatly to that charm quotient.) The postwar noir influence is in fine fettle here. So Bogie doesn't exactly have a great motivation for his final decision? He just changed his mind, that's all. Take it or leave it. "I've taken long chances before. Okay." What could be better than that? It's the way people act every day. Every good critical eye without a mote in it knows that this film is safely and securely within the universe of the best product Hollywood ever put out, a great, mordant, counterweight universe to the unwatchable sap they themselves were producing right alongside it. "Sirocco" is not even really that minor a star in that universe. Good, good, good.

Blows Cold, then gets Colder...

[Xstal · 6/10 · 8 September 2023]

There are films that have been made that are no go, the reasons for creation not Key Largo, to be honest and quite franka, this just isn't Casablanca, as a fan of the great man, this is a blow. Although he plays with all the usual charisma, but for reasons this is just silly miasma, Everett Sloane you can't applaud, he's just a shadow of our Claude, and poor old Marta, holds no candle, to fair Ilsa. When the end arrives relief is quite immense, but at least you have a little recompense, ticking from a quite long list, this is one more you haven't missed, you can park it now, and let it all condense.

To thine own self be true?

[Ham_and_Egger · 6/10 · 26 March 2005]

In a way Bogart's greatest performances have left Sirocco "priced out of the market." I won't argue that it's on the same level as Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon, or Key Largo, but it is a surprisingly nuanced picture that gets unfairly criticized for not living up to some of the greatest films Hollywood ever produced.

Bogie is Bogie, tough-talking and trenchcoat-wearing as usual. He plays Harry Smith, a man who, ordinarily, doesn't take sides, but this time, see... there's a dame! That sounds a little dismissive, it's not meant to be. Nobody's ever played a "shades of gray" character quite like Bogart, in my opinion he could have done it a dozen *more* times.

Swedish actress Märta Torén (pegged as 'The Next Ingrid Bergman') is the dame. She really seems almost as out-of-place in the picture as she would have been in war-torn Damascus. Lee J. Cobb, playing the French commander Col. Feroud, chews the scenery a little but overall he gives a good portrayal of a man fighting for a cause he no longer believes in.

I'm a fan of both Zero Mostel (the original Max Bialystock) and Nick Dennis (the exuberant Greek mechanic from 'Kiss Me Deadly') and they both have good if small roles here.

I was impressed by the way Sirocco refused to overtly side with either the French or the Syrians. Neither does the film present Smith as anything but what he is, an opportunist. In fact, for me, it his teetering on the brink of whether to take sides or stay neutral (and thus be true to his own self-serving moral code) that provides the film's best drama.

Disappointing and Inconsistent Screenplay

[claudio_carvalho · 6/10 · 15 November 2005]

In 1925, in Damascus, the patriotic rebels of Syria are fighting against the invader French forces. The powerful weapons smuggler Harry Smith (Humphrey Bogart) is an amoral dealer taking advantage of the situation. He meets in a restaurant, Violette (Märta Torén), the girl of the idealistic French Col. Feroud (Lee J. Cobb). Feroud is trying to make a deal with the rebel leader Emir Hassan (Onslow Stevens), and he forces Harry to be his liaison and arrange a meeting with Hassan.

I am a great fan of Humphrey Bogart, my favorite actor, but "Sirocco" has a very disappointing and inconsistent screenplay. The story presents Harry Smith as an amoral and ambitious man, but never explains the reasons or motives for his final act, since he had his visa and the girl with money. In Casablanca, the love for Ilsa is the motive for the sacrifice of Rick Blaine, but in "Sirocco" there are no explanations for his final redemption. Along the story, something is missing to make "Sirocco" a great movie. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Sirocco"

Disagreement with first comment

[billybob-123 · 2 July 2002]

Bogie's role was not really unsympathetic unless you happen to be a Francophile. This can be looked at as a prequel to Casablanca. Harry is very much like a young Rick would have been in 1925. Problem is, Bogie is 10 years older and is basically playing Rick as he was in the 20's. The woman is,though, one of the most unsympathetic creatures ever in films. High maintenance, manipulative, out for everything she can get wherever she can get it. Damn sexy too. Not by any means a great picture but if you like Bogie and you like older films, it is worth a summer night.

They Don't Make Them Like They Used To.

[screenman · 6/10 · 24 April 2008]

Released in 1951, we have a very formulaic Bogart movie that was shamelessly ripped-off from his 1940's classic 'Casablanca'.

