This film, based on a book by Alistair MacLean, is set in 1943. Two thousand allied troops are trapped on the Greek island of Kheros and it is known that the Germans are planning to take the island in a show of force hoping to bring neutral Turkey into the war on their side. Six Royal Navy destroyers are to mount a rescue mission... there is just one problem; the Germans have a pair of massive anti-shipping guns on the island of Navarone that would decimate the ships. It is decided to send in a small team of commandos to destroy the guns; a nearly impossible mission. The group is to reach the island disguised as Greek fishermen before joining up with members of the local resistance. Inevitably the mission will not be easy and there will be several setbacks and encounters with the Germans before they get close to their target.
This is a classic film of its era and is still exciting today. Early scenes introduce us to the key characters and their mission. Once the action gets started it seldom lets up for long as our heroes face a variety of challenges. Each of these is suitably different with action on sea and land, with shooting, stabbing and explosions; none of which is graphic enough to make it unsuitable for younger viewers. Inevitably it is a little far-fetched but that doesn't matter as it is tense enough to stop one thinking of such things while watching. While it is, for the most part, predictable there are some surprises to be had. The cast which includes the likes of Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn and Anthony Quayle does a fine job making their characters believable; the Greek locations used add to that impressively. At two and a half hour in length one might think it would drag but it doesn't... in fact when it was over I thought I must have seen a shorter cut but I hadn't! Overall a must see for fans of Second World War action of all ages.
This is a classic film of its era and is still exciting today. Early scenes introduce us to the key characters and their mission. Once the action gets started it seldom lets up for long as our heroes face a variety of challenges. Each of these is suitably different with action on sea and land, with shooting, stabbing and explosions; none of which is graphic enough to make it unsuitable for younger viewers. Inevitably it is a little far-fetched but that doesn't matter as it is tense enough to stop one thinking of such things while watching. While it is, for the most part, predictable there are some surprises to be had. The cast which includes the likes of Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn and Anthony Quayle does a fine job making their characters believable; the Greek locations used add to that impressively. At two and a half hour in length one might think it would drag but it doesn't... in fact when it was over I thought I must have seen a shorter cut but I hadn't! Overall a must see for fans of Second World War action of all ages.