The Guns of Navarone (1961)

Directed by J. Lee Thompson. Starring Gregory Peck, Anthony Quinn, David Niven, Anthony Quayle, Irene Papas, Stanley Baker, James Darren, Gia Scala, James Robertson Justice, Walter Gotell, George Mikell.

Robust wartime adventure of an Allied commando unit tasked with infiltrating the island of Navarone in the Aegean Sea and destroying a pair of deadly, German-controlled large-calibre artillery guns so that a couple thousand stranded British troops can be rescued; the team includes distinguished espionage agent Peck, explosives expert Niven, Greek resistance fighter Quinn, and so on. Basic cliffhanger storytelling, unencumbered by psychology, motivation, credibility or logic, but served up as powerhouse entertainment that only occasionally hits a lull or Herculean suspension of disbelief. The overall hollowness of the enterprise is filled out by enough adept suspense and explosive action to keep the average viewer riveted most of the way. Features a rousing score by Dimitri Tiomkin and Oscar-winning special effects. Based off the same-named bestseller by Alistair MacLean; its literary sequel, “Force 10 from Navarone,” would later be loosely adapted into a same-named film in 1978. Richard Harris has a small role near the beginning.

78/100