Mission in Morocco (1959)

User Rating:

3.9/10   

Directors:

Carlos Arévalo
Anthony Squire

Writers:

Ken Annakin (dialogue)
Carlos Arévalo (story)

Genre:

Crime

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Beautiful Woman | Morocco

Cast

Lex Barker	...	Bruce Reynolds
Juli Reding	...	Carol Sampson
Fernando Rey	...	Princ Achmed
Silvia Morgan	...	Marian Palos
Alfredo Mayo	...	Major Selim Naruf
Juan Antonio Riquelme
Félix Dafauce
Miguel Ángel Rodríguez
Archibald L. Lyall
Juan Olaguivel
Miguel Del Castillo

Also Known As:

Misión en Marruecos (Spain)

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

USA | Spain

Language:

Spanish | English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Tangiers, Tangier-Tétouan, Morocco

Company:

Hispamer Films

okay UK-Spanish mystery w/ Lex Barker in Morocco

This British/Spanish co-production stars Lex Barker as an oil company executive working out of Spain who learns that one of his colleagues on a secret mission in Morocco is killed. The films starts off well with a number of children playing on the beach finding the body, and Barker and his fiancée Juli Reding (perhaps best known from TORMENTED). There is some nice location photography (in crisp B&W), and the minimal sets should not bother any low-budget film fan. The overall feel of the film is not unlike the "international co-production" crime-spy TV shows of the 1950s or the typical 1950s b&w Euro crime/mystery film with an American star such as George Raft or Lloyd Bridges or Cameron Mitchell. Barker is required to look handsome, act concerned, and win a few fights, all of which he does well, while Juli Reding (with her wide-set eyes, she's a very distinctive looking lady, vaguely reminiscent of Jayne Mansfield) does not get to show the dramatic range here that she did in TORMENTED--she's mostly playing the traditional "girlfriend of hero" role. The great Fernando Rey is also featured in a large supporting role. While this is no all-time classic, it certainly does not deserve the two-star rating it currently has here on the IMDb. The script does not contain any overly clever plot twists, but it's a competent piece of work that should hold its own alongside any of the TV episodes or Euro genres mentioned above. Barker is always worth watching to his fans, and he is well-presented here, and Ms. Reding's filmography is so small that any fan of TORMENTED will want to see her here. This was issued in the US in the early 90s on a Republic Pictures Video VHS tape that is widely available used and as a cutout for a few bucks. I paid $2 for mine, and it was a pleasant way to spend 85 minutes after a long week. And next to the crap at the local multiplex or reality-TV shows, Mission in Morocco looks pretty darn good!