La notte dei generali

"What is admirable on the large scale is monstrous on the small."

It's Agatha Christie meets "The Battle of the Bulge" meets... oh you get the picture. Great cast lead by the always fabulous Peter O'Toole who delivers a memorable performance as General Tanz. Also nice to see French veteran actor Philippe Noiret in an ensemble that includes Omar Sharif, Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasence and Christopher Plummer.

It is tense all the way mostly thanks to the great use of – first Warsaw (and the atrocities performed there) as a backdrop for the story and then we move to Paris where the plot to kill Hitler is nicely interwoven.

"The Night of the Generals" is at parts predictable, yes, (with the great exception of Omar Sharif's final scene) but I guess that's also what makes it kinda' enjoyable at times - at least in the very last scene - when you know what's coming (and boy does it feel good).

Some may find it a bit tedious and yes it is long, but when it was over I knew I would definitely see it again sometime in the future so in short: it works! If you think this movie is your cup of tea, based on the IMDb-information, you're probably right.

8/10

I have to admit to having high hopes for "Night of the Generals." My previous viewing experience was 20 years ago when my brother rented the video. Alas, my expectations were only half met. The film suffers from a rather clumsy narrative as it keeps shifting from The Second World War to what was then modern day 1966. I found the constant shift in emphasis to be irksome as the film didn't seem to know which setting it was focusing on. In addition, the story about a German officer who investigates the murder of a prostitute in Nazi occupied Poland, took a backseat to what was really a general look at army life amongst the Nazis. Peter O' Toole doesn't really take centre stage as he should have done. He is out of the film for many minutes at a time and that disappointed me. The same applies to Omar Sharif as the officer investigating the murder. Luckily, the film does maintain my attention and interest, thanks to a brilliant supporting cast. We have Tom Courtenay, Donald Pleasence, Charles Gray, John Gregson, Harry Andrews, Christopher Plummer and others. Peter O' Toole - when he is in the film - gives an outstanding performance as the cold and ruthless killer in "Night of the Generals." His blue eyes look almost piercing. Not the classic I was expecting but still good.

I agree with the above general sentiment that the story strays a bit too much at times, especially with the rather useless bombing of Hitler as a detour. I do however understand why it's there - it's because by attaching the "good" German generals to the plot of killing Hitler, they let the audience not feel bad for rooting for them. Simple trick, but all in all detrimental to the momentum of the story.

The film is brimming with exceptional acting - O'Toole turns in a particularly vicious and strong performance as General Tanz, but everyone holds their own. It's rare to find a villain so distasteful and yet so intriguing - most filmmakers just content themselves with giving the villain an evil shtick without much character development - not so here.

I saw a newly mastered DVD in full 2.35:1 widescreen presentation and the the cinematography by the late Henri Decae is wonderful in all its glory.

Very interesting movie, please see it.

Franco-British co-production includes a phenomenal casting as Omar Sharif and Peter O'Toole stars this intense thriller set in WWII about a Nazi general who turns series-killer . A Nazi intelligence official (Omar Sharif) goes after three Nazi generals (a formidable trio formed by Peter O'Toole, Donald Pleasence, Charles Gray) who can be involved in the grisly killing of a Polish whore . Meanwhile , it happens historical facts as the Warsaw uprising and the 20th July Plot (1944) in which appears as collaborator Field Marshall Rommel (Christopher Plummer) .

This terrifying and sinister story turns out to be a big budgeted whodunit set in Nazi-occupied Poland and Paris full of big stars , thrills , emotions and too tense at times. Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif give terrific performances as maniac general and upright investigator respectively . Tom Courtenay gives the best acting as a disillusioned German Corporal and Philipe Noiret is top-notch as Police Inspector who works for both sides. The splendid cast includes Joanna Pettet who contributes the most controlled interpretation , John Gregson , Coral Browne, Gordon Jackson and the French singer-actress Juliette Greco singing a wonderful song . The best scenes result to be when general O'Toole is watching paintings have been selected and requisitioned from private collections by the Reichsmarshall Herrmann Goering , then he observes the ¨Decadent Art¨ as Touloise Lautrec (Le Divan) , Renoir (Nudes), Gauguin (On the beach) Soutine, Degas (The tub) and Vincent Van Gogh (self-portrait ) , when he suddenly bursts on real crazy.

Well adapted for the screen by Joseph Kessel from the best-seller novel by Hellmut Kirst with additional dialogue by Paul Dehn -Planet of Apes- and based on an incident written by James Hadly Chase. . Marvelous musical score by Maurice Jarre conducting the New-Philharmonic Orchestra-London . Excellent title sequence and spectacular production designed by Alexandre Trauner . Finely photographed on location in Poland and at studios De Boulogne-Paris . Glamorous and glimmer cinematography in Technicolor by extraordinary cameraman Henry Decae . This dark motion picture of epic proportions is stunningly produced (along with Sam Spiegel) and realized by Anatole Litvak (Snake pit , Sorry wrong number , Mayerling , Anastasia). This steam-roller based partially on fact has a high-rating : Better than average , though may be little slow for some tastes. Well worth watching .

I remember seeing this film in the theater when I was a kid and being fascinated by it. When I finally located a copy on VHS, I was able to enjoy it once again. Do not over analyze it. Just enjoy Peter O'Toole as the nutcase Tanz, Donald Pleasance as the General-with-a-conscience, and especially Omar Sharif as the dogged, honorable military investigator. Charles Gray as General Gabler (and Coral Browne as his wife) are perfect as oldschool Wehrmacht junkers. ("We are well suited, aren't we?") Yet another film that needs to be released on DVD.