When Eight Bells Toll

While When Eight Bells Toll is not a masterpiece in my eyes, I myself would hardly call it a dud. Perhaps a little too short, and I do agree that some of the fight scenes leave you wanting more and some scenes such as the wooden boat exploding do make you raise your eyebrows as if to say "just why did they do that?", however there is a huge amount to redeem it.

I have to say When Eight Bells Toll is likable and entertaining for what it is. It has superb location shooting and a rousing score. It has an interesting and exciting plot, brisk pacing, decent direction and sharp and cynical dialogue. It also has the great Anthony Hopkins playing a role atypical to any other he's played. No-nonsense and a hero in a sense, Calvert as a character is very entertaining and likable and Hopkins is exactly that too. Even better is Robert Morley who provides a deliciously comic turn as Calvert's spy-master, while Nathalie Delon is beautiful and luscious as the lovely Charlotte.

Overall, an entertaining film. 7/10 Bethany Cox

A not bad interpretation of an interesting book by thriller writer Alistair Maclean, who has also written the screenplay in this instance. If this adaptation has anything going for it, it must surely be that it at least attempts to keep to the essential essence of the original novel, which was quite a page-turner. So many adaptations based on books by Maclean have been apparently destroyed in the writing or re-writing stage that little sense remains of the original concept. The thrill is often removed from the thriller. The essence of these books have often been hacked to pieces in an attempt to transform them into something cinematic. When things go wrong, it´s Maclean´s name that gets dragged through the mud!. Were this film to be made today, I believe it could be made much better, but still, it is an enjoyable romp made more enjoyable by the pairing of Anthony Hopkins with the luscious Nathalie Delon. Recommended.

It seems that the whole world and their dogs know of Commander Bond, who takes his martinis shaken and not stirred, has his dalliances with the ladies, and manages to save the world before dawn.

Agent Calvert (played most suitably by Anthony Hopkins) is how I believe Bond should have been. Both are Commanders of the British Navy I believe, both educated 'working class' and with both, you get a sense of being slight sociopaths. Don't get me wrong, I really am a fan of the Bond genre, but this performance by Hopkins seems gritty and more realistic a character and compares quite favourably to the Bond character played by other actors.

There is some great dialogue between the upper middle class boss of Agent Calvert (Uncle Arthur played by Robert Morley) and Agent Calvert, which helps keep interest in the film between the action scenes. Compared to many of the scenes produced by action heroes of the last 10 years, some are a little dated, although there were still enough to keep me interested.

Nathalie Delon was a great choice as the leading lady requiring rescue from the sea (were her intentions good or bad?), and its a pity that most outside of her native country did not see much more of her in other things.

One of my personal favourite pieces of work by Anthony Hopkins.

If you're an action fan, I still think this is worth a look. Long overdue a worthy remake I think.

Having trouble in engaging myself in the start of this movie, being a dramatization of the Alistair MacLean novel, it soon grew on me. The funny understatements back at the headquarters I immediately started loving.

On the cover of this Norwegian edition DVD it's stated that MacLean has had18 of his novels made into films. I think this a successful adaption, though over shone by "The guns of Navarone" and "Where eagles dare". That said, it's a pity that his most exiting novel "Night without end" from 1959. Shurely it would be a great film to make even today.

This is very like an 70'ies James Bond-film, where we meet Anthony Hopkins as an agent, not very unlike James Bond. There's even a Bond-girl. He is sent up to a rural part of coastal Scotland, MacLeans native country, to investigate why there are so many ships getting lost up there. He gets to find himself not very well welcome.

I think Robert Morley is magnificent in his role as Uncle Arthur, and so is Anthony Hopkins as agent Philip Calvert, which have naturally bad manners, according to his boss, being born to a lesser class. Uncle Arthur's Lines are hilarious, and much wittier than his equals in James Bond-movies.

Agent Calvert kills off bad guys like puppets on a chain (!), and the film keeps the mystery for a long time, making the ride an interesting one. This tells me Hopkins could have been a great Bond.

The film is very time typical of early 70'ies, and it's a lovely coast and salty water film. You literary smell the salty sea water. It gets more entertaining and exciting as the film proceeds, and I think that it's a great period piece to watch.

Recommended for those enjoying classics!

With only a couple of exceptions I've never been disappointed in film adaptions of Alastair McLean's work. As some authors are difficult to translate to the screen, McLean's action novels seem to be ready made for adaption. Just look at some of his work, The Guns Of Navarone, Breakheart Pass, Where Eagles Dare, Ice Station Zebra. I've loved all of them and When Eight Bells Toll came out it joins the list albeit in a more minor vein.

This film gave a young Anthony Hopkins a chance to be an action hero. His character has more of a rebellious streak than James Bond ever did, but he gets results. His assignment is to get to the bottom of a series of ship hijackings, the last one was a freighter carrying a fortune in gold bullion. He's teamed with Corin Redgrave who takes a more cerebral approach to crime fighting.

That however leaves Redgrave dead and Hopkins looking to take down who did it. He himself is almost killed when a helicopter he was in was shot down. All the action takes place in and around the islands of Northern Scotland where the locals seem to be helping the bad guys. And in McLean tradition, just who are the bad guys.

In most of McLean's work there is always a twist or two and which side the players are on is a mystery through much of the film. When Eight Bells Toll is no exception.

Robert Morley plays the spymaster supervisor of Hopkins and is less avuncular than usual. Jack Hawkins is a Greek shipping tycoon with a young trophy wife. As we know Hawkins had lost his voice box to cancer and his last eight or so years he was dubbed. Whoever dubbed him sounded to me remarkably like Alec Guinness.

When Eight Bells Toll is not as good as some of the other McLean inspired films I mentioned before. But it's still a pretty good action film.