Here we have Bogey once again involved in questionable shennanigans somewhere down amongst the Arabs. This time it's Damascus. Again, he's an American on the edge who has been hardened by past adversity. He has no national allegiance, no political ties, no loyalties but himself and no beliefs but money. The French are also, once again, the erstwhile authorities, but this time they're in conflict with the indigenous population rather than the Bosch.

There's a femme fatale and a fractured love triangle as in 'Casablanca'. There's a comradeship of convenience between Bogey and a senior authority figure, just like 'Casablanca'.

It's a very noirishly lit and filmed piece which seemed to suit the character Bogey so often played. Yet something is missing.

This movie could almost be a sequel to Casablanca. For those who wondered what became of his character after the tearful separation from Ingrid Bergman; here it is. With the assistance of the police chief, he fled to Damascus, and a decade later was making his way running guns to the rebels.

The ending, however, is a little more down-beat.

It's well worth a watch - what movie with Bogart isn't? He always gave a fascinating screen persona that made up for a lot of other inferior elements. But one star doesn't make a classic, and this piece will never match his best.

"What do you care whose gun it is as long as it isn't aimed at you?"

[classicsoncall · 6/10 · 18 June 2006]

It's interesting to see who Humphrey Bogart is paired up with in his films following the Warner Brothers days. This time out it's Lee J. Cobb as a French colonel and Swedish actress Marta Toren. The story takes place in 1925 Syria, as French forces operating under a United Nations mandate have a difficult time containing Syrian insurgents bent on governing themselves. The comparisons to "Casablanca" are unavoidable, but at least in that film, one has a general sense of history and can lay a finger on the Nazi villain. In "Sirocco", it's difficult to empathize with either side in the conflict as neither is particularly sympathetic or likable; perhaps in hindsight that's one of the strengths of the film.

Bogey's character is a gun runner with a checkered past and without hint of morals or principles. While Rick Blaine might have been a 'citizen of the world', Harry Smith's political convictions don't carry him that far - he's up for the highest bidder. As such, he's not very sympathetic or likable either, receiving a back handed compliment from Toren's Violette - "How can a man so ugly be so handsome". It would have worked the other way around too.

Dingy underground catacombs give the movie a claustrophobic feel as Harry takes it on the lam following a grenade bombing in a café. Violette invites herself along to Cairo, and the way Smith caved in to her request seemed a stretch, it was like no, you can't go, you can't go... oh, alright let's go. The lack of urgency and any remote chemistry between the two wasn't convincing enough for this viewer to have her along for the ride. In any event, you won't think of dried apricots in the same way again.

If the film's ending was meant to capture a particular poignancy, it's meaning was lost on me. Smith's demise seemed senseless and unnecessary, and then the story ends in a heartbeat. The fate of Violette is a loose end which just adds to the unsatisfying conclusion. "Sirocco" could have been much more and certainly had a cast capable of pulling it off, but putting a checkered bow-tie on Bogey was just asking for trouble.

Pale imitation of Casablanca

[bensonmum2 · 6/10 · 24 April 2006]

I was going to begin with a detailed plot description of Sirocco, but what's the point? Sirocco has essentially the same plot as Casablanca. Change settings to Syria from Morocco, put Marta Toren in the role of Ingrid Bergman (Toren was actually billed as "The Next Ingrid Bergman"), exchange Lee J. Cobb's Col. Feroud for Conrad Veidt's Maj. Strasser, and throw in a few other similar characters and almost identical plot points and you've got two very similar movies. The problem with the comparison, though, comes at the end of the film. Although Casablanca is the far superior film in most every way, the final scenes really drive home just how inferior Sirocco really is. In both films, Bogart must decide between being selfish or doing "what's right". The difference, however, is that in Casablanca there is a good, justifiable reason for his actions. As heartbreaking as his final act is, I can understand why he made that decision. In Sirocco, on the other hand, the decision to do "what's right" seems totally out of character with everything leading up to that point. There is no valid, justifiable reason for Bogart's actions. There is no sound reasoning given for his sudden change of heart and it therefore feels forced to make Bogart look like a good guy before the end of the film. It just doesn't work.

The highlight of Sirocco for me is Marta Toren. She made even the most mundane of scenes seem elegant and worth watching. While she may have been "The Next Ingrid Bergman", personally I saw a lot of Audrey Hepburn in her. It's a shame that Toren's career was cut short by her untimely death in 1957. I, for one, would have liked to see what she would have done with a more complete filmography.

