Movies…with a little bit of obscure culture and sports mixed in
There is something about an old-school team-up movie that just gets the juices going. The Guns Of Navarone (1961) centers around a six-man team tasked with blowing up two powerful German Nazi cannons trapped deep on the Island of Kheros.
“A team of Allied saboteurs is assigned an impossible mission: infiltrate an impregnable Nazi-held Greek island and destroy the two enormous long-range field guns that prevent the rescue of 2,000 trapped British soldiers.”
Director: J. Lee Thompson
Writers: Alistair MacLean, Carl Foreman
Cast: Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn, Stanley Baker, Anthony Quayle, James Darren, Irene Papas, Gia Scala
Release Date: April 28, 1961
IMDB
There is something about an old-school team-up movie that just gets the juices going. The Guns Of Navarone (1961) centers around a six-man team tasked with blowing up two powerful German Nazi cannons trapped deep on the Island of Kheros. The squad must accomplish this mission; otherwise, it’ll mean the death of 2,000 trapped British soldiers.
The movie is based on a 1957 Alistair MacLean novel of the same name. While Navarone is not a real place, the Battle of Leros during the Dodecanese Campaign inspired the story. There are some discrepancies between the book and Carl Foreman’s nominated screenplay, most notably the gender of the local resistance fighters and the testy relationship between Captain Keith Mallory (Gregory Peck) and Colonel Andrea Stavros (Anthony Quinn). Conveniently, the latter is one of the best things about The Guns Of Navarone, the film.
The group’s leader is Captain Keith Mallory, played by Gregory Peck. The one-time Oscar winner (for To Kill A Mockingbird in 1963) is outstanding in The Guns Of Navarone. One of his best scenes comes when he must deliberately lie to one of his comrades for the sanctity of the mission. It’s a moment that divides the crew but ends up being the correct move. Keith Mallory takes risks, but calculated ones.
Peck’s best on-screen chemistry is with two-time Oscar winner Anthony Quinn, who plays the colorful Col. Andrea Stavros. Stavros was born on Navarone and is a well-known Greek assassin who had a previous relationship with Mallory, and it was not a friendly one. Their tension adds a tinge of unease to an otherwise unified front. Quinn brings a bit of Robert Shaw Quint energy, and it works well.
Looking up some of the backstories of The Guns of Navarone, it was interesting that Peck thought the movie had a strong anti-war message. Personally, the way the plan all comes together makes it hard not to get wrapped up in the patriotism of it all. Listen, war is terrible; we all know that, but The Guns Of Navarone does a fine job of inducing fist-bumping, mission-accomplished theatrics at its conclusion.
The Guns Of Navarone was nominated for seven Academy Awards at the 1962 ceremony. The film took home the award for Best Effects, and was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Film Editing, and Best Music. Its main competition at the 34th Oscars was Judgement At Nuremberg (1961) and West Side Story (1961), each with 11 nominations. The Hustler (1961) also had nine nominations.
One last cap in The Guns of Navarone’s cap? It was the highest-grossing film of 1961. It achieved this mark despite having a high budget of over six million dollars at the time.
The Guns Of Navarone is streaming on Amazon Prime.
STANKO RATING: A-
Stanko Excel Lists | Movies, Books, Podcasts. TV Shows
Stanko Letterdbox Account
There is a lot happening in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. One could argue that there is too much going on.
Much maligned as the worst of the Mission: Impossible franchise, Mission: Impossible II doesn’t do itself any favors upon rewatch.
MaXXXine (2024) “In 1980s Hollywood, adult film star and aspiring actress Maxine Minx finally gets her big break. But as a mysterious killer stalks the starlets of Hollywood, a trail of blood threatens to reveal her sinister past.” Director: Ti WestWriter: Ti WestCast: Mia Goth, Elizabeth Debicki, Halsey, Lily Collins, Kevin Bacon, Bob Cannavale, Michelle…
Conclave is one of the best movies released in the calendar year 2024. It holds the audience’s attention with a blend of pristine craftsmanship and character entertainment.
Little Women (2019) sat on watchlist for way to long. I raise my hand and accept responsibility or that.
Stanko's Stance 