Tout près de Satan

Director Robert Aldrich had his name removed as producer because the studio cut 40 minutes from "Ten Seconds to Hell." He felt without the 40 minutes, the film made no sense. Actually it does, but possibly some of the footage would have added to the suspense.

After the war, German soldiers out of favor with the Reich for a variety of reasons were sent to Berlin to attend to British bombs that hadn't gone off but could if not defused. Interestingly, in 1979, the show Danger UXB covered the exact plot, but with British soldiers working in London.

It's a very dangerous mission, as the bomb could go off in your face.

The team is made up of six people, the main men being a pre-war architect, Koertner (Jack Palance), and an arrogant jerk, Wirtz (Jeff Chandler). Wes Addy, Robert Comthwaite, David Willick and Jim Goodman make up the rest of the team. The men bet half their salaries on staying alive, and anyone standing at the end of the mission win the purse. Koertner is the head of the team, and he and Wirtz both compete for the affections of their landlady, Margot, played by a somewhat overwrought Martine Carol.

This is a predictable story but, given the volatility of the bombs, a lot of suspense. Palance had worked several times with Aldrich and is actually the lead and the good guy rather than the normally heroic Chandler. Both of them are very good.

Sobering, and definitely worth seeing.

Six nonconformed former German soldiers work for the British occupation forces on defusing blind shells in Berlin. The men, of very different characters, make a bet, that those who stay alive should get half of all their pays. Indeed one after another of them perishs. So it comes to the showdown between Koertner (Jack Palance) and Wirtz (Jeff Chandler), who also compete for the affection of their host Margot (Martine Carol).

This exciting adventure movie is staged carefully by past master Robert Aldrich. He shows in fascinating details bomb deactivation and the atmosphere of Berlin lying in ruins - a striking metaphor for the devastated lifes of the characters! Chandler and Palance are believable in their roles. Psychological it impress through the description of the fatefully scratched squad, whose members are not able to get out of this suicidal job.

In short: A depressing but exciting look on World War II survivors, who battle for the reorganization of their lifes.

TEN SECONDS TO HELL belongs to the short list of movies dedicated to deminers, besides of course Kathryn Bigelow's HURTLOCKER. Maybe there are other ones, but I don't know them. Anyway this is a pure Aldrich high testoterone film as were ATTACK, EMPEROR OF THE NORTH, DIRTY DOZEN, TOO LATE THE HEROES. And the Jeff Chandler-Jack Palance choice was the best one for such a topic. It is gritty, tense and helped by an excellent character study and Martine Carol's presence. Also a bittersweet film but brilliant where American actors play German POWs, very rare and unusual. Among best of Aldrich "men" war, because the director also "women" movies. And I won't say that in this movie Jeff Chandler is the villain, but he is the less "sympathetic", compared to Jack Palance, who used us to less sympathetic roles; see what I mean? So the roles could have been reversed.

The concept is utterly outstanding; the narration (at the beginning and the end) is rather unfortunate - Michael Pate's delivery is so exuberant, more appropriate for an educational short than a post-war drama, that one is surprised he doesn't conclude sentences with "And how!" I'm also a little surprised by the tone that the picture adopts generally, though I suppose it's reasonable after all given the wry, morbid, fatalistic sense of levity the characters bear in accordance with the scenario. Mind you, with that tone established early on, every instance of more dour eventfulness becomes all the more striking for the disparity, and moreover, the picture becomes more serious in little time at all. I don't think it's perfect, nor an essential must-see, but 'Ten seconds to hell' is a broadly strong, engaging title, and worth checking out.

It never fails to catch my eye to see Hammer Films associated with a title that's not a horror flick, but as this is a joint venture with UFA and Seven Arts, and produced by Michael Carreras, that's just what we get. Whether one wishes to attribute the excellence herein to that involvement or otherwise, I'm quite pleased with the production design, art direction, and effects, and the original music, and these facets alone manage to inculcate an unexpected level of uneasy atmosphere, tension, and suspense as the picture advances. Factor in Ernest Laszlo's capable cinematography, and Robert Aldrich's firm, steady direction, and I think it's safe to say the feature is rather pleasing, and an easy viewing experience. The narrative and scene writing are also fantastic, serving up one moment after another that's primed for explosive (sorry) storytelling potential, and by and large that potential is unquestionably realized with the terrific contributions of all on hand. That includes a splendid cast, not least chief stars Jack Palance, Jeff Chandler, and Martine Carol, who get the most time on-screen and who especially bring their characters to life with wonderful, subtle personality and nuance. Again, this is a smooth and readily digestible movie, and every detail lends to that.

