NINE MEN is one of the earliest 'desert war' films I've ever seen, and the plot is very familiar from those films which came later. It involves a small squad of soldiers, trekking through North Africa, who are besieged by Italian forces and forced to take refuge in an old building. The film then follows their struggle to survive against superior forces. It's an okay watch, made with the typical strong production values of Ealing Studios, but the cast is undistinguished (aside from a youthful Gordon Jackson) and there's not quite enough excitement given the perilous situation in which our characters find themselves.

Sergeant Jack Lambert (Sergeant Watson) recounts a personal story to his new recruits who are crying out for action at a British army training camp. His story concerns an occasion when he was isolated in the African desert in a unit of 9 men. They stumbled across a small derelict shelter during a sand storm and, from this location, they held off against Italian troops who came calling.Lambert is trying to instil a British mentality that gives a little bit extra and that is conveyed by the phrase "umpetty poo", which itself is a terribly unfunny reworking of the French "un petit peu". It sounds similar once it is pointed out to you but it really is quite desperate and unimaginative. Still, Lambert does prove himself in the imagination department as his story is clearly made up. Those 9 guys would be dead in reality.The Italians are portrayed as wine-loving cowards and we get to see them running away on a few occasions as our British troops whoop like girls pretending to be larger in number than 9. It's just too much for the Italians – "whoop" "whoop". The film is OK as it goes but there is something lacking.

At the beginning of this film there is a lot of detail in the acting that could be easily missed. The story is mainly told in flash back, and the tension is held though out the whole time. Many of the first time audience must have saw this film bearing in mind that people they know, husbands and sons were fighting - doing their bit for king and country. The photography is well done, the acting is a bit rough in places but some how the the whole thing hangs together. There is no women cast in the film simply because the subject matter. I wonder how many more gems like this are hiddening in the vaults waiting to be converted to DVD.

This suspenseful film only runs 68 minutes, but it is packed with enough events for two full length films. 9 British soldiers on a convoy through the desert find themselves stuck when the Italians blow up their truck. The convoy moves on without them. The Brits trek trough the sand until they find an ancient hovel. There they hold out while being sieged by the Italians. Low on ammunition and water, they make it seem as if they have 40 men inside their little fort with plenty of ammo. Like the similar Sahara, they have to use their wits to survive. This all British production is a little known gem with many rewards. Look for a young Gordon Jackson of "The Great Escape." A must see for all fans of WWII films. Rating: 7 out of 10.