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55 Days at Peking (1963)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
26 July 1963 (Australia) moreTagline:
A handful of men and women held out against the frenzied hordes of bloodthirsty fanatics!Plot:
Diplomats, soldiers and other representatives of a dozen nations fend off the siege of the International... more | add synopsisAwards:
Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination moreUser Comments:
Good action story moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Charlton Heston | ... | Maj. Matt Lewis | |
| Ava Gardner | ... | Baroness Natalie Ivanoff | |
| David Niven | ... | Sir Arthur Robertson | |
| Flora Robson | ... | Dowager Empress Tzu-Hsi | |
| John Ireland | ... | Sgt. Harry | |
| Harry Andrews | ... | Father de Bearn | |
| Leo Genn | ... | Gen. Jung-Lu | |
| Robert Helpmann | ... | Prince Tuan | |
| Kurt Kasznar | ... | Baron Sergei Ivanoff | |
| Philippe Leroy | ... | Julliard | |
| Paul Lukas | ... | Dr. Steinfeldt | |
| Elizabeth Sellars | ... | Lady Sarah Robertson | |
| Massimo Serato | ... | Garibaldi | |
| Jacques Sernas | ... | Maj. Bobrinski | |
| Jerome Thor | ... | Capt. Andy Marshall |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
154 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
2.20 : 1 moreSound Mix:
70 mm 6-Track (Westrex Recording System)Certification:
Iceland:12 | Norway:16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:U | USA:Unrated | West Germany:12Fun Stuff
Trivia:
In China at the time working as a professional mining engineer, future President of the United States, Herbert Hoover and his wife were civilians under siege at the foreign legations' compound. The future first Lady, Louise "Lou" Henry Hoover, collected shrapnel from Boxer artillery that is on display at the Presidential Library in West Branch, IA. The Hoovers picked up Mandarin Chinese while in China and used it at the White House when they didn't want to be overheard. moreGoofs:
Anachronisms: The rifle used by the US Marines in the film is a .303 Lee Enfield British rifle. The US .30-40 Krag-Jorgensen rifle would have been correct. moreQuotes:
Baroness Natalie Ivanoff: You know, I think I'll get you to take me to San Francisco with you.Maj. Matt Lewis: Oh? Why to San Francisco?
Baroness Natalie Ivanoff: Well, isn't that the place where they found all the gold?
Maj. Matt Lewis: [laughs]
more
Soundtrack:
So Little Time (The Peking Theme) moreFAQ
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Others have used a fine comb to go over the plot details so I needn't repeat it here. Quite simply, this is an action movie intended to entertain, not educate as some would prefer. One needn't look for drop-by-drop authenticity since purportedly they didn't use a speck of African soil when filming "Casablanca" either, although no one would ever guess it.
I was surprised to note Flora Robson as the Dowager Empress as I felt sure it must have been Gale Sondergaard, being her kind of role. There's a superb cast and well-moving script, some of the mannerisms were overdone but then that's what acting is about at times. It's good entertainment and deserves more than one viewing to absorb it entirely.