People these days. I have read some reviews of “The Guns of Navarone” and other such war action/adventure films on amazon.com, and some on here, where the reviewers treated it like they expected more then entertainment. Yes, the Germans were much smarter then they’re shown here. Yes, events and situations in this movie are extremely unlikely. And this movie is rather patriotic. But, let’s not forget that it was made in the United States less then twenty years after World War II. You would think that there’d be some propaganda slant. I’m sure if Germany won, they’d make the same movies, only the U.S would be the dumb ones. What really bugs me is how some of these uptight reviewers think the people whom made or like this movie are idiots. I hate to break it to you, but if you go into this and treat it like it should be a deep, philosophical Ingmar Bergman movie, rather then as escapist entertainment, you are the idiot! Regardless of how many masters degrees you have from Harvard.

Pardon me for the above remarks. I have this habit of being very angry. I should see a psychiatrist, but my parents think I'm perfectly normal (What a laugh). Excuse me while I take a deep cleansing breath.

Now that I feel much better, on to...
The review

What happens when you get three great, award winning actors (Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn), two great guns, which are the cornerstone of an (seemingly) impenetrable fortress, and one mission hell-bent on taking out those guns? Why you get the 1961 adventure classic “The Guns of Navarone”. Peck is Mallory, an experienced mountain climber who is fluent in German and Greek. He is to guide a commando team lead by Major Roy Franklin (Anthony Quayle) up a sheer cliff to the enemy zone on the island of Navarone. From there on, the team has to take out those two fortified German guns underneath a cliff, while Mallory gets to go home. However, a mishap during the climb causes Franklin to break his leg, putting Mallory in charge of the team. The other members of the team are demolition expert Corporal Miller (Niven), Greek soldier Colonel Andrea Stavros (Quinn), Private 'Butcher' Brown, an expert assassin (Stanley Baker) and another Greek soldier, Private Spyros Pappadimos (James Darren). The group, along with freedom fighters Maria Pappadimos (Irene Papas) and Anna (Gia Scholia) are captured by the Germans. But Andrea overpowers the German guards and the group escapes to carry out the mission. However, they are plagued by several problems, such as that the mission has to be completed in a matter of days and the fact that the Germans know that someone is on the island. Worse, Miller discovers that there is a traitor in the group.

One of the best virtues about this movie was how well developed the characters are. Mallory and Andrea, for example, are not on equal terms. Andrea’s wife and kids were killed and his house burned by some German soldiers whom Mallory had aided. Thus, Andrea has vowed to kill Mallory before the war’s end. His chance comes on the cliff, when Mallory slips and Andrea grabs on to his hand. Though Andrea has the opportunity to fulfill his promise, he knows he can’t survive without Mallory and vice versa. We also learn that “The Butcher” is fed up with the war. When he comes face to face with a wounded German, he hesitates to kill him. And Spyros, as we later learn, can’t get enough of killing. Unfortunately, he chooses the wrong time to stand his ground rather then retreat. Miller also talks the talk, but before he is told off by Mallory, he doesn’t do much fighting. The characters seem clichéd, I know. But formula is the only word in Hollywood’s dictionary, though there are exceptions.

Some have complaints about Miller’s actions to a statement Mallory makes to him and the rest of the group. The group had escaped from where they had been held. But, since Franklin is too injured to take along, he has been left behind at the base. Mallory devised a clever plan: The Germans will give the colonel medical attention, but will first give him a drug to make him talk. Mallory told Franklin that their mission orders were changed. There was to be a Turkish invasion of the island and the commandos were to cause confusion on the island, rather then attacking the guns. Miller has some doubts about this: What if the Germans don’t have the drug and resort to other methods? What if Franklin dies before talking? And what if the Germans don’t believe him? Some people complain because, when Franklin was initially injured, Miller gave them two choices: A). Take the colonel with them or B). Leave him for the Germans. Andrea added a third: Kill him. I think Miller wasn’t upset over Mallory choosing the second option. Rather, he was mad that Mallory had used Franklin, a good friend of his, and was putting all his eggs in one basket, knowing that the plan could backfire.

The acting I must also say a few words about. It is very good, for this kind of movie. Peck is a man whom could have left after he did his work, yet has to take over as leader. He’s the kind of person someone would want for a boss, a commander or a father. Niven is excellent, being humorous or dramatic when the moment comes. Particularly good are his scenes where he complains about Mallory’s plan (See the previous paragraph), his unmasking of the traitor and his speech before that. Quinn is good in about all his movies and this one is no exception.

The script is excellent in how it fools the audience. We think we know all the characters, but the unmasking of the traitor comes as a surprise, though it makes sense. We think Miller will plant explosives on the guns. But, he is smarter then that, knowing the Germans will inspect the weapons beforehand. There is also the wedding scene: At first, I thought Mallory and his team were off the hook by being there, but the Germans were just regrouping to put them in a spot.

