L'enfer au-dessous de zéro

This is an odd Alan Ladd film from his years appearing in a few British productions. Most of these British films are pretty dull (such as THE BLACK KNIGHT and THE RED BERET), though this one is just a little bit better--but not so much that you should rush out to find a copy. In some ways it's very much like most of his films, as the pugnacious near-midget acts tough and beats up all his diminutive enemies (as Hollywood had a habit of co-starring him with other short actors). However, it is a bit different due to the locale of the film and the oddness of the plot.

Ladd is on his way to South Africa just to beat someone up. Sure, the guy deserves it but to travel 7,764 miles (more or less) just to do it seemed odd, as he COULD have paid some locals to do it instead (and for a lot less money)! On the way to clobber this crook, Ladd sits next to a lady on the plane and is instantly smitten with her. Later, after applying this butt-kicking, he meets up with her again and finds out that she's on her way towards Antarctica to discover how and why her father (a ship's captain) was killed. The official story is that he either killed himself or it was an accident but she doggedly is determined to find the real cause. Considering that Ladd is not doing anything (i.e., there is no one in the country he needs to beat up), he signs aboard as a first-mate and goes with her.

The rest of the film is set either at sea or on the ice--a definite change of pace for Ladd. But the biggest change is just how odd the plot becomes and all the bizarre and rather difficult to anticipate action. It's not really bad, but it's so weird and difficult to believe that it's not all that good either. Still, for fans of Ladd, it's worth seeing and others might see it as just another time-passer.

By the way, those who are members of PETA and soft-hearted souls should NOT watch the film as there is a lot of whale killing in the film and it's pretty graphic. Seeing it, it shows just how much sensibilities have changed in the last half century.

This British-made adventure represents an early teaming for two of the men who helped create the James Bond series, producer Albert Broccoli and writer Richard Maibaum. Apart from character names and the Arctic setting, the story doesn't really have much to do with the Hammond Innes novel on which it is (allegedly) based; the film actually ends more or less where the novel begins.

Nevertheless, this is gutsy, vital stuff with some vigorous action scenes and excellent location work. A young Stanley Baker makes a smooth, dangerous villain and the always-excellent Niall MacGinnis is on hand as a drunken doctor who comes to the aid of Alan Ladd's stoical, if slightly dull, hero.

Mark Robson must have remembered he directed in 1943 the absolutely remarkable "ghost ship " ,one of his VaL Lewton productions,all of which worth seeking out.

that's why the second third is arguably the best : a delightful villain (Stanley Baker,who else?),a mystery , a disturbing atmosphere in the depths of the ship;Robson can make the best of the hold and of the engine room.

More than the bland heroine ,Gerda is for the time a very modern character that should have been more developed ;it's her that should have accompanied Ladd in the final chase,not the frail clueless girl.

The last third seems a bit botched anyway ,but it's an entertaining adventures movie.

Hell Below Zero is one of three British movies Alan Ladd (Shane) appeared in. The Black Night was one of the others. I enjoyed this.

A man signs on a whaling ship and one of the reasons for this is to help a woman find her Dad's killer. The expedition takes them to the frozen wastes of the Antarctic, where they track the killer down on a rival whaling ship. Not surprisingly, Ladd also falls in love with the woman.

There is some good photography in this movie, which is shot well in colour. I first thought is was black and white when I purchased it.

The rest of the cast includes Joan Tetzel as the love interest, Stanley Baker (Zulu) as the murderer and Basil Sydney.

Hell Below Zero is a good way to spend 90 minutes one afternoon or evening. Very good.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5.

Duncan Craig and Judie Nordhall meet on a plane heading out to the Antarctic and win each other over during the flight. He has come for a business opportunity, she has come to disprove claims that her father, a whale ship captain, died by accident or by suicide – she believes it was murder and intends to prove it. When his business deal goes bad Duncan signs up with Judie's ship as first mate to help her in her quest. The ship in question is owned by John Bland – a hard man but nothing compared to his scheming son Erik, whom Duncan hears has had a hand in the death of Judie's father, a rumour that Duncan is very keen to quash.

Every inch the typical period adventure movie you expect it to be, this film opens with women in distress and a big strong man with a big wide chest there to help her in a big manly world of whaling. That it was this genre was no surprise but I had hoped it would be a good film rather than just being rather average and par for the course but sadly that is just what it was. The plot is fairly obvious and shuns logic and tension in favour of a more steady and predictable path that produces romance, stand-offs and the sort of fights where the bad guys line up with boxes raised just so that they can be hit by the hero and fall over. The characters seem to offer complex depths but unsurprisingly we stay on the surface of everything and really go nowhere with them as people. The story just about cuts it for a wet Saturday afternoon but don't expect any more than that.

What it does do well is use outdoor locations pretty well, although given that much of it is whale being cut up that may not be a good thing to everyone. The backdrops and sets are poor but the ice flows are convincing and bits of it do make the film stick in the mind but this is not enough to make it worth seeing for alone. The cast are actually outdone by the location use and most of them are too stiff to convince. Ladd does just what you expect and if that is enough for you then fine – I accepted him as part of the genre. Tetzel is poor, failing to have chemistry Ladd, failing to produce a real person and being outdone by Bennett, who makes a much more interesting and energetic female role. Sydney is stiff but Baker is good and it is just a shame that he didn't have more screen time (or a character whose motivations made sense).

Overall this is a solid but average adventure yarn with nothing particularly remarkable to recommend it for. Perhaps the use of real whaling ships is of interest to some but everything else is by the numbers stuff that did enough to meet what I had been expecting but nothing more than that.