By Brent Snyder (3/17/2022)
Today I realized that I had never actually seen the classic WWII movie "The Guns of Navarone" (1961) - I THOUGHT I had seen it before but when I started watching it on Netflix I discovered it was brand new to me. I loved every bit of it.
Based on Alistair Maclean's 1957 novel of the same name, the movie was written by Carl Foreman and directed by J. Lee Thompson - who also did "Cape Fear," two of the "Planet of the Apes" movies, several Charles Bronson films and even the slasher classic "Happy Birthday to Me" (!)
The men-and-women-on-a-mission-to-kill-Nazis movie boasts an impressive cast with Gregory Peck, Anthony Quinn and others. Their mission: destroy a Nazi stronghold located in a cliff on a beautiful Greek island - with mountain climbing, sailing, gunfighting, demolitions and song!
It's about killing Nazis and looking cool while doing it. Just look at the dashing David Niven in his jaunty beret! And the fiery-eyed Gia Scala in her punk rock resistance haircut! And dreamy teen pop singer James Darren (hey it's Vic Fontaine from "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine!")
The film even has an early role of Richard Harris, playing a pissed-off Australian named Barnsby. He's only in one scene early in the film, but he lights up the screen so brightly I was surprised that his character didn't continue throughout the rest of the film. Too bad really!
As a fan of Ian Fleming's James Bond novels, the mission to destroy the secret Nazi base located in a hollowed-out mountain felt very familiar to something 007 would have gotten up to in WWII. The explosive finale earned the film the Academy Award for Best Special Effects.
Four Stars!
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