I have only one minor complaint with the film: Though I don’t mind the dumb German tactics of this movie, I would have thought some German guards would be in the chamber where the guns were kept. But, the inside was deserted. Granted, there was a guard post outside along with several well armed troops, and the German high command had sent their troops to block the "Turkish invasion". Still, these are expensive, top secret guns that should have had some sentries on them.

Although the folks at ILM could probably do better, the special effects hold up pretty well for a forty-year-old. Particularly impressive is the storm that the fishing boat the team uses encounters. The only scene that really seems phony was the opening crash landing of a Lancaster bomber. If you look carefully in that scene, you’ll see that the plane “flying” in the background is hanging still! And the plane that crashes in the foreground looked like it was made of plastic. Was that scene done by the effects designer’s ten-year old?

The DVD

The DVD is a very good one, with fine audio and video for a forty-year old film, though the picture quality occasionally from scene to scene changes from clear to grainy to washed out to drab. But at least it's in Widescreen Anamorphic. The extras are a nice set as well and can raise one’s appreciation of this movie. “Memories of Navarone” is a half hour long documentary featuring interviews with Peck, Quinn, Director J. Lee Thompson and Darren. It has some interesting background into stuff that happened behind the camera, but could have had more insight and more interviewees (Papas and Robert Harris, who had a small part as an RAAF pilot, are still alive).

The four featurettes are traditional studio fluff that were made at the time to promote the movie. Still, they’re an interesting companion to the documentary. For example, “Great Guns” and “No Visitors” show how the Greek population favorably reacted to the filmmakers and how producer Carl Foreman was able to get assistance from the Greek government in the form of tanks, troops and various small artillery to use in the film. But “Honeymoon in Rhodes” and “Two Girls on the Town” aren’t as interesting, unless you want to see James Darren’s honeymoon and Irene Papas and Gia Scholia go shopping.

Other extras include a recorded message from Carl Foreman when the movie made it’s premiere in Sydney. But it’s not really anything special since it’s just him apologizing for not being able to make it to the premiere. It would have been nice if it was an interview instead, but I guess one was never recorded. There's also the original theatrical trailer (Along with a bonus one for “Behold a Pale Horse”, with Peck, Quinn and Omar Shariff) and filmographies for the director and three leads. I noticed some films missing from Peck’s file (“The Keys of the Kingdom”, “The Yearling” and “Twelve O’Clock High”, all of which he got unsuccessful Oscar nominations for).

The only extra I did not try out was Thompson’s audio commentary. From what I read, it’s an interesting, though rather dry, recording (Considering he’s a tired old man). He talks about such things like how this movie allows the characters and the tension to build before the climax and how many of today’s audiences would not like the pace of the cliff scaling scene. Basically, according to him, action movies have changed in the past 4 decades. I agree: Today, it’s less chat more splat.

Conclusion

Of course, there are some whom will watch this and have fun tearing it to shreds. Back in the 1960’s, before Cronkite’s broadcasts of the Tet Offensive in Vietnam, action war movies and novels flourished. Today, they seem overly sentimental and phony to us. This isn’t war, we say. War is something we regularly see in the Middle East or South Africa on CNN. It isn’t a fun thing. And social message Hollywood is quick to tell us that. Every war movie has to have “Saving Private Ryan” level of brutality and accuracy. I like those serious movies (“All Quiet on the Western Front” and “Paths of Glory”, made before “Private Ryan” and “Black Hawk Down”, made afterwards). But even I know when a movie is trying to make a serious statement or just wants to take you out of your life for a couple of hours. If I can understand that, at the tender age of fourteen, then so can someone who’s fifty.

Then again, I’ve never been in a war. And I hope I never will be.

Some trivia (Courtesy of the Internet Movie Database).

William Holden asked for $750,000 plus 10% of the gross to play Mallory. He was turned down and Gregory Peck was cast.

Original director was Alexander Mackendrick. Fired by Carl Foreman due to creative differences.

Anthony Quayle spent part of WWII in Albania organizing guerrilla forces.

David Niven wears a Rifle Brigade cap badge on his beret, the regiment he was commissioned into in WW2.

One of the Rhodian locations used in the film has been renamed "Anthony Quinn Bay" after the actor was reported to have bought property nearby.

The plot went through so many twists that Gregory Peck finally submitted his own version to Foreman: "David Niven really loves Tony Quayle and Gregory Peck loves Anthony Quinn. Tony Quayle breaks a leg and is sent off to hospital. Tony Quinn falls in love with Irene Papas, and David Niven and Peck catch each other on the rebound and live happily ever after." (Strangely, that's almost exactly how the movie turned out.)


Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD