Desert Legion

Desert Legion with Alan Ladd and Arlene Dahl, from Universal in 1953. Like Lost Horizons, this film has a hidden valley paradise with its leader growing old and looking for a replacement. Captain Paul Lartal (Alan Ladd) serving with the French Foreign Legion in North Africa leads his men in search of the notorious outlaw, Omar Ben Khalif. His men are ambushed in the mountains, and he’s left for dead, but awakes in a tent treated by the beautiful Morjana (Arlene Dahl). He is later found wondering in the desert by the Legion, and tells the story of the beautiful woman. He wants to return to the mountains and capture Khalif, but is refused orders to do so, and takes a corporal with him, returning to find Morjana. It is a good movie with plenty of action, but not as powerful as his portrayal in Shane, from Paramount in the same year.