Unternehmen Entebbe

The bargain-basement production values that mark this quickie shoot-em-up, filmed and released literally months after the dramatic Israeli commando raid, would be enough to consign this turkey to the dustbin of TV history. But it gets worse. The audience can play spot-the-star as Hollywood legends Liz Taylor, Kirk Douglas, Burt Lancaster, Helen Hayes etc., turn in embarrassing cameos. Unintentional hilarity is the only possible response to the scene in which Linda Blair offers a box of chocolates to the flight crew and the terrorists holding them at gunpoint. Mirth gives way to anger, however, when the film depicts unruly hostages being deliberately shot down by Israeli soldiers during the rescue scene! With rescuers like these, who needs hijackers? "Raid on Entebbe," which came out a year later with Charles Bronson, is much the superior account of this operation.

After viewing both versions of the Entebbe rescue (the Encore Drama channel is showing both of them this month), I have to definitely say that this is the weaker of the two. While the true story is exciting and excellent, the bargain basement sets (most of this movie looks as though it were being filmed in an abandoned high school!), melodramatic overacting (Linda Blair and Liz Taylor I'm looking at you) and terrible Nazi caricatures really take away from the wonderful rescue story at hand. This is basically a soap opera, Hollywood version of a true story.

I'm sorry, but when Linda Blair walked around with that damn box of chocolates, I was ready to beat her up myself. If you want a great account of the Entebbe rescue, I'd highly recommend 'Raid on Entebbe' instead.

This and "Raid on Entebbe" were American all-star takes on the Entebbe rescue. The definitive movie is "Operation Thunderbolt" (in IMDb under its Hebrew name, "Mivtsa Yonatan"). It was the only one made with the cooperation of the Israeli government, and has Israelis in all the Israeli roles.

For movie buffs, though, it's fun spotting well-known actors (like Burt Lancaster) here and in "Raid" whose Judaism was downplayed or concealed by the studios earlier in their careers.

For Star Trek fans, Theodore Bikel (Worf's father) has a major role and Bibi Besch (Dr. Carol Marcus in Star Trek II) appears in passing.

What I am writing is intended for those considering purchasing this movie on DVD from Warner Archive. Do not mistake this movie for Raid On Entebbe which is a first class film. A first class cast deliver poor performances down to the last man woman and child. Although not annoying there certain scene changes with gaps intended for placement of commercials. a The plot is slow to develop and tends to drag painfully. Filmed in academy aperture on either poor film stock or the print is bad. There are frequent focus errors and audible camera noise. There are numerous technical and historical errors including piston engine sound for the turboprop C-130s. As digitized by Warner Archive has shutter type sound track partially visible to the right of the picture.

This is one of 3 American/Jewish productions based on the notorious happening . Passable though a little boring dramatization based on a true story about a counter-terrorist hostage-rescue mission carried out by commandos of the Israel Defense Forces . An Air France flight is hijacked by the PFLP and German terrorists (Helmut Berger , Bibi Besch) the plane has about 100 Jewish passengers. This is the true as well as exciting story of a daring Israeli commando assault on the Entebbe Airport in Uganda to free hostages of a terrorist hijacking . The plane is grounded in Uganda but Israelis would not negotiate . Crew and passengers were kidnapped by dictator Idia Amin (this version Julius Harris plays Ugandan dictator Idi Amin) . The Jewish passengers were separated and held hostage in demand to release many terrorists held in Israeli prisons . The movie then shows how less than 500 soldiers (led by Colonel Yonatan 'Yonni' Netanyahu : Richard Dreyfuss ,he was the older brother of Benjamin Netanyahu, the future Israeli prime minister) actually flew so far and rescued the passengers in one of the most successful Military operations in history. The implacable operation is executed by expert Israeli commandos , they carry out the rescue of passengers held hostage by terrorist at Uganda's Entebbe Airport in 1976 . The world watched , The world waited , and then the world cheered . The film is based on the true facts and follows the events since the flight's takeoff and until the hostages' return to Israel.

