Force 10 from Navarone [Blu-ray]

You really cannot go wrong with any movie that stars Robert Shaw, Harrison Ford, Barbara Bach and Edward Fox and this movie - although blasted by the critics upon its release - really is a great action adventure war movie. In fact the Jimmy Carter White House picked the movie only weeks before its December 1978 opening to be the Thanksgiving movie to be screened at Camp David.The movie was previously released on DVD in 2000 in what was a simply horrible transfer with scratches and print dirt all over the place. Even so I would watch it over and over again, reveling in a 1978-era nostalgia when, as a seven-year-old, I would sit in the local town hall (which once a month was converted into a movie theater) wowed by the action unfolding on the screen.The problems with that release have been mostly rectified for this Blu-ray release which is simply pristine in comparison. It's not the best Blu-ray release I have ever seen, with a large degree of softness and some grain but it does a good job recreating the film stock of the time and is certainly the best the movie has ever looked since its 1978 theatrical release. The Yugoslavian scenery in particular is breathtaking. I did not notice any of the problems that plagued the DVD release and, hey, who can argue with a Blu-ray that features the impossibly beautiful Bach in high definition :)Many saw this film as a disappointment due to its attachment to 1961's The Guns of Navarone, but if it is taken up on its own merits then one can see that this is really nothing more than a fun movie for funs sake, a much lighter tone with no serious character studies here, and the movie is all the better for it.The movie gets its title from the Alistair MacLean book of the same name, but bears little resemblance to the actual narrative of the novel. In fact the differences are so apparent that MacLean would go on to loosely adapt part of the screenplay into his 1982 book "Partisans". Initially there had been plans to film this movie shortly after the 1961 original with Gregory Peck and David Niven reprising their roles. Following the success of the original movie producer Carl Foreman asked MacLean to write a hardcover sequel novel on which a follow-up film would be based, but the author was reluctant to write an entire novel and instead delivered a screen treatment. The film was announced for 1967 but after the script got bogged down in studio development hell MacLean decided to develop the screen treatment as a book and "Force 10 From Navarone" was published in 1968.Throughout the 1970s Foreman tried to get enough financial backing for the movie and eventually patched together enough money to finance the production from no fewer than five different international sources. But by the time the movie finally went before the cameras (some 17 years after the original) it was thought that Peck and Niven were too old and the decision was made to recast. In an interesting footnote to this theory Peck and Niven would team up two years later in the excellent World War II action adventure "The Sea Wolves" in which the two actors played retired veterans seeking one last hurrah, by covertly blowing up a German ship in the neutral Portuguese harbor of Goa in India.Bond fans will notice a number of actors in this movie that had already occupied roles in the Bond franchise or would go on to appear in the series. In addition to Shaw (from "From Russia With Love"), Bach (who was fresh off playing the Russian spy Anya Amasova in "The Spy Who Loved Me"), and Edward Fox (who would go on to play M in the rogue 007 movie "Never Say Never Again") there is also Bach's co-star from "The Spy Who Loved Me" Richard Kiel, who was riding high as somewhat of a cultural icon (hey, he appeared in a Shredded Wheat TV commercial) after playing perhaps the most famous 007 henchman Jaws.The Bond connections do not stop there, George MacDonald Fraser worked as a script doctor after Ian Bannen left the production. Fraser would go on to write the screenplay for the 1983 007 movie "Octopussy."I suppose the Bond connection is most apparent in the choice of director with "Goldfinger"'s director Guy Hamilton handling the honors. His sure direction shows his usual flair and expertise handling action that he so ably previously demonstrated in (perhaps the best of the early James Bond movies) the aforementioned "Goldfinger" and the World War II drama "Battle of Britain." Hamilton does succumb to some espionage cliches at times, such as when one of the characters stumbles across the traitor sending a message, but all of these instances are handled capably and add to the familiar nature of the plot.As already mentioned the plot of the movie is also very different from the MacLean book, but some good Boy's Own adventure that actually flows slightly better than its literary namesake. Shaw (in his last movie role) plays Mallory (yes the same character that Peck played in the original) and he and Fox's character (who was played by Niven in the original) are sent into Yugoslavia to identify and kill a traitor from the first movie. So, they hop a ride along with Force 10 (headed by Ford's character) who are headed to the same location with the mission of destroying a key, strategic bridge. Of course things do not go entirely to plan, and soon the action begins to come thick and fast. An interesting piece of trivia I discovered when researching this movie is that the bridge over the Tara River was actually destroyed by partisans in 1942 with the original engineer that built the bridge involved in the operation to destroy it.Filmed on location in Yugoslavia (with members of Tito's Yugoslav army playing both partisans and German soldiers), England and Malta the crew had to endure freezing temperatures and even a rash of kidnapping that led producers to limit the actors movements. Shepperton Studios in England (where the original had also been filmed) provided four soundstages for interiors to include a full mock-up of an original World War II Lancaster bomber plane, and the largest studio tank in Europe (at the Mediterranean Film Studios in Malta) was used to film the movie climax with a $1 million miniature dam.As previously noted the critics almost universally hated the movie and the moviegoing audience did not warm to it either with the $10 million production only bringing in $7.2 million during its U.S. theatrical run. Matters were probably not helped when the U.S. distributor American International Pictures trimmed the picture down from 126 minutes to 118 minutes and redubbed some of the scenes prior to the movies release, with an impersonator performing the duties for the late Robert Shaw. However in the 30-plus years since its release the movie has developed a cult following among World War II movie buffs.In an interesting footnote, Columbia Pictures was the defendent in a 2008 lawsuit brought by the estates of the late producers of the film Carl Foreman, Sidney Cohn and Oliver Unger and surviving producer Peter Gettinger over unpaid money from distribution rights. The New York Supreme Court found in favor of the producers, saying they were entitled to funds that had been witheld for over 30 years by Columbia Pictures.The one negative towards this Blu-ray release is the lack of special features. All we get is a trailer for the movie whereas the original DVD release featured a sketch (hidden as an "easter egg"), a collectible booklet with trivia notes and two different cuts of the movie.This movie would get a lot more respect if it didn't have the name "Navarone" attached to it. It's rather strange that a movie which received such a hostile critical reception and low takings at the box office should be one of the early catalog titles in the lives of both the DVD and Blu-ray formats (three years for DVD and just over two years for Blu-ray) and before the original "Guns of Navarone," but as a fan of the movie I am happy to be able to watch "Force 10 From Navarone" in all its high definition goodness. Incidentally here's hoping that 1961's "Guns of Navarone" gets a Blu-ray release soon :)

The impossible would be to make a sequel to "The Guns of Navarone" 17 years after "Guns" was released. If you liked "Guns" you'll probably like this one equally. Well, almost.

Everything that can go wrong for the heroes--does go wrong for them--in "Goldfinger" director Guy Hamilton's "Force 10 from Navarone," an above-average, atmospheric, $10-million dollar, World War II tale of espionage and adventure based on Alistair MacLean's exciting bestseller. Remember, MacLean wrote "Where Eagles Dare." Unfortunately, "Force 10 from Navarone" isn't as superlative as its source novel and many of its problems spring from the unfortunate fact that 20 years elapsed before the filmmakers brought it to get it to the screen. "Force 10" features a first-rate cast with Robert Shaw taking over the Gregory Peck role, Edward Fox replacing David Niven as the explosives expert, both of whom are joined by Carl Weathers of "Rocky" fame, Barbara Back and Richard Kiel from the James Bond movie "The Spy Who Loved Me." "The Long Ships" lenser Christopher Challis captures all this larger-than-life action with his widescreen photography. "Where Eagles Dare" & "633 Squadron" composer Rod Goodwin supplies an exhilarating as well as suspenseful orchestral score.The instant that Robert Shaw and his commandos parachute into the Balkans, the British R.A.F. Lancaster bomber that they commandeered after a hard-knuckled fist fight with M.P.s blows up. No sooner than they land behind enemy lines than they find themselves prisoners about to be shot as spies by the villainous Nazis. Only at the last possible moment do our valiant heroes triumph over well-nigh impossible odds. They confront the same perils--in a sense--that Hercules faced when he hacked off the Hydra's head, only to see two more heads grow back to replace the one that he'd cut off.Aside from a decapitation scene and the sadistic beating that Richard Kiel gives Barbara Bach, "Force 10 from Navarone" is a stylized fantasy in the superb tradition of the World War II propaganda combat movies that Errol Flynn made at Warner Brothers between 1942 and 1945. Although scores of men die, bloodletting is kept to a minimum. Take the heroes: a stout bunch of lads with clenched jaws and uncompromising virtue. Or the villains: a ruthless pack of devils that outnumber the good guys 100 to one. Nevertheless, despite the suicidal odds, our resourceful heroes carry out their mission, but not without considerable trouble. Sadly, Alistair MacLean's thrilling novel loses much of its panache in Robin Chapman's script. While Chapman's script keeps most of the plot intact (yes, they destroy a bridge by blasting a dam to smithereens), he has rewritten many scenes, eliminated several important characters, and added some--like Carl Weather's African-American sergeant.Director Guy Hamilton encores explosive footage from director J. Lee Thompson's "The Guns of Navarone" to remind us that "Force 10" qualifies as a sequel. The movie opens with a map to establish the geography of the setting accompanied by stirring narration: "Deep in the heart of the Aegean Sea lies the island of Navarone. In 1943, it stood poised like a knife in the Allies' side." Hamilton keeps the action crackling and never allows the clutter of the plot--Major Keith Mallory (Shaw) and Corporal Dusty Miller (Fox) must identify a traitor as well as help out Lieutenant Colonel Mike Barnsby (Harrison Ford of "Star Wars") and his survivor blow up the bridge. In the book, Mallory and Miller were sent in to destroy the bridge and there was no Lt. Colonel Barnsby.To his credit, Hamilton has enlisted a persuasive cast, convincing special effects, and the actual setting of the action: scenic Yugoslavia. In his last role, Robert Shaw gives a hearty performance as Mallory. Edward Fox is simply delightful as the 'vetty' British explosives expert. When he observes the bridge that Barnsby has been sent to blow up, he observes that the force of the charges won't "seriously inconvenience" the Nazis."Force 10 from Navarone" is a seriously underrated World War II feature film. It is really a shame that they didn't letterbox both copies of the movie.