"Here you are again Mr Smith!"

[richardchatten · 7/10 · 18 March 2022]

Produced for his own company, Bogart dons a trenchcoat again for a far more downbeat version of 'Casablanca' (complete with a Swedish leading lady) that could have been called 'Damascus'.

Ironically supporting actors Zero Mostel and Ludwig Donath were both shortly afterwards blacklisted, while Lee J. Cobb was a 'friendly witnesses'; while both Bogie and the lovely Marta Toren (who aptly says of her leading man "How can a man so ugly be so handsome?") here endlessly smoke cigarettes only to later succumb to cancer within weeks of each other.

While screenwriter A. I. Bezzerides puts into the mouth of the leader of the Syrian rebels the currently topical observation of the occupying forces that they may win militarily but "The world shall see you for the butchers that you are."

No Rooting Interest

[bkoganbing · 4/10 · 5 August 2006]

Sirocco was one of those independent productions that Humphrey Bogart's Santana productions did for Columbia Pictures after Bogey's long term contract with Warner Brothers expired. Bogey had a mixed record of success and Sirocco didn't exactly set the movie world on fire.

The story takes place in Damascus after World War I with the French given a mandate by the League of Nations over the former Ottoman Empire territory of Syria and the Syrians not really too crazy about it. They've got a guerrilla war going against them and it is being led by Onslow Stevens as Moulay Hassan.

The French occupying troops are led by General Everett Sloane with Lee J. Cobb as the Colonel in charge of intelligence. They're having no luck even trying for a cease fire. And there's a lovely black market in weapons being sold to the Syrians.

Which is where soldier of fortune Humphrey Bogart comes in. Bogey is at his most cynical here, too cynical probably to get a real rooting interest from the audience. He really has no inner core of decency that was apparent in Casablanca to which this film bears a superficial resemblance.

The Ingrid Bergman character is played by another Swedish actress Marta Toren who is Lee J. Cobb's girlfriend. Can you imagine Elsa Lund as a selfish slattern, than you've got what Toren is. Somehow her domestic problems also and fling with Bogart also don't arouse the audiences interest.

There are some good performances from supporting players like Zero Mostel, Nick Dennis, and Ludwig Donath as various Arabic types. You will enjoy them.

But I would also have to say that Sirocco takes place at a time when certain movements and issues were coming to the fore. Great questions were being raised and Sirocco answers none of them.

Another stalemate in the Middle East

[manuel-pestalozzi · 9/10 · 27 December 2011]

This is a most unusual movie for its time, and it is fascinating to read the comments on it here on the IMDb. Many viewers are apparently undecided what to make of Sirocco as it does not fit any of the known stereotypes. This is neither Algiers (1938) nor Casablanca (1942), there is no romance, you don't find anything exotic about the place in question (Damascus, Syria) and no great friendships are about to develop. It is basically a movie about people who are confronted with a drab and hopeless situation (messagewise I would compare it with The Sand Pebbles (1966)). It painfully reminds todays viewers of the ongoing conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq (well, the Jasmine salesman bolts off before his handgranades go off in the cafe, the suicide bomber had not been invented yet). Western powers (they have a mandate from the League of Nations) are pitted against so called "patriots" (they have no mandate at all) in a bloody battle without a discernible cause. The Bogart character is an opportunist arms dealer and a coward to boot. At one time he really hits rock bottom in the Catacombs underneath the city as he tries to hide in his tattered Bogey-raincoat - one of the many great visual moments in this beautifully photographed nightmare of a movie with its superb set design.

The main message of Sirocco is a depressing one: If things turn bad, the efforts of single individuals are of negligible effect. We have a disillusioned French officer (Lee J. Cobb who I have never seen better). He wants to prevent a planned execution of civilians as a retaliatory act after an ambush, not out of idealistic motives or with any hope but just because he is sick of all the killing. Like all the other characters he gets bogged down by the circumstances and in the end departs on a meeting with the "patriots" with the Bogart character's help. Everyone agrees that this action is meant to be a suicide. The officer even gets out of his uniform which heretofore had the function of a corset.

