Terrific Stuff!

Rating: 10/10 (22 April 2003)

Epic war pic where Richard Burton and Clint Eastwood manage to unmask most of the German spy network in England, slip Jerry the wrong plans for the second front, kill the leading members of the Abwehr in Southern Bavaria, and destroy half of the local Wehrmacht- all in a little over two hours. Terrific score by Ron Goodwin, great action sequences and a commanding performance by Burton give this the "must see" imprimateur. Meanwhile it's obvious why the Nazis lost the war- since they rate one worse than Imperial Stormtroopers in the "can't hit the broadside of a barn" shooting stakes. Our plucky Allied troops more or less shoot themselves out of anywhere and anything....
However the radio call-sign "Broadsword calling Danny Boy" is now part of British folklore; the cable-car sequence is unmatched in spectacle; and the whole film makes you cheer up and feel better about the world. For once the Brits are portrayed as cooly proficient rather than public school chumps. What with the Yanks playing second fiddle, it's almost like the good old days ....