A compelling but slow-moving actioner all the more gripping because true . It is packed with thrills , drama , suspense and nice interpretations . The commander of the Israeli paratroopers, Lt Col Yonatan Netanyahu was the only member of the platoon to die during the actual raid when he was struck in the back by a sniper's bullet. All main star cast gives passable acting as well as support cast , such as : Helen Hayes , Elizabeth Taylor , Theodore Bikel , Anthony Hopkins , Linda Blair , Christian Marquand , Jessica Walter , Harris Yulin and Bibi Besch . Brief appearance by two great actors Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster as Shimon Peres . This is sixth of seven films that Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster made together . Special mention to actor Julius W Harris , he is awesome though overacting , he plays Ugandan President Idi Amin . Actor Godfrey Cambridge was selected to the play the role of General Idi Amin Dada, but died on the set from a heart attack early in the filming , then Julius took over the part , in the other production, "Raid on Entebbe (1977)," Yaphet Kotto plays Idi Amin. Both these actors played the Villains in the James Bond film "Live and Let Die (1973)" , Kotto the head villain and Harris his henchman . The motion picture was professionally directed by Marvin Chomsky (Holocaust)but in TV style . This is one of 3 American/Jewish productions based on the known deeds . The shows aired on American TV less than a month apart. It was in production at about the same time as Raid on Entebbe (1976) , another TV production about the same incident filmed by Irvin Kershner with Charles Bronson , Yaphet Kotto , Martin Balsam , Horst Buchholz , John Saxon , Jack Warden and Sylvia Sidney . Furthermore , Jewish production titled ¨Operation Thunderbolt¨ by Menahem Golan with Assaf Dayan , Klaus Kinski and Sybil Danning .

The picture is well based on real events , they are the followings : Operation Entebbe was a mission carried out by commandos of the Israel Defense Forces (I(IDF) at Entebbe Airport in Uganda on 4 July 1976. A week earlier, on 27 June, an Air France plane with 248 passengers was hijacked, by members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the German Revolutionary Cells, and flown to Entebbe, the main airport of Uganda. The local government supported the hijackers and dictator Idi Amin personally welcomed them. The hijackers separated the Israelis and Jews from the larger group and forced them into another room. That afternoon, 47 non-Israeli hostages were released. The next day, 101 more non-Israeli hostages were allowed to leave on board an Air France aircraft. More than 100 Israeli and Jewish passengers, along with the non-Jewish pilot Captain Bacos, remained as hostages and were threatened with death .The IDF acted on intelligence provided by the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad . This threat led to the planning of the rescue operation. These plans included preparation for armed resistance from Ugandan military troops.The operation took place at night. Israeli transport planes carried 100 commandos over 2,500 miles (4,000 km) to Uganda for the rescue operation. The operation, which took a week of planning, lasted 90 minutes. 102 hostages were rescued. Five Israeli commandos were wounded and one, the unit commander, Lt. Col. Yonatan Netanyahu, was killed. All the hijackers, three hostages and 45 Ugandan soldiers were killed, and thirty Soviet-built MiG-17s and MiG-21s of Uganda's air force were destroyed. Kenyan sources supported Israel, and in the aftermath of the operation Idi Amin issued orders to retaliate and slaughter several hundred Kenyans present in Uganda. Operation Entebbe, which had the military codename Operation Thunderbolt, is sometimes referred to retroactively as Operation Jonathan in memory of the unit's leader, Yonatan Netanyahu. He was the older brother of Benjamin Netanyahu, the current Prime Minister of Israel. The narrator of the film states at the end of the film that it's unknown what happened to Dora Bloch -played by Sylvia Sidney-, who had been taken to the hospital. It was later learned that she was murdered in Kampala. Her remains were found outside of Kampala in 1979 and were flown to Israel for burial.