DESTINATION GOBI is another desert-based WW2 movie, directed by Robert Wise - no stranger to the genre having made THE DESERT RATS - and featuring the ubiquitous Richard Widmark heading an otherwise undistinguished cast. This one's a little different, telling the true story of navy men running a weather research station in Mongolia, who find themselves under attack by the Japanese and who team up with Mongol forces to fight them.
I enjoy war films like this which are a little different from the norm, exploring theatres of war usually avoided in the popular books and films on the subject. DESTINATION GOBI isn't a great movie but it does keep you watching just to find out what happens. Widmark is a reliable lynch pin on which to hang the movie although the supporting cast disappoint, particularly the US actors pretending to be Mongolian which never works. There isn't a wealth of action here, but that which does occur is authentic (the plane attack is very well portrayed) and the suspense keeps you going until the end.
I enjoy war films like this which are a little different from the norm, exploring theatres of war usually avoided in the popular books and films on the subject. DESTINATION GOBI isn't a great movie but it does keep you watching just to find out what happens. Widmark is a reliable lynch pin on which to hang the movie although the supporting cast disappoint, particularly the US actors pretending to be Mongolian which never works. There isn't a wealth of action here, but that which does occur is authentic (the plane attack is very well portrayed) and the suspense keeps you going until the end.