Le Désert des Tartares (1976)
Directed by Valerio Zurlini

Film Review

Adapted from Dino Buzzati's novel of the same title, Le Désert des Tartares is the last film from the great (and sadly underrated) Italian film director Valerio Zurlini, who is best known for his films Violent Summer (1959) and Family Diary (1962). It is also one of his more impressive films, presenting a starkly vivid portrayal of one man's experiences as an ordinary soldier living under extreme pressures.

Like David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia (1962), it is the breathtaking photography of the vast expanse of desert which gives the film its scale, visual splendour and dreamlike poetry, but it also accentuates the vulnerability of those charged with defending the fortress, particularly the central character, the unfortunate Lieutenant Drogo.  We do not just see the man's mental disintegration - which is pretty moving in its own right - but we understand what is causing it.

The film's length is a little off-putting, particularly when most of the narrative is taken up with the endless waiting game the soldiers have to endure.  Although, for the most part, this sense of ennui is conveyed with some beautiful and melancholic photography of the countryside, the film does occasionally resort to irritating padding, such as protracted and repetitive introductions.  Familiar faces such as Jean-Louis Trintingant and Philippe Noiret offer some light relief in some impressive but minor character roles, but it is left to the lesser known but equally capable actor Jacques Perrin to carry the film in his role as Drogo, much as he had done in other military themed dramas - La 317e section (1965) and L'Honneur d'un capitaine (1982). Le Désert des Tartares does outstay its welcome slightly, but strong performances and some impressive visuals make it an ordeal that is fairly easily endured.

Film Synopsis

A young soldier, Lieutenant Drogo, is assigned to a remote desert fortress, which is manned by a small army against the possibility of an invasion from Tartar nomads.   There hasn't been an attack for decades, and Drogo soon grows bored of the tedium of waiting for action which never comes...