Great sets and scenes abound here. Damascus is a place of eternal night - and we never get out of the place into the open. The Roman Catacombs seem to be inspired by Giovanni Piranesi's "carceri" drawings. There is a great scene in which the Bogart character buys a belly dancer's finger cymbals. Another scene begins with the focus on a visibly tender and juicy steak which the Bogart character starts cutting into. "He brings his own food", the waiter explains to other patrons who would like the same. What a better way to depict a war profiteer?

As the lines above suggest, the storyline of Sirocco is pretty sprawling and the film is more of a situation than a story. That makes it only more realistic and instructive. Our time is right for anti-war movies of this kind. In can recommend it.

Worth a look, but don't expect the Bogey of old...

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 3 September 2007]

At the time this film was made, I am unsure exactly what American popular opinion was to this film or the occupation of Syria. On one hand, the French were imperialists and had no right to occupy Syria (as well as about 1/5 of the planet). On the other, the Syrian revolutionaries were at times mindless killers--much like parts of the Muslim world today. Because of this, the usual "good guy vs. bad guy" focus of most Hollywood films is gone, and to top if off, Humphrey Bogart plays a most amoral and unsympathetic leading man--making it a hard film to connect to. Interestingly enough, in light of recent problems in Iraq and the rest of the Middle East, this movie is once again a rather timely film.

Lee J. Cobb plays, of all things, a French officer in occupied Syria in 1925. The country is rife with civil war and his commander is inclined to match terror with even greater terror. Cobb, on the other hand, is rather reasonable and wants to broker a negotiated peace--and sadly, he seems to be the only one in the film thinking this way. In so many ways, the star of this film was Cobb--as he was in more scenes and played a much more interesting character than Bogart. His acting was good, but he hardly seemed French--with no accent whatsoever.

As for Bogart, the film is an obvious attempt to cash in on the success of CASABLANCA--with many similarities to the original. The setting looks an awful lot alike and the characters seem very similar as well. However, unlike "Rick" from CASABLANCA, down deep, he really is amoral and stands for nothing in SIROCCO. Plus, he just looks sad and old--with very little energy. As a result, caring for him is quite a chore.

It's even worse for Bogie's love interest, Märta Torén. Not only was she amoral, but she was just plain nasty and selfish throughout the film--and yet, inexplicably, two men wanted her throughout the film! No lady is THAT beautiful!

So overall, this is one of Bogart's poorer efforts of the latter portion of his career--due to a lackluster performance, a derivative script as well as characters (aside from Cobb) you could care less whether they lived or died.

Sirocco - Another Victim of the Production Code

[arthur_tafero · 5/10 · 15 November 2021]

This could have been a better film; but it was made to conform to the strict rules of the Hayes Commission. One of those strict rules was that any obvious acts of "immorality" (whatever that is) must result in the demise of the person committing such immoral acts. Bogart is not a good guy or bad guy in this film; he is just a guy playing both sides of the fence to make some money. If that is immoral, then 90% of American CEOs would be killed off in any film they were in. I did not buy Lee J Cobb as a French officer as well, although the female lead did a pretty good job. The end result is a pretty watchable film that could have been much better. And the conclusion of the film is not the least bit believable, nor satisfying.

Looks Familiar

[pauleasterday · 4 November 2004]

Not a great flick, but interesting to see that conflicts between foreign occupiers and arab locals has been going on for a long time, with similar results. Its a recurring theme in Arabia - foreign armies come in hoping to pacify the locals, only to fall into a bloody pattern of terrorism and retribution. The amazing thing is that its been going on for so long and in so many places. It's an insight on today's middle-east events.

And like so many middle-east conflicts, in this movie you are left being not very sympathetic to either side. Yes, its the Syrian's home, but their tactics are sickening. The French come off no better as the aggressors and oppressors. The third parties, such as Bogart's character, are just vultures feeding off the tragedy.

Good one to watch if you're thinking of invading an Arab nation.

Where Have I Seen This Scenario?

[bsmith5552 · 6/10 · 23 December 2006]

"Sirocco" takes place in 1925 Damascus where French troops are occupying the city and fighting against rebel insurgents. (Hmmmm...that sounds familiar).

Harry Smith (Humphrey Bogart) and his pal Nasir Aboud (Nick Dennis) are running guns to rebel leader Emir Hassan (Onslow Stevens). French General LaSalle (Everett Sloane) wants "an eye for an eye" after another of his patrols is ambushed. His Head of Intelligence Colonel Feroud (Lee J. Cobb) wants to negotiate with Hassan. He gets the General to agree to send in an emissary, Lt. Collet (Harry Guardino) to meet with the rebels and start peace negotiations.

