I remember seeing this movie as a kid and pretty bored I was, but having recently caught it on the BBC I was surprised how good it really is.
Movie's basic outline concerns the development of the German V-1 and V-2 weapons and the subsequent allied attempt to infiltrate the underground factories at Peenemünde, where most of these these so-called `Vergeltungswaffen' ('revenge' weapons) were assembled
Richard Anderson is the British government top official who puts a team together- Peppard, Kemp and Courtenay- posing as Dutch engineers volunteering to work for the Reich.
As the spystory itself is undoubtedly heavily fictionalised the rest is pretty historically accurate. Movie has an elaborate script featuring a plot full of twists and loopholes. instead of relying on big battle scenes or derring-do. Which is probably the reason why it was a bit ignored by the public and critics alike on its release. Moviegoers were expecting some straightforward war epic as "The battle of the Bulge", "The Heroes of Telemark" or "Von Ryan's Express", all released in 1965, with plenty of action but seriously lacking in the historic credibility department.
(spoiler ahead) Actors are solid but watch out for Anthony Quayle as an unusually shrewd German counterintelligence officer and the fact that some of the main stars get killed halfway the movie. Special effects in recreating the V-weapons and their subsequent effect on London are, definitly for that time, very well executed.
There are several subplots, one involving Sophia Loren, but most interesting is the one with famous female Nazi test-pilot Hannah Reitsch (Barbara Rütting), as what must be only time she is personified on the big screen. Movie claims she actually had to test flight the V1, which was a not more then a flying bomb but the Germans first wanted to use it as some sort of semi-kamikaze contraption, with the pilot bailing out at the last minute. After several killed pilots they wisely opted for a simple unmanned version. These were launched en masse at London and other already liberated European cities. Incidentally, the biopic `The Glen Miller Story' (1954) has an important scene with Miller's orchestra playing while being under attack of several V1's. Quite another beast was the V2, a real ballistic missile and a 'wonder' weapon if there ever was one. It was capable of going up in to the stratosphere and remained undetected by radar and reaching speeds of up to 2 mach and at that time impossible to detect and to shoot down. A few hundreds were launched and did some important damage to major supply lines (especially the vital Belgian port of Antwerp) but never seriously endangered the allied offensives. The later ICBM's carrying nuclear warheads are all based on the V2.
(major spoiler ahead) Finally the produces must have realised they had tot put some action sequences in it to justify the star cast and budget resulting in a very Bondlike action sequence trying to prevent, with the help of Bomber Command, a test flight of an improved V2 capable of reaching New York (!).
The British actually bombed Peenemunde several times, which seriously delayed construction time and was instrumental in moving almost the whole plant underground (as most German heavy industry after 1943).
British Director Michael Anderson is best-known for another WWII tale `The Dam Busters', also the SF-epic `Logan's Run' and the TV-series `The Martian Chronicles' He was active until 2000,still turning out the occasional TV-movie.
George Peppard and Jeremy Kemp would team up again next year in the spectacular `The Blue Max' this time not involving rockets but WWI flying crates.
See OC in its original Cinemascope format. Sadly the BBC choose to air in the so-called 'pan-and-scan'version, seriously harming the colour and perspective.
If you like this try `The battle of Britain'.
I gave it an 8.
Movie's basic outline concerns the development of the German V-1 and V-2 weapons and the subsequent allied attempt to infiltrate the underground factories at Peenemünde, where most of these these so-called `Vergeltungswaffen' ('revenge' weapons) were assembled
Richard Anderson is the British government top official who puts a team together- Peppard, Kemp and Courtenay- posing as Dutch engineers volunteering to work for the Reich.
As the spystory itself is undoubtedly heavily fictionalised the rest is pretty historically accurate. Movie has an elaborate script featuring a plot full of twists and loopholes. instead of relying on big battle scenes or derring-do. Which is probably the reason why it was a bit ignored by the public and critics alike on its release. Moviegoers were expecting some straightforward war epic as "The battle of the Bulge", "The Heroes of Telemark" or "Von Ryan's Express", all released in 1965, with plenty of action but seriously lacking in the historic credibility department.
(spoiler ahead) Actors are solid but watch out for Anthony Quayle as an unusually shrewd German counterintelligence officer and the fact that some of the main stars get killed halfway the movie. Special effects in recreating the V-weapons and their subsequent effect on London are, definitly for that time, very well executed.
There are several subplots, one involving Sophia Loren, but most interesting is the one with famous female Nazi test-pilot Hannah Reitsch (Barbara Rütting), as what must be only time she is personified on the big screen. Movie claims she actually had to test flight the V1, which was a not more then a flying bomb but the Germans first wanted to use it as some sort of semi-kamikaze contraption, with the pilot bailing out at the last minute. After several killed pilots they wisely opted for a simple unmanned version. These were launched en masse at London and other already liberated European cities. Incidentally, the biopic `The Glen Miller Story' (1954) has an important scene with Miller's orchestra playing while being under attack of several V1's. Quite another beast was the V2, a real ballistic missile and a 'wonder' weapon if there ever was one. It was capable of going up in to the stratosphere and remained undetected by radar and reaching speeds of up to 2 mach and at that time impossible to detect and to shoot down. A few hundreds were launched and did some important damage to major supply lines (especially the vital Belgian port of Antwerp) but never seriously endangered the allied offensives. The later ICBM's carrying nuclear warheads are all based on the V2.
(major spoiler ahead) Finally the produces must have realised they had tot put some action sequences in it to justify the star cast and budget resulting in a very Bondlike action sequence trying to prevent, with the help of Bomber Command, a test flight of an improved V2 capable of reaching New York (!).
The British actually bombed Peenemunde several times, which seriously delayed construction time and was instrumental in moving almost the whole plant underground (as most German heavy industry after 1943).
British Director Michael Anderson is best-known for another WWII tale `The Dam Busters', also the SF-epic `Logan's Run' and the TV-series `The Martian Chronicles' He was active until 2000,still turning out the occasional TV-movie.
George Peppard and Jeremy Kemp would team up again next year in the spectacular `The Blue Max' this time not involving rockets but WWI flying crates.
See OC in its original Cinemascope format. Sadly the BBC choose to air in the so-called 'pan-and-scan'version, seriously harming the colour and perspective.
If you like this try `The battle of Britain'.
I gave it an 8.