Angus Lennie Movies

Cliff Robertson and George Chakiris star in this dumbed-down version of The Guns of Navarone. During World War II, the story concerns a Scandinavian underground leader, Erik Bergman (George Chakiris), who reports to British authorities the location of a German V2 fuel plant. As is the case in most World War II action films, the plant is in an impregnable location -- beneath an overhanging cliff at the end of a highly defended fjord. The only way the British can hope to destroy the plant is by collapsing the cliff on top of it. In order to do that, light Mosquito aircraft must be utilized. This is the job assigned to Wing Commander Roy Grant's (Cliff Robertson) 633 Squadron. In order to assist Grant in his air attack, Bergman attempts a simultaneous ground attack, but the ground attack fails, and Bergman is captured by the Germans. When he is tortured in their efforts to uncover the RAF plans, Bergman may not be able to withhold the top-secret information. Howard Koch and James Clavell adapted their screenplay from Frederick E. Smith's novel, reportedly based on a true story. Though Koch and Clavell are each known for their excellent writing, Squadron 633 is notable mostly for its adept cinematography from the co-operative effort of John Wilcox and Edward Scaife. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

In the second episode of the four-part story "Terror of the Zygons," several North Sea oil rigs have been destroyed, and the main suspect is none other than the Loch Ness Monster. But in the course of his investigation, the Doctor (Tom Baker) finds a spacecraft hidden in the depths of the Loch. It turns out that "Nessie" has been blamed for the skulduggery of a warmongering alien race called the Zygons. First shown on September 6, 1975, "Terror of the Zygons, Episode 2" was written by Robert Banks Stewart. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the second episode of the six-part story "The Ice Warriors," a team of 31st century scientists has inadvertently revived an ancient Ice Warrior named Varga (Bernard Bresslaw). Revealing himself to be from the planet Mars, Varga demands that his space ship, and his fellow Ice Warriors, also be thawed out. It falls to the reluctant Doctor (Patrick Troughton) to carry out the Warrior's orders -- or else. The thrill quotient in this episode is heightened by the evocative music score by Australian composer Dudley Simpson. Written by Brian Hayles, "The Ice Warriors, Episode 2" originally aired on November 18, 1967; unfortunately, none of the four remaining episodes are known to exist. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the fourth episode of the six-part story "The Ice Warriors," Martian invader Varga (Bernard Bresslaw) and his companions intend to use the earth's 31st Century "New Ice Age" to their advantage. The Doctor (Patrick Troughton) hopes to prevent this by utilizing a super computer -- but a team of scientists, led by Professor Clent (Peter Barkworth), are reluctant to let him do so. Written by Brian Hayles, "The Ice Warriors, Episode 4" originally aired on December 2, 1967; this episode apparently no longer exists. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Great Escape is based on the true story of a group of Allied prisoners of war who managed to escape from an allegedly impenetrable Nazi prison camp during World War II. At the beginning of the film, the Nazis gather all their most devious and troublesome POWs and place them at a new prison camp, which was designed to be impervious to escapes. Immediately, the prisoners develop a scheme where they will leave the camp by building three separate escape tunnels. Richard Attenborough is the British soldier who masterminds the whole plan, and who commands his motley squad--featuring Charles Bronson as a Polish trench-digging expert, James Garner as an American with a talent for theft, Donald Pleasence as a masterful forger, and Steve McQueen as an American rebel--through the construction of the tunnels and, eventually, their escape. An epic adventure film, The Great Escape runs nearly three hours, featuring a rousing Elmer Bernstein score and exciting action sequences -- including a notorious motorcycle chase between McQueen and the Nazis -- the likes of which had never been seen before in Hollywood productions. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

Terrence Rattigan, the playwright who brought us the multicharactered, multistoried Separate Tables, again offers us an episodic cross-section of humanity in The V.I.P.'s. When a heavy London fog paralyzes all air traffic, the lives of several people are profoundly affected. As indicated by the title, most of the characters in this portmanteau film are of the social and/or financial elite. Elizabeth Taylor wishes to leave her enormously wealthy husband Richard Burton in favor of playboy Louis Jourdan. Peripatetic European film producer Orson Welles is hoping to escape London with his newest protegee Elsa Martinelli in order to avoid paying his income tax. Australian businessman Rod Taylor, accompanied by his devoted (and adoring) secretary Maggie Smith, is anxious to head to New York to stave off a hostile takeover of his firm. And impoverished aristocrat Margaret Rutherford (who won an Oscar for her performance) would rather not go to Florida to accept a job as a social arbiter, but the wolf must be kept from the door. Before the fog disperses, you can be sure that at least one of the many plotlines will intersect with another. David Frost, in a tiny part as a reporter, was fond of recalling in later years that, while the major stars of The VIPS were introduced in the opening titles with animated limousines, he was consigned a tiny Volkswagen; alas, no such cartoon joke appears in the film, though on occasion the actors-particularly Mr. Welles-behave as though they were cartoons. Mercilessly skewered by the critics, The VIPS was a winner at the box-office, due in great part to the Cleopatra-inspired publicity concerning the top-billed Liz Taylor and Dick Burton. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi