Zone des Schweigens

CONE OF SILENCE is one of those rare films - a technical thriller. The subject of this film is a type of aircraft that has problems taking off and landing when carrying a lot of weight and in warm temperatures. After an accident as a result of this problem, the cause is listed as human error, leading the pilot involved to attempt to clear his name.

The subject matter is quite unusual and I enjoyed the way this film refused to pigeonhole itself to a particular genre. Even the characters are written in shades of grey rather than being merely black and white creations. There are thriller elements, some courtroom drama, but most of all this is about the human element.

What makes CONE OF SILENCE work is the exemplary cast who have been gathered together to bring the material to life. In lesser acting hands this might have felt slightly turgid, but the cast make it work. The underrated Bernard Lee is particularly good as the pilot whose failings make up the backbone of the plot, and Peter Cushing is fine as his foil, a misguided antagonist for the most part. There are also roles for George Sanders, Gordon Jackson, and Michael Craig. Hammer fans will spot the likes of Andre Morell (THE MUMMY'S SHROUD), Charles Lloyd Pack (DRACULA), Marne Maitland (THE REPTILE), Noel Willman (KISS OF THE VAMPIRE), Gerald Sim (DR JEKYLL AND SISTER HYDE), and Charles Tingwell (DRACULA: PRINCE OF DARKNESS) fleshing out the cast. CONE OF SILENCE is one of the more originally-plotted dramas I've seen from this era, and it doesn't disappointment.

Just as jet engine-powered aircraft were starting to take to the skies, veteran "Capt. Gort" (Bernard Lee) is involved in a near miss trying to take off in his new, state-of-the-art "Phoenix" aircraft. At the subsequent inquiry, he faces thinly veiled criticism from "Sir Arnold" (George Sanders) but is nonetheless cleared to keep flying by his senior colleague "Dallas" (Michael Craig). This earns both of them the chagrin of fellow pilot "Judd" (Peter Cushing) who's convinced of operator error and makes no bones about expressing his suspicions about "Gort" - especially when a landing at Calcutta reveals some foliage in the undercarriage. Thing is, both "Gort" and "Dallas" are convinced they are following the rules, to the letter, so what's wrong? When a tragedy ensues, the most convenient solution would seem to be to simply blame the pilot, but perhaps the foliage might reveal more clues as to what actually went wrong? There's a rather unnecessary romantic sub-plot with Craig and Elizabeth Seal's "Charlotte", but otherwise this is quite tautly directed thriller that uses some decent photography to illustrate the perils of the pilots and the claustrophobia of their tiny cockpits. The setting in India also presents us with an almost palpably hot and humid scenario for these airborne shenanigans. Cushing delivers best, I thought, as the man who comes across as jealous, or concerned, or ambitious or maybe all three? It's a simple story well acted and told and maybe isn't a film to watch if you have the slightest fear of flying (or, indeed, want one!).

I haven't seen this film for years, which is a pity because all i remember are a few powerful scenes thanks to the very impressive cast. Based on true events, but subtly changed to avoid law-suits, its actually a compelling little drama, a shame it hasn't been shown more often. The story on which it is based, the KNOWN Design Flaws in the Comet which were Covered up by the De Havilland company, and the subsequent "sacrifice" of an entire airline and its passengers in Italy, is actually screaming out to be remade! In this case, the truth is far worse than fiction...in the film, decent noble people save the day, in the reality alas...less noble and darker motives won...and people died needlessly. The performances in this little melodrama were so good, i actually remembered this film for at least 25 years...thats when i last saw it i think..well worth catching.

Airline pilot Bernard Lee is downgraded for 'pilot error', and eventually reinstated at full rating. His daughter, Elizabeth Seal, knows him for a by-the-book sort of man and puts a bug in the ear of pilot tester Michael Craig. He begins to suspect that the problem lies not in the pilot, but in the new jet plane; the company that manufactures it prefers to blame the man, rather than lose out in a hotly contested, lucrative market.

The movie is suggested by some issues in the De Havilland comet, the first commercial jet liner, in the early 1950s. Jet aviation was a hot topic for the movies, and NO HIGHWAYS IN THE SKY was on the film makers' minds as a likely model. All of the pilots start out being by-the-book, but their individual characters, both as men and pilots, come gradually to the fore, with Gordon Jackson (whose character is called, ineviltably, 'Jock') speaking offhandedly of instinct. In the meantime, we are confronted by everyone except Craif and Miss Seal, being walking avatars of professional probity, from George Sanders, who asks the correct questions at hearings, to Peter Cushing , who demands a retest of Lee .... and who is shocked to learn that he may have been guilty of a near-accident .... missed, like many, it is suggested, by sheer luck.

It's interesting to see in the cast so many actors who spent their careers playing villains. Instead they are tightly repressed. It's an interesting, coolly intellectualized movie that pits man and experience against the sleek, mechanized world we were moving into in the 1950s. The only strike against it is its lack of overt excitement around a now outmoded tecnology. Perhaps the modern audience would find it as relevant as a movie about steam automobiles that keep exploding. On the other hand, recent news about the Boeing 737 may make it telling.

As a former BOAC pilot David Beaty certainly knew his stuff and must surely have been pleased with this adaptation of his novel.

Has the crash of a jetliner flown by Captain Gort in which a co-pilot is killed been caused by a design fault or pilot error? That is the question. Although the captain is hung out to dry by a clever lawyer representing the airline at the tribunal of investigation he is still allowed to fly. As the film progresses it becomes clear that the aircraft designer has not been entirely forthcoming......

Charles Frend is a capable, workmanlike director and has done a good job here with a limited budget and some excellent actors. This was made at a time when there was a wealth of first class English actors upon which to draw. Peter Cushing and Andre Morell were no strangers to each other and had recently played Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. I consider Morell to be a superlative Watson and arguably the best Quatermass. Here Cushing has the showiest part and exhibits his customary style. This film can only work of course if the character of Captain Gort is sympathetic and here the casting of Bernard Lee is inspired. He achieves so much by doing so little. George Sanders is as always immaculate and although he only has two scenes as the lawyer Sir Arnold, undoubtedly pocketed the biggest salary.

It comes as no surprise that the airborne scenes are the most effective and that in which Lee and his crew hit a freak hailstorm is especially gripping.

The culpability of a pilot for an airline disaster was to be depicted in Ralph Nelson's excellent 'Fate is the Hunter' of 1964. Whilst Frend's film has neither the production values nor the starry cast of the later film, it still manages in its own quiet way to pack quite a punch.