Setting aside Pate's narration and the tonal matter, the primary issue with 'Ten seconds to hell' is a decided unevenness in how it's written. Oh yes, it's swell overall - but the characters and dialogue simply aren't as convincing, which unfortunately means that the less scenes are centered on the core notion of bomb disposal, the weaker they are. The romantic aspect thusly seems a trifle by comparison, and for as important as the characters and their personalities theoretically are to the tableau, those scenes where we learn more about them don't feel like they specifically add to the plot. Such inclusions could have been reduced to their barest element, in the process reducing the runtime, and nothing would have really been lost; an unfortunate reflection on the title yes, but at least, not its chief focus.

The good news is that any subjective flaws don't wholly detract from the viewing experience, and far more than not this is solid. The cast is quite fine, all the contributions of those behind the scenes are dandy, and the storytelling around the root premise is superb. If it falters slightly in writing and execution, well, I've seen other pictures go a lot more wrong than this. 'Ten seconds to hell' might not be quintessential, unless perhaps you're a diehard fan of someone involved, but by all means it's an enjoyable, generally satisfying movie that still holds up pretty well. Maybe don't feel like you need to go out of your way for it, but if you have the chance to watch, this is worth ninety minutes of your time.

Good picture and efficiently made by Robert Aldrich in which a bunch of two-fisted characters confront deadly on a survival game during post-WWII . An intense portrayal of elite soldiers who have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world : disarming bombs in the heat of Berlin . It depicts a microcosm of a highly trained bomb disposal team amidst a violent aftermath . At the end of the Second World War six German ex-soldiers return to Berlin and set up as a bomb disposal group to carry out their dangerous assignments and a subsequent bet . They are led by Karl Wirtz (Jeff Chandler in a strange villain character) , a selfish renegade for who the thrill of the dismantlement seems to be the ultimate goal regardless of the safety of his fellow team members ; Karl's true role reveals itself in a way that will change each man forever . And Eric Koertner (Jack Palance) who knows his place and duty and trusts others in the army to carry out theirs as well as he . They are constantly worried that an error or misjudgment on his part will lead to the death of an innocent civilian or a military colleague . As the tough and valiant men struggle to control their destinations . They feel strongly enough about something not to be concerned with the prevailing odds, but to struggle against those odds . They , then , agree a wager : If a man dies in the course of the job , his share is to be divided among the others and if only one survives he takes it all . As two tons of buried bomb and now two men must pit their lives against its treacherous fuse , two artificiers who had only one thing in common , the same woman (Martine Carol) .

This is an exciting blockbuster about to explode dealing with German demolition workers after WWWII , in which there are thrills , intrigue , suspense , sometimes stirring scenes and a loving triangle between Chandler/Martine Carol/Palance . A full-tilt intriguing picture in which director Aldrich turns the discipline of action filmmaking into a kind of visceral visual poetry . Thus , this motion picture serves as not only a look into an important aspect of German history , showing an interesting studio of engaging characters , too . While the members face their own internal issues , they have to make safe the place and to be aware of any person at the bomb sites . This is a flick where role development plays second fiddle to inbuilt intrigue as well as emotion ; concerning a similar plot to subsequently Oscarized ¨The hurt lock¨ (2008) by Kathryn Bigelow , in which some armorers to defuse bombs , make safe location and people ; however some of who may be bombers themselves . It was realized by the British Hammer-Seven Arts Company presided by Michael Carreras , made by American Aldrich and being filmed on location in a destroyed Berlin and with Brits , French , German and American players in the cast . It stars by Jeff Chandler and Jack Palance as bomb disposal experts , both of whom give excellent performances . As Jeff Chandler slowly reveals the strength , confidence , unpredictability and finally badness of his role . Jack Palance enjoys himself throughly in a rare character .

This motion picture of mixed origins was well directed , here Robert Aldrich gave a tense and brilliant direction . However , director Aldrich had his name taken off the credits as Producer because the studio cut a half-hour out of the picture without telling him , and he believed that unless they put that footage back in , the film made no sense . Aldrich began writing and directing for TV series in the early 1950s , and made his first feature in 1953 (Big Leaguer , 1953) . Soon thereafter he established his own production company and produced most of his own films , collaborating in the writing of many of them . Directed in a considerable plethora of genres but almost all of his films contained a subversive undertone . Robert shot various different actors in Oscar-nominated performances : Victor Buono , Bette Davis , Agnes Moorehead , Ian Bannen , Jack Palance and John Cassavetes . Two of Aldrich's movies : Veracruz (1954) and Deadly kiss (1955) are now considered to be among the most influential films of the 1950s . He was an expert on warlike genre (Dirty Dozen , The Angry Hills , Attack , Ten seconds to hell) and Western (The Frisko kid , Ulzana's raid , Apache , Veracruz , The last sunset) . Rating : Above average , it's a must see and a standout in its genre .