1953 - SAADIA, another exotic film drama from the exotic Albert Lewin

 It's kind of amazing the director/writer Albert Lewin even had a career as a film director.  This was a guy who the phrase "high brow" films was synonymous with his name.  Saadia is a strange adventure/love story epic filmed in Morocco with an eccentric cast.

Rita Gam is the mysterious Saadia who is controlled by a witch who for 1953 clearly has repressed lesbian desires for her.  Mel Ferrer plays a French doctor in love with Saadia and Cornel Wilde in another odd ball piece of casting is the ruler of Morocco who is of course is also in love with Saadia.  It's sort of a four sided love triangle.

 

Throw in some middle eastern bandits who want to overthrow the kingdom of Morocco and you have kind of an action climax.  Frankly I don't know what this film is even remotely supposed to be about.  However it looks great thanks to Christopher Challis the cinematographer who had a long association photographing the films of  Powell and Pressburger.  

 

An interesting but weird film.  Unsurprisingly the film lost money.

Written by Albert Lewin, the running time is 82 minutes.