When Collet is found murdered, Feroud rounds up the usual arms dealer suspects including Smith and forces them to sell their wares to the French. Harry agrees but as a measure of revenge, sets his sights on Violette (Marta Toren) who is Feroud's lady friend. Harry meets with Hassan's man to collect his last payment but is told not to return as his "services" are no longer required.

Harry attempts to leave Damascus with Violette but their bus is stopped. Harry escapes and Violette is captured. However, Feroud releases her and gives her a pass out of the city. When an informer Balukjian (Zero Mostel) obtains proof the Harry is supplying arms to the enemy, Harry becomes a wanted man.

Despondent over the loss of Violette, Feroud offers Harry a pass out of Damascus if he will arrange a meeting between himself and Hassan without LaSalle's knowledge. Feroud realizes that this will certainly result in his death. LaSalle learns of the scheme and implores Harry to arrange for Feroud's release for $10,000. Harry has plans to leave the city with Violette but reluctantly agrees to undertake the mission.

Together with Major Leon (Gerald Mohr) Harry approaches Hassan's headquarters and.............................................

This "film noire" was produced by Bogart's production company Santana and reminds one somewhat of "Casablanca" (1942). Bogey is somewhat of rogue in this one with few redeeming qualities. Toren makes a good "femme fatale" ultimately destroying the two men that love her. The picture has a dark tone, playing for the most part, as it does, at night in the rain swept streets and damp underground catacombs of 1925 Damascus.

Sloane and Mostel has appeared with Bogey in "The Enforcer" the same year. Cobb would appear with Bogey in "The Left Hand of God" (1955).

Entertaining film, better than some would have you believe.

Pre-blacklist casting

[rick-woods · 6/10 · 21 October 2005]

There's an interesting scene with Lee J. Cobb intimidating a grovelling Zero Mostel. In real life, Cobb succumbed to pressure from the House UnAmerican Activities Commission and named others in the entertainment industry who had "communist" affiliations. Mostel refused to give any information about anyone else, was blacklisted and was unable to work in the entertainment industry for almost a decade. Bogie's character initially acts only in his own self-interest, but subsequently does "the right thing" despite personal risk. In real life, Bogie was part of a group formed to oppose the HUAC, a group which quickly fell apart in disarray when the HUAC started to push back. Bogie started out doing "the right thing" but when personal risk loomed, quickly acted to protect his self-interest.

Decent exotic melodrama; ain't no Casablanca

[funkyfry · 6/10 · 27 November 2002]

Humphrey Bogart finds himself stuck in a war-torn city again -- except that this time he's in Syria and he's saddled with selfish "femme fatale" Toren. Lee J. Cobb plays the intelligence commander of the occupying French army (and Toren's lover), and he's a guy with a loose hold on his cool.

*******SPOILERS********

The film's rather unconvincing finale has Bogey once again sacrificing himself for the "right cause". Reinforces Bogey's direction at Santana towards playing strictly cynical ex-idealists who eventually find their way to the righteous path.

No chemistry between Toren and Bogart.

It was happening back then in Syria

[robert-temple-1 · 6/10 · 8 August 2012]

The first thing that needs to be said is that, although this film is supposed to be set in Syria, there is no sirocco wind in Syria. A sirocco (or scirocco), the word coming from the ancient Greek sirokos, comes off the Sahara, and nothing from the Sahara blows as far as Syria. There is a similar strong wind in Syria, but it is called the shluq. Moving on, as there is so much going on in Syria at the moment, I thought I would get Humphrey Bogart's take on it all. This film is pure Hollywood hokum, set in 'war-torn Syria' in 1925. Needless to say, it is all made in a Hollywood studio and there does not appear to be a real Arab in the cast. Bogart plays a gun-runner who falls for beautiful, mysterious Marta Toren, but she is Lee J. Cobb's gal, and Cobb is the head of military intelligence in Damascus, because Syria is under French occupation. Cobb doesn't like Bogart at the best if times, and these are not the best of times. The people to whom Bogart is selling the arms are the locals, who are 'fighting for their freedom' because 'we want to run our own country'. Well, look what a mess they made of that! Still, 'freedom' sounds good, even if it does lead to the Assad family in the end. Just so that everyone understands the background, I should explain that Syria was part of the Ottoman Empire and was ruled by the Turks until 1918, upon whom the French were a significant improvement. Because the Turks sided with the Krauts in the First World War, their empire, like the Austro-Hungarian one, got dismembered and divided up between the victors. The British got Iraq and the French got Syria and a new country which came to be called Lebanon. These countries were then called 'protectorates'. In fact, somebody had to take them over, as the Turks were thrown out. And if it weren't for Humphrey Bogart, we might never have had the Assads, and the tens of thousands of Syrians massacred by father and son of that family might not have died. Or at least, that is the Hollywood view. This film is mildly entertaining and has three interesting stars in it, but I would not really rate it as 'three star'.

Bogart B Movie

[Richard_vmt · 6/10 · 12 March 2012]

I would even say less than B if it were not Bogart. For Bogart fans, there is a certain amount of satisfaction, but it is hard to avoid criticism.

With Prohibition past and even WW11 gone, idealism is a short commodity and Bogart himself isn't getting any younger either, so that the character of Harry Smith is not the mingled wheeler-dealer and idealist of earlier Bogart, but seemingly closer to a vulgarian pig like so many others, wooing with blatant appeal to material goods. This is like Bogart without Bogart. In fact, Harry Smith is too tired looking to really make a foreign land seem romantic for that matter.

Also a dramatic mess is Lee J Cobb. Maybe it is just the hang of his uniform but he is not set up so much to be a tragic figure as an unappealing one. His act of self-sacrifice is nauseating rather than ennobling.

Then there is Violette, responsive to Bogart's materialistic approach. Marta Toren is so beautiful I am surprised she isn't more famous.

And I think this must have been the film Woody Allen saw when he started mocking the trench coat. Cobb and Bogart both look a little too solid in them.

Finally, the set is a little bit superficial. Fezes and shots of Byzantine copper ware practically covers it. Abbott and Costello might come around a corner any minute.

In sum I say, as a potential film to watch, it is interesting, in a nihilistic sort of way. It only lacks poetic justice.

CASABLANCA goes slumming

[charlytully · 6/10 · 25 July 2011]

Imagine, if actors became unstuck in time, that Charles Laughton had decided to follow up MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY's Bligh with Captain Queeg in THE CAINE MUTINY. Imagine Laurence Olivier had decided to top HAMLET with Travis Bickle in TAXI DRIVER. Imagine Marlon Brando had decided to follow his GODFATHER role with the title character in SCARFACE. Imagine Edward G. Robinson had taken the lead role in LITTLE NICKY to follow up LITTLE CAESAR. Imagine Robert de Niro trying to encore RAGING BULL with TIN CUP's Kevin Costner role. If you can picture any of these career missteps, you will get a good idea of how Humphrey Bogart soiled his portrayal of high-class slime-ball Rick in 1942's best picture, CASABLANCA, with his one-note unintentional spoof as "Harry Smith" that he phoned in on SIROCCO nine years later. Since Martha Toren as lone love interest Violette can't hold a candle to Ingrid Bergman's portrayal of Ilsa Lund in the earlier film, about the only redeeming grace in this 1951 misfire is the complex portrayal of relatively humane if fatalistic French Col. Feroud by Lee J. Cobb.

Unremarkable Thriller.

[rmax304823 · 5/10 · 7 July 2011]

This story of Bogart as a gun runner unwilling to commit himself is set in 1925 supposedly. A Western army of occupation runs an Islamic country in the Middle East and is in a constant battle with fervent but treacherous insurgents fighting an asymmetric war. And this is 1925. Not that anyone would know it was 1925, not judging from our contemporary circumstances or from the dress or demeanor of the performers in this movie.

The role of man in the middle, the disillusioned idealist, wasn't a new one for Bogart. He practically defined the role in "Casablanca" and repeated it several times after, as in "Key Largo." But here, he's disillusioned not by having seen where his earlier idealism has led but, as far as we can judge, from his betrayal by a wife. And it's turned him into an exceptionally bitter and irritable opportunist. He's rather a skunk, right up to the end in which he commits an act that isn't so much heroic but still involves courage.

Lee J. Cobb is the French colonel. He's fighting the insurgents who are being provided with weapons by Bogart. Cobb is also in love with Marta Toren and Bogart is trying to steal her away. Bogart's motives have nothing to do with love. There is, needless to say, considerable friction between Cobb and Bogart. Neither gets the lady because she's on her own trip.

