Battle of the V-1

Of course this is a low budget effort, of course the acting is stiff and very odd to our modern eyes.

It is of the time and included the rather funny way that actors and directors of the old English school did things. Note the early scene with Rennie's farewell, she studies the ground and then looks away from him, these sorts of dramatic methods of "showing deep sorrow or concern" are never used today and really do look quite funny.

In addition to the clean suits and perfect hair, check out when the 2 German soldiers get their uniforms taken by the leading men but even though the Germans are from the same unit, the uniforms are quite different a while later. There was simply not enough money to do it right.

Better to fast fwd some of the more obvious bits and just enjoy this period film of a long gone time.

This is an old-style war film without glamorous actors and spectacular special effects; all the characters look quite ordinary, even the often-suave Michael Rennie, and there's no great romance. Thank goodness; this film is all the better for it. Other comments suggest there's a lot of fact in the film, and I'm not sure how much was liberty was taken with the actual heroic efforts of the Polish Resistance. A quick Google suggests that the Poles did find a V2 (not V1) rocket that had been fired, but that it was a Danish naval officer who discovered an early test version of the V1 that had crash-landed on a small island between Germany and Sweden. The officer sent a photograph and sketch of the bomb to Britain. In the film an actual rocket is loaded on to a Dakota aircraft in a sequence that I found unconvincing.

A previous commentator reckons that Rod Steiger made a brief uncredited appearance as a German officer. By the time the film was released, Steiger had starred in several films, not least "Run of the Arrow"; established actors sometimes make uncredited cameo appearances for fun or as a favour, but I was surprised by the claim that Steiger did appear in this film; if it was he, his acting against type was extremely good! Christopher Lee gets a high billing, but makes only a brief appearance.

This one of those rare films, that managed to get made without Hollywoods gross miss-interpretation. The truth has not been distorted for sensationalism, the facts are correct. It is a pity that stories like these are not remade today but with extra information about the story and maintaining the integrity, the truth makes a better story than those made up in Hollywood. Details about always having clean suits and the hair always in place, well what can you expect this was the style of movie making in those days. But the story line has not been altered to distort the truth, obviously certain details are missing, as these were still listed under the Official Secrets Act of the UK. Most the of the soldiers walking around seem to be SS in their black uniforms, but it is certainly better in its facts than later movies made about the war, ie. Enigma and U-571 which are an insult to those who took part in the original actions, and lousy education to those who are not aware of the original stories.

Thuis film is one of many that use an historical background for what is in fact a fictional story. Now there is nothing wrong in that except that scholars may in future take the films information as fact. You see the V1 (FZG-76 as it was known to the Germans) was never a rocket nor was it rocket powered! The film makers even use a rocket type sound effect when the engine is supposedly running. Yes there was a flying bomb and yes it was designed (but not built) in the Baltic, but that is where the facts stop. The V1 was in fact powered by a pulse jet, a sort of repeating explosion. Once heard never forgotten. The part at the end where a rocket is tested is inspired by the later V2, but never by the V1. If you are researching the German V weapons please do not take this film as factual. If you intend teaching the subject then please look elsewhere!

This is a simple, boys own adventure that is hard to believe.

Two resistance men are deliberately captured and sent to a labour camp so that they can spy on the scientific experiments.

They stand out from the rest of the inmates like two sore thumbs, always wearing their suits even when "breaking rocks!"

They use clumsy methods of communicating with the resistance and by some miracle the German guards don't suspect a thing.

The V1 rocket is being made and tested at this camp and our two spays successfully send information back to base resulting in the works being bombed out of existence.

This film is of interest only for two things.

Firstly, Christopher Lee appears as the Camp Commandant.

Secondly, and perhaps most interesting, It features an uncredited early appearance of Rod Steiger as a bespectacled German officer.