Khartoum (1966)

Waste of time

To me, this movie is perfection.

Expected more

Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Considering recent events in Afghanistan (the Taliban) as well as in Syria and Iraq (ISIS), the events in the Sudan in the 1880s are resonate remarkably today. Once again the world finds itself confronted with Muslim fanaticism, and once again, seemingly, the world replies with little more than "gestures".This movie has been appreciated rather less than it deserves, probably due to the presence of Charlton Heston in the lead role. His English accent does leave something to be desired, especially when surrounded by such notable British actors as Richard Johnson, Nigel Green and the great Ralph Richardson. I won't even mention Sir Laurance Olivier in that regard since, in his remarkable performance as The Mahdi, he rendered himself almost unrecognizable.The one indispensable aspect Charlton Heston does bring to this film is his remarkable ability to stand out in an epic scene as few other actors can. When one produces an epic motion picture, the sort filmed on a grand scale with a cast of thousands, it is imperative that the central character should be the sort who can stand out among the multitudes. Few actors have been able to do that the way Charton Heston could. It was no accident that he was repeatedly cast as characters such as Moses, Ben Hur, El Cid, Chinese Gordon, etc.However, in spite of the epic scale and the cast of thousands, "Khartoum" is a battle of wills between three powerful individuals. The first is The Mahdi, a militant Muslim religious fanatic. The second was William Gladstone, the British Prime Minster who tried vainly to keep steer his country away from what he perceived as a disastrous foreign military entanglement in Africa. The third was General Charles "Chinese" Gordon, the unconventional soldier sent, as a gesture, by Gladstone to try to save the situation in the Sudan. It's a compelling story, and one that still resonates today more than ever. After seeing Khartoum, one can only hope that history doesn't repeat itself.

Khartoum tells the story of British general Sir Charles Gordon (Charlton Heston) who accepted the assignment of liberating English citizens and Egyptians from the Sudan city of Khartoum, which was being invaded by The Mahdi (Laurence Olivier) and his Arab forces.Directed by Basil Dearden and written by Robert Ardrey, Khartoum is an effective historical story piece that has wisely spent its budget to make it looks fabulous. Shot in Ultra Panavision and Technicolor on location in Egypt, it goes without saying that the film needs to be witnessed on the biggest screen available to you. As is normally the way in this type of film, historical accuracies come under scrutiny, to which Khartoum, except for a couple of major character meetings that never happened, is happy to hopefully entertain while it educates. But it's talky, very talky. Which while that works for those who like a touch of political intrigue in their historical epic diet, those more inclined to gorge on action over substance movies are sure to still be hungry come the end. What action there is is excellently choreographed by stunt coordinator Yakima Canutt, and as productions go, Khartoum is lavish and acted with no little skill by a fine cast (Ralph Richardson, Michael Horden & Nigel Green complementing Messrs Heston & Olivier).But Khartoum is something of an enigma in that it has a lot going for it yet it remains a genre piece that's hard to recommend with confidence. In fact it's very much like another of Heston's historical epic pictures, 55 Days at Peking, in that it has many fans yet is rarely spoke about in genre circles. Of course there's now issues in this day and age as regards races and how they are portrayed, so for the politically correct amongst us, it's probably best to avoid this "touchily topical" period in Heston's career. And while Ardrey's screenplay was nominated for an Academy Award, one can't help yearning for some more depth given to the lead players, Gordon & The Mahdi, as opposed to expansive conversations involving political machinations back in Blighty. However, its literary value is still very high, which when coupled with the magnificent visual touches (Edward Scaife on cinematography duties) make it a genre piece of note; to the discerning observer that is.A mixed bag for sure, but it doesn't waste the money afforded it, while it's certainly far better than some of the silly and shallow epics that came our way post 1970. So a cautionary 7/10.

If you watch this film with modest expectations, you will probably like it fairly well. It's not "Lawrence of Arabia," not even in the same ballpark; I mention this because I think "Khartoum" got made because of the success of "Lawrence" a couple of years earlier. (Both films depict obsessed and quite weird Brits in the desert.)"Khartoum" is much too flat and talky, but it definitely has its moments. Olivier's performance as the Mahdi is stunning, unforgettable, filmdom's greatest depiction ever of a radical Islamic fundamentalist who's convinced he can rule the world. The performance is actually far more relevant today than in 1966, when it probably struck many viewers as quaint, an artifact of a bygone era. I don't know if Larry got an Oscar nomination for his work here; if not, shame on the Academy.The battle sequence at the end is good but it's over far too quickly - the whole darn movie points toward it, and then boom, it's done in maybe 10 minutes - it could have been stretched out to twice as long. (I suppose the filmmakers were more interested in historical accuracy than in dramatic zest; this is often a mistake in films.) The spoken words at the very end are spine-chillingly inspiring if you've got a romantic bent; if you're a hard-headed political realist, they probably will strike you as cheesy. I consider myself a romantic realist so I sorta liked 'em. If you get interested in Gordon (the Charlton Heston character), Lytton Strachey wrote a classic profile of him in "Eminent Victorians" that you might enjoy reading. One more word about Olivier's performance. It strikes some people as hammy and over-the- top. In fact, the Mahdi himself was hammy and over-the-top in the manner of people who (a) believe they are anointed by God and (b) wish to lead superstitious and susceptible warriors into battle and need to generate a certain awe. The Mahdi was an actor as much as anything. Olivier perfectly captures this quality.

A great romp, camp galore, starring a multi-gorgeous-uniformed, shining young Charlton Heston as Gen Gordon and a walnut-colored Laurence Olivier as his opponent The Mahdi. Stupendous walk-ons of Prime Minister Gladstone and other chin-whiskered VIPs in the House of Commons -- this flick can be enjoyed either high or sober, according to the viewer's taste.One of many high points is Gordon's triumphal entry into Khartoum, which may be where Paul Wolfowitz got his fantasy about how US forces would be welcomed into Baghdad after liberating it from Saddam Hussein. Too bad life did not imitate art in this case. If you want a greatly entertaining epic about paternalistic imperialism (or just over-the-top design of military uniforms), this flick's for you!