Situation Hopeless... But Not Serious (1965)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Gottfried Reinhardt

Writers:

Jan Lustig (writer)
Silvia Reinhardt (writer)

Release Date:

21 January 1966 (Finland)

Genre:

Comedy | War

Plot:

During World War II, two Americans are forced to bail out and parachute into a small German town. Herr Frick...

Plot Keywords:

Prisoners Of War | Captive | Mistaken Motives | War Prisoner | Pilot

Cast

Alec Guinness	...	Wilhelm Frick
Mike Connors	...	Sgt. Lucky Finder (as Michael Connors)
Paul Dahlke	...	Herr Neusel
Frank Wolff	...	Quartermaster Sergeant
Mady Rahl	...	Lissie
Anita Höfer	...	Edeltraud
Elisabeth von Molo	...	Wanda
Robert Redford	...	Captain Hank Wilson

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:11

Filming Locations:

Munich, Bavaria, Germany

Company:

Castle

Trivia:

The title is a variation of an old Viennese saying; "The situation is desperate but not serious."

Situation peculiar... but not hopeless

Two American soldiers stationed in Germany during World War II are captured by an odd German shopkeeper (Alec Guinness); he imprisons the two men in his basement and keeps them there long after the war is over. Strange, unhappy, insecure comedy-drama is extremely well-cast but is really too creepy to laugh at. As the soldiers, Michael Connors and Robert Redford have some good moments, but one can't help but feeling this is just an actors' exercise for both (they're green, but commendable). Alec Guinness is forced to walk a fine line in his characterization; it's imperative to the story that we don't hate the shopkeeper, and Guinness works hard at finding nuances in the man to keep him complex and interesting. If newcomers Connors and Redford are young actors just finding their way, then Guinness is in the Master's class. *1/2 from ****