OPERATION
CROSSBOW (1965)
Starring
Sophia Loren (sort
of), George
Peppard, Trevor Howard, John Mills, Richard Johnson, Jeremy Kemp,
Anthony Quayle, Lilli Palmer. Directed by Michael Anderson. (116
min).
ON
BLU-RAY FROM
Review
by Tiger the Terribleđ˝
One
thing is certain: Sophia Loren sure loved her husband, producer Carlo
Ponti. She obviously agreed to appear in Operation Crossbow to
help him boost its marquee value. Despite appearing for about 10
minutes in an inconsequential role that could have been played by
anybody, she’s given top billing over an impressive ensemble cast
(none of whom look as striking on a movie poster).
But
I get it. It ain’t like George Peppard’s name & face ever had
‘em lining up around the block. He’s the de-facto star of
Operation Crossbow, which is loosely based on a mission of the
same name that was undertaken near the end of World War II. The
Germans are on the verge of obliterating their enemies by developing
long range, self-flying bombs. British minister Duncan Sandys
(Richard Johnson) investigates and appoints a few agents to assume
the identities of Nazi-recruited scientists, then infiltrate the
factory in order to alert bombers of its location.
 |
| "Sorry...I thought you liked tuna casserole." |
The
narrative takes an interesting approach, showing both sides of the
conflict. The first half of the film balances Britain’s
investigation with Germany’s efforts to perfect their weapons
through testing. These two storylines converge when the mission
itself gets underway, with John Curtis (Peppard) and Phil Bradley
(Jeremy Kemp) gathering intel while German agent Bamford (Anthony
Quayle), aware of England’s mission, attempts to expose them. By
this time, the lovely Ms. Loren has already come and gone, having no impact
on the plot whatsoever.
And
that’s okay. Operation Crossbow may indeed have garnered
less attention without her, but it’s engaging enough on its own
terms. While no classic, it’s directed with workmanlike skill by
Michael Anderson, who efficiently juggles concurrent narratives and a
large cast to tell a fairly solid story that builds to an exciting
climax.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
"A
LOOK BACK AT CROSSBOW” - Vintage
featurette.
TRAILER
KITTY CONSENSUS:
NOT BAD. LIKE CAT CHOW.
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