Le grand défi

Nearby half a century before the Queen co-starred with Daniel Craig she supported Rod Steiger in this ambitious A. I. P. Production that rather recklessly opened a can of worms by combining The Troubles with the Royal Family.

Whatever. It works perfectly well experienced simply as a gripping thriller building up to a climax as dramatic as that of 'The Day of the Jackal' with a showy part for Steiger in the tortured title role and is well acted by a good cast - most of them adopting Irish brogues - of whom one, Richard Johnson, actually supplied the original story.

My father-in-law, Les Hammond, did the sound on this film, and I remember at the time him telling me that he did not think this film would be released on general release because the authorities thought it would be looked upon as some sort of bible for terrorism. We went to see it a long time after it's release, and I'm pleased to say that it was an eye opener. The storyline was good, the acting was excellent (the accents were difficult but you can't have everything). I'm a great fan of Rod Stiger and he did not let anyone down in this film. Les Hammond is still in rude health and will be celebrating his 100th birthday on 6th June 2008.

A fun little reworking of THE DAY OF THE JACKAL, not on par with that classic film but pretty good in its own right. Rod Steiger is well cast as an IRA sympathiser who goes off the deep end when his wife and daughter are killed by a British soldier and decides to recreate Guy Fawkes' crimes in the modern day. A taut pace and gritty realism throughout means that this one builds to a strong suspense climax cleverly incorporating real-life footage of the queen.

Demolitions expert in Belfast, once a member of the Irish Republican Army, sees his wife and child accidentally killed in a street riot between political protesters and soldiers; he reacts by traveling to England to carry out a plot against Parliament and Queen Elizabeth II, though Scotland Yard is one step behind. Dreary topical thriller, an odd release coming from American International Pictures, has some relevance to today's headlines, though that doesn't exactly make this endeavor an important or intriguing one. Rod Steiger and widowed friend Lee Remick (reunited from 1968's "No Way to Treat a Lady") are somewhat uneasily cast in their roles, though the film has good music scoring by John Scott and fine cinematography from Ernest Steward. Controversial in Great Britain due to the Queen's appearance via newsreel footage, the producers were forced to begin the film with an amusing disclaimer. ** from ****

If anyone liked "Day of the Jackal", then they will certainly like this movie. The plot is similar in that a political enemy is to be killed by an individual. In this case two groups are trying to stop the killing-the government of Great Britain and the IRA. The IRA is not trying to defend great Britain but trying to prevent the backlash that would have been certain if the Queen and her family along with the House of Lords and Parliment were blown up. Definitely worth seeing in any case because of Rod Steiger's performance..