Forget about what well known movie reviews sites say about this film about being a war film with no nudity it's wrong. Sitting down with my wife I was very surprised to see a scene where Barbara Bach stands up from her bath topless. I had to explain to my wife that wasn't what I was expecting. . . The film and sound quality are ok but not amazing. Some of the close-ups, especially of Robert Shaw are clear and sharp. The story itself is good and unpredictable (for me). Some things never get explained and there are lots of goofs in the film which while fairly obvious didn't spoil it as the pace moves along. Some unexpected surprises as well and that other well known movie site didn't mention a decapitation amongst the list of violence (even thought this is a war film). So, quite a good action film of good quality that despite its many flaws still works well, and I guess a 'must' for fans of Barbara Bach.

If you like Force 10, then this special edition is a must. A good heap of bonus material is added along with two versions of the film. One of the bonus documenties is comparing the differences between the two versions of the film - very interesting.

Newly remastered in 2K from the original negatives, this includes 2 cuts of the film. Picture quality is very good. Indicator have done a good job cleaning up as much as possible. Sound quality is decent too.Good extras with an excellent 40 page booklet! Highly recommended if you like this film. 10/10 for the packaging and contents.

Force 10 From Navarone is a lazy and (very) belated sequel from the will-this-do? school of filmmaking right at the tail-end of the Alistair MacLean `genre.' After this and the barely released Bear Island, it was straight to video for future adaptations. Not that this bears much resemblance to his novel, or even the original film, with Gregory Peck and David Niven replaced by a slumming it Robert Shaw and Edward Fox, more King Edwaaahhhrrrdddd than the Jackal here. They're sent to Yugoslavia to identify and kill the traitor who `blew them' on Navarone - pretty tricky since he's changed from the rat-like Tutte Lemkow into the I'm-too-sexy-for-my-`tache-and-don't-I-know-it Franco Nero - tagging along with a remarkably stilted and uncomfortable young Harrison Ford as the least convincing colonel in the US army who has been sent there to blow up a bridge with his small force of Rangers (you'll never guess their code number). Naturally they end up doing each others jobs, going through the usual run of captures, escapes, bluffs, double-crosses, traitors within, shooty bang-bangs and big explosions (here a dam rather than big guns), all shot as functionally as possible by a complacent Guy Hamilton to the accompaniment of Ron Goodwin's jolly and catchy score.Fellow Bond veterans Richard Kiel and Barbara Bach are along for the ride, the latter briefly getting out her jubblies for no good reason other than keeping the dads dragged to see this by their kids happy, though Michael Byrne's bemused Nazi probably makes the biggest impression in the supporting cast. Not a disaster, and possibly one of the few films shot in Yugoslavia that's actually set there (Tito gets a name check in the script for providing the tanks and extras), but it has the feel of an episode of Garrisons Guerrillas with an only slightly higher budget thanks to Hamilton's uninspired use of the resources at his disposal. Still, if you set your expectations low there's still some old-fashioned undemanding fun to be had.Unlike the US DVD, this doesn't include the shorter US cut (the differences are outlined in Bristol Film Buff's excellent review here) or the theatrical trailer, but offers much better picture quality with a more than acceptable 2.35:1 transfer with a clear mono soundtrack which seems all the more impressive compared to the poor NTSC version, which has so much digital noise and edge enhancement that it frequently looks like it was shot in a sleet storm. (The US Bluray has a better transfer of the uncut version with a teaser trailer stressing all the hit movies the stars and director made but is Region A locked and doesn't include the shorter US cut).

Not a patch on the original, but it's okay. Fun to watch for its old meets new Hollywood, with lots of familiar faces. Robert Shaw gives a rather anomalous performance however, which rather undermines the film's gravity. This helps make the film quite lightweight, which is in contrast to its predecessor. Edward Fox also hams the hell out of his character, which all makes this film a mere footnote to the original classic.