Aggiungi una trama nella tua linguaAdventure drama during WW2 in Italy where a mixed group of people get trapped inside a cave after a bomb raid. But can they co-operate? And will they survive?Adventure drama during WW2 in Italy where a mixed group of people get trapped inside a cave after a bomb raid. But can they co-operate? And will they survive?Adventure drama during WW2 in Italy where a mixed group of people get trapped inside a cave after a bomb raid. But can they co-operate? And will they survive?
- Regia
- Sceneggiatura
- Star
Peter Marshall
- Lt. Peter Carter
- (as Peter L. Marshall)
Recensioni in evidenza
A motley group of friends and foes during World War 2 are trapped in The Cavern
during the Italian campaign. Junior officers and enlisted men, a woman Rosanna
Schiaffino and a British general Brian Aherne. General Aherne tries to enforce some discipline, but is more concerned with making sure they all know rank has its
privileges.
Some Axis folks buried a large quantity of ammunition in the place also and apparently forgot it. And I would think that if a general goes MIA the British would be making a 'no stone left unturned' search for him.
Not to mention the presence of one attractive woman amongst a few soldiers with some needs.
This was one mediocre war film.
Some Axis folks buried a large quantity of ammunition in the place also and apparently forgot it. And I would think that if a general goes MIA the British would be making a 'no stone left unturned' search for him.
Not to mention the presence of one attractive woman amongst a few soldiers with some needs.
This was one mediocre war film.
i saw this 37 years ago on the bottom of a double (possibly a triple) bill in a theater on Delancy st. in New York City. it wasn't the one i went to see but since i see every film released i stayed for it. it was a very pleasant surprise. i have always been fascinated by caves and have toured through most U.S. caverns so the title and basic setting of the film was immediately of interest. the only star i remember was John Saxon who i liked so that was another plus. beyond all that however, the film was unusally gripping and interesting. the plot details have escaped me over the years but it had to do with a small group of people (men & women) forced to be in a cave together even though they don't particularly like each other. these conflicts are brought to the surface in the claustrophobic space to result in various acts of agression and violence. there were no monsters in the cave as might be expected with such films but the drama between the characters i found to be surprisingly involving. i even saw it a second time.
Maybe this isn't the first WTF movie, but it certainly is in the running, and certainly the epitome of a WTF (What the Flock!) movie.
This movie, on the surface, is about people of different nationalities and sides during a war, being trapped in a cavern together. The social plot is about the "class" warfare, as the "officer" class becomes the majority, and the one "enlisted" man becomes the leader.
This should have been a good movie. The very nature of it destined it to "cult classic" status, but the writing is perhaps the worst you could get for what could have been great.
We want to cheer for the lone enlisted man, John Saxon, whose everyday looks made him a natural for the "Everyman", but his character looks to be written by someone who has never been in the "enlisted" class.
We have one German surviving to reach the cavern, who becomes the solitary enemy figure, but not a nemesis. In fact, he is one of the more rational of the characters. The nemesis figure comes from a cliché of a rich jerk, played by Hagman. However, Saxon's character is so poorly written, that we have a hard time pulling for him against the cliché jerk.
This is a great example of a great idea gone sour by poor writing. Not surprising to those of us who have sat in bard meetings where decisions over writing are made. It's always best to let one writer submit and at most one other to edit, before the director makes his final "rewrite", which most directors do. Today, you even have prima donna actors doing "rewrites", which is why you have so much garbage on film.
Those of us from the "enlisted" class want to cheer for this movie, and maybe that is why I don't rate it "1" or "2", but it is laughably bad. A real WTF movie, made worse by the fact that it did the worst job with a great idea.
This movie, on the surface, is about people of different nationalities and sides during a war, being trapped in a cavern together. The social plot is about the "class" warfare, as the "officer" class becomes the majority, and the one "enlisted" man becomes the leader.
This should have been a good movie. The very nature of it destined it to "cult classic" status, but the writing is perhaps the worst you could get for what could have been great.
We want to cheer for the lone enlisted man, John Saxon, whose everyday looks made him a natural for the "Everyman", but his character looks to be written by someone who has never been in the "enlisted" class.
We have one German surviving to reach the cavern, who becomes the solitary enemy figure, but not a nemesis. In fact, he is one of the more rational of the characters. The nemesis figure comes from a cliché of a rich jerk, played by Hagman. However, Saxon's character is so poorly written, that we have a hard time pulling for him against the cliché jerk.
This is a great example of a great idea gone sour by poor writing. Not surprising to those of us who have sat in bard meetings where decisions over writing are made. It's always best to let one writer submit and at most one other to edit, before the director makes his final "rewrite", which most directors do. Today, you even have prima donna actors doing "rewrites", which is why you have so much garbage on film.
Those of us from the "enlisted" class want to cheer for this movie, and maybe that is why I don't rate it "1" or "2", but it is laughably bad. A real WTF movie, made worse by the fact that it did the worst job with a great idea.
The Cavern is a wartime drama featuring an unlikely group of seven people who find themselves trapped in a cave in the Italian mountains. Those trapped include: a British general, an American officer and an American private, an Italian soldier, a German sergeant, a Canadian pilot, and a woman from a local village. Fortunately, the cave has been most recently used as an Italian supply dump. But can these people put their differences behind them and find a way to survive?
The Cavern isn't a great movie, but I found it a worthwhile watch. Most of the entertainment I got out of it came from the characters, their relationships, and their interactions. The cast is as eclectic as the characters they play, including genre fav John Saxon, Peter Marshall (it was more than a little weird seeing the long serving host of The Hollywood Squares in a WWII drama), the insanely beautiful Rosanna Schiaffino, Oscar nominee Brian Aherne, and Larry Hagman (yes, JR from Dallas is in The Cavern). The acting is about as good as you could hope for from a low-budget film American/Italian/German/Yugoslav(?) co-production like this. All do a reasonable job with what they're given to work with. For his last film, veteran director Edgar G. Ulmer created a claustrophobic, hopeless atmosphere. And, there are a few real gut-wrenching moments. The best has to be (and I won't spoil it) when one of the characters finally finds a way out of the giant cave system only to be met with the most ironic tragedy I think I could imagine. It's a very good, but heartbreaking moment.
But, as I said, it's not a perfect film. While I've credited Ulmer with creating atmosphere, there are far too many moments where the characters seem way more relaxed than they should given their circumstances. They play cards, they sing songs, they make jokes, they carry on like they don't have a care in the world. Even though they have food and water, I would expect more panic. It takes far too long for any of the characters to fully snap and have any sort of mental breakdown.
5/10
The Cavern isn't a great movie, but I found it a worthwhile watch. Most of the entertainment I got out of it came from the characters, their relationships, and their interactions. The cast is as eclectic as the characters they play, including genre fav John Saxon, Peter Marshall (it was more than a little weird seeing the long serving host of The Hollywood Squares in a WWII drama), the insanely beautiful Rosanna Schiaffino, Oscar nominee Brian Aherne, and Larry Hagman (yes, JR from Dallas is in The Cavern). The acting is about as good as you could hope for from a low-budget film American/Italian/German/Yugoslav(?) co-production like this. All do a reasonable job with what they're given to work with. For his last film, veteran director Edgar G. Ulmer created a claustrophobic, hopeless atmosphere. And, there are a few real gut-wrenching moments. The best has to be (and I won't spoil it) when one of the characters finally finds a way out of the giant cave system only to be met with the most ironic tragedy I think I could imagine. It's a very good, but heartbreaking moment.
But, as I said, it's not a perfect film. While I've credited Ulmer with creating atmosphere, there are far too many moments where the characters seem way more relaxed than they should given their circumstances. They play cards, they sing songs, they make jokes, they carry on like they don't have a care in the world. Even though they have food and water, I would expect more panic. It takes far too long for any of the characters to fully snap and have any sort of mental breakdown.
5/10
I was going to give this movie a 5 and say, "This is a solid 5!" Then I decided that if it's such a solid 5, why don't I give it a 6?
Why?, you may ask.
I watched it on FX cable last night, having missed the first 10 minutes or so. They were already trapped in the cavern. In a few minutes I was hooked. I happened across it again a few hours later just after the credits and caught the first few minutes until I was up with where I came in. Then I almost sat to watch it again. That alone says something.
Let's get some things out of the way about this film. This is in the public domain. It was shot in 1.85:1, but was broadcast in 4:3. It was broadcast on an HD channel, but still looked as if I was watching it through a silk screen. It may have been a 16mm transfer or a multigenerational copy.
Do not judge a book by its cover.
Many of the comments here about weakness in the script, character motivations and low budget production values are reasonable, but with a caveat. Many of those bad character decisions or odd motivations take place after being trapped in the cavern for weeks and months. When that is taken into account, some of the irrationality might be excused, or at least rationalized.
The cast is actually quite good, though half are likely unknown to most viewers.
The early exterior shots are not encouraging. The opening few minutes which set up the story look low budget. One German soldier stopped his motorcycle to give a report to an officer. After the report, he couldn't restart it, but they kept the "take".
Once the main characters are trapped in the cavern, however, the low budget matters less than the story.
Not everyone survives, and heroes and not-so-much heroes may not be who you expect. But that's a large part of what makes the film engaging.
It won't be the best ~80 minutes of your life, but it won't be a waste.
PS: One of these actors went on to a long-term gig as host of "Hollywood Squares". See if you can spot him. Another went on to be an iconic character on the TV series "Dallas". And this will be one of Brian Aherne's last roles, and not bad though certainly not his best.
Why?, you may ask.
I watched it on FX cable last night, having missed the first 10 minutes or so. They were already trapped in the cavern. In a few minutes I was hooked. I happened across it again a few hours later just after the credits and caught the first few minutes until I was up with where I came in. Then I almost sat to watch it again. That alone says something.
Let's get some things out of the way about this film. This is in the public domain. It was shot in 1.85:1, but was broadcast in 4:3. It was broadcast on an HD channel, but still looked as if I was watching it through a silk screen. It may have been a 16mm transfer or a multigenerational copy.
Do not judge a book by its cover.
Many of the comments here about weakness in the script, character motivations and low budget production values are reasonable, but with a caveat. Many of those bad character decisions or odd motivations take place after being trapped in the cavern for weeks and months. When that is taken into account, some of the irrationality might be excused, or at least rationalized.
The cast is actually quite good, though half are likely unknown to most viewers.
The early exterior shots are not encouraging. The opening few minutes which set up the story look low budget. One German soldier stopped his motorcycle to give a report to an officer. After the report, he couldn't restart it, but they kept the "take".
Once the main characters are trapped in the cavern, however, the low budget matters less than the story.
Not everyone survives, and heroes and not-so-much heroes may not be who you expect. But that's a large part of what makes the film engaging.
It won't be the best ~80 minutes of your life, but it won't be a waste.
PS: One of these actors went on to a long-term gig as host of "Hollywood Squares". See if you can spot him. Another went on to be an iconic character on the TV series "Dallas". And this will be one of Brian Aherne's last roles, and not bad though certainly not his best.
Lo sapevi?
- QuizFinal film of director Edgar G. Ulmer.
- BlooperThe setting is the mountainous area of Italy. On the outside, the terrain is very dry, undoubtedly with very little rainfall. Yet there is a raging torrential underground river in this cave. With the Mediterranean environment of this terrain, there is NO source for all of this water, as there is no alpine mountain above this cave. The director of this movie should have the cave in this movie a dry one as caves in this type of environment always are dry.
- Versioni alternativeItalian prints credit both Paolo Bianchini and Edgar G. Ulmer as directors, while USA prints list only Ulmer.
- ConnessioniEdited into Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-o-Rama Show Vol. 9 (2002)
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Dettagli
- Data di uscita
- Paesi di origine
- Lingue
- Celebre anche come
- 7 contro la morte
- Luoghi delle riprese
- Postojna, Yugoslavia(mountain exteriors)
- Aziende produttrici
- Vedi altri crediti dell’azienda su IMDbPro
- Tempo di esecuzione1 ora 42 minuti
- Colore
- Mix di suoni
- Proporzioni
- 1.85 : 1
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