Marta Toren made few movies and died at an early age but she was stunning. Although Swedish, she resembled the Italian Alida Valli -- the actress who loved Orson Welles in "The Third Man." Marta Toren really was a knockout. Whew! Her eyes were slanted at an alarming dihedral and each looked at the world from a slightly different angle. They were blue, with thin dark circles around the irises. They were eyes you could fall into.

The plot has a few moments of action that evoke real-life events, if anyone remembers Algiers. (The movie doesn't take sides. The Syrians slit your throat, but the French shoot you.) In an early memorable scene, a raggedy Syrian nationalist explodes three grenades in a café full of Europeans. It's to the director's credit that it takes the survivors several smoky minutes to shake themselves of dust and slowly recover from the blast. It's nicely photographed too, although the whole movie is shot effectively.

Outside of that the story is routine -- full of spies, intrigues, betrayal -- and generally a little unpleasant. That includes Bogart's character. In other films, enacting similar roles, Bogart always had a hidden spark of fundamental decency. He may be disillusioned -- "I stick my neck out for nobody" -- but he was basically just waiting for the right moral moment. Here, he's old and cranky throughout.

A Bogart hidden treasure..

[godamndevil1977 · 9/10 · 27 December 2004]

I totally enjoyed this film. I wasn't expecting much from what I had previously read (on here) and if you can try and not think about some of Bogart's other triumphs, this is a quick moving, interesting enough film with underlining truths..

Basically Bogart has been presented with a choice of doing right or wrong in a war torn city in Syria, trying to mind his own business and continue to profit himself with supplying guns to rebel fighters, he is steered towards helping the French. Of course this would also help him get out of the city and onto better places..but the story unveils complications for him..

Bogart's role is similar to his other characters but not entirely, he's definitely got that "cynic on the outside, but heart pointing in the right direction on the inside" thing going on.

Also, the film does have other strong roles, in particular the very beautiful Märta Torén as Violette, she trys to resist Bogart's outlaw charm but in the end like the rest of us, cant get enough..she is also a good choice of casting, definitely an unusual beauty about her with a presence to match.

My only glitch about this film and I noticed it right away, was that the French / Foreign army officers and in particular Everett Sloane as Gen. LaSalle speak with American and British accents. Could they not even try and break out in a French accent? What was the director thinking (You will notice in the glorious 'Casablanca', every nationality was played with the utmost truth to where they had come from, even a line or two in their given language)? However, overlooking that, this is a great film and I can't see why any Bogie fan would not dig it.

~paul browne.

A "Casablanca" it is not!

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 27 September 2013]

An old novel (Coup de Grace, 1931) offered Humphrey Bogart the type of tough Casablanca role that made his name. In fact, Bogey even wears his Casablanca trenchcoat. Alas, the character here doesn't have the redeeming virtues of Rick, despite his last-minutes change of heart. The resemblance, and the character himself, is too superficial. His end is a disappointment too. As the hero, co-star Lee J. Cobb cannot carry the film at all. In fact, he is miscast. He is too heavy, too dull. Producer Robert Lord had made good use of Bogey in The Black Legion but in this Sirocco he is totally wasted. On the other hand, the film does feature Marta Toren. Any movie with Marta Toren is a must-see movie in my book. Zero Mostel and Everett Sloane are present in this one too.

Beware the Bow Tie!

[zsenorsock · 4/10 · 28 May 2007]

There's a general rule to follow about Bogart films: if he's wearing a bow tie, its going to be a disappointment. "Sirocco" is no exception.

Even Bogart himself called this film "a mess". He wasn't wrong. There's a lot of pieces here that sound great--Bogart as Harry Smih, an arms merchant in Damascus--Everett Sloan as the French commandant--Lee J. Cobb as the French officer who's trying to bring peace while losing his woman to Bogart--catacombs, mysterious events--but it never comes together.

The script is just a confusion of parts and after watching it again, Bogart seems to be playing second fiddle to Lee J. Cobb. Never heard of Marta Toren? There's a reason. She may sound like Bergman, but she does not have any of Bergman's charm, talent or magnetism. She actually gets a bit grating at times. As for the direction, I can only say this director also directed "Conflict" another third rate Bogart film.

There is no romance, no heart to what happens to Harry Smith at the end of this either. If at least he would have had a meaningful exit, this film might have been worth watching. But instead, it fulfills the bow tie rule quite nicely and is not recommended for anyone but the most hard-core Bogart fans who have to watch everything he's in...(